questions about antispyware apps

[BobLewiston]

I have some questions about antispyware apps:

1. I know you're not supposed to run 2 antivirus apps at once, but that you CAN run 2 scanner-only antispyware apps at once. But should you not run 2 real-time-protection antispyware apps at once?

2. Other than the fact that spyware "spies", just what is the difference between a virus and a spyware app? In other words, why can you run one antivirus app at the same time as a real-time-protection antispyware app?

3. Do all antispyware that offer real-time protection constantly run in the background to prevent the installation of malware, whenever an attempt is made to open a file or launch an application? Do they all also offer manual and/or scheduled system scans?

4. Does Comodo AntiVirus + Firewall include antispyware functionality?

5. Does Spyware Terminator include antivirus functionality?

 

[berry120]

1. I know you're not supposed to run 2 antivirus apps at once, but that you CAN run 2 scanner-only antispyware apps at once. But should you not run 2 real-time-protection antispyware apps at once?

I wouldn't. Yes, you might be able to find two that do get along (though I'm not certain that's particularly likely) but even so, why? If you've got a decent security package then just stick with it. Running loads of things in realtime is going to seriously eat into your system resources for no good reason.

2. Other than the fact that spyware "spies", just what is the difference between a virus and a spyware app? In other words, why can you run one antivirus app at the same time as a real-time-protection antispyware app?

That's pretty much it. It falls under the category of spyware if it collects information about you without your consent, then usually forwards that on elsewhere. And back to the first point, I wouldn't really run two real-time monitoring packages of anything, whether they're labelled antivirus or antispyware. A good package (even a good free one) can cope with both, and as you pointed out there's no huge technical difference between them.

3. Do all antispyware that offer real-time protection constantly run in the background to prevent the installation of malware, whenever an attempt is made to open a file or launch an application? Do they all also offer manual and/or scheduled system scans?

It depends on the package - though most real-time monitoring systems will also offer scheduled manual scans.

4. Does Comodo AntiVirus + Firewall include antispyware functionality?

5. Does Spyware Terminator include antivirus functionality?

I've not used either of these packages, so couldn't say.