Dr.Web LiveDisk vs Spybot – Search & Destroy

Dr.Web LiveDisk is a free antivirus recovery tool for systems damaged by viruses or malware. It starts from a DVD or USB drive as emergency media, then launches the Dr.Web CureIt! scanner automatically. Users can choose a scan mode, run a quick scan or adjust scan settings. LiveDisk can remove viruses and suspicious files, restore infected items, and copy important data to external media or another computer. On startup it detects and mounts hard-drive partitions and establishes a network connection if possible. The included Midnight Commander file manager can search for and copy information, and the boot menu offers Memtest86+. Creating a USB drive requires at least 1 GB of free space; formatting is optional, and the creation application leaves existing files unchanged by default. USB booting requires BIOS support for a USB HDD device. Doctor Web advises checking that LiveDisk is current and updating its virus databases if needed, and lists 24/7 online technical support.

Spybot – Search & Destroy is Windows security software focused on finding and removing spyware, adware, tracking software, keyloggers and other unwanted software. Its Free Edition includes anti-spyware scanning and removal, a rootkit scan, System Immunization and Startup Tools, for private, non-commercial use; the private-use license does not cap device count. System Immunization blocks access to sites associated with malicious or unwanted software, tracking cookies and browser plugins identified as malware. The maker lists Internet Explorer, Opera, Firefox and Chrome for that feature. Rootkit Scan checks the file system, registry and process-related lists. Paid editions list features including automatic signature downloads multiple times per day and task scheduling. Live Protection monitors newly created and running processes and blocks malicious processes before they start. Command-line tools cover scans, immunization, cleaning and updating, with use in scripts and scheduled tasks described by the maker. The product page also describes FileAlyzer for file analysis and RegAlyzer for browsing and changing the registry. Startup Tools can alter registry and other system settings, so the maker advises care.