I am looking for a free spyware software that scans and removes spyware. I just wanted to know what everyone here uses and which is basically the best.

I also want to know if their are any programs that prevent the spyware from getting into your computer in the first place. I heard of Spyware Blaster... anyone use that one.

Thanks

I use MS Anti Spyware, it's only for Win XP and 2000, there it Lavasoft Adaware, @ lavasoft.de, and I use Spy Bot Search & Destroy, one is usualy good, however move then one doesn't hurt, and can help, all of the above have real time pretection agents. And any good spyware scanner has these.
See the thing about spyware is that once it gets in it may be very, very,very hard to detect let alone remove, so the real defense against spyware it a RTP (real time protection) system, which will defend when the spyware it at its weakest, before install.

Need help in the fight against spyware? I know of Spybot S&D which is free, and the free verison of Ad-Aware.

You can get Spybot here: http://www.safer-networking.org and Ad-Aware SE here as well: http://www.lavasoft.de

After you get them, make sure you update them until they no longer can be updated, then perform the spyware scanning.

Spybot. It works, and that's all that matters. I have McAfee Virus scan because i bought it, but it doesn't catch some of the malicious stuff that spybot can catch. It's really good. Use it. I got rid of 160 mb of ram usage after running spybot once. Yes, a lot of spyware on my computer, but hey, its all gone now. (thnx to spybot)

Yes I use spyware blaster and it is a very good software...It allows you to be safe from lot of spywares from entering into computer...One day I was looking for a smiley program and suddenly I saw an AD saying that it is a toolbar and it allows to put smilies almost everywhere on the internet but when I tried to Install it....I never got the option of installing it because it was a web installer...then when I searched for it in the database of spyware blaster I was able to see that toolbar software in it....so I was saved by spyware blaster.
You can also make use of various HOSTS files on the internet and that will help you in becoming safe from those websites who install spywares.
for e.g. you can use this HOSTS file http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm
also you can use IESPYAD and here is the link below.
https://netfiles.uiuc.edu/ehowes/www/resource.htm#IESPYAD

yea i needed a good program like that to so i am gonna try them out thanks.

Ive always used Adware Personal. its free, and i believe the best spyware removal program on the market.

I use MS Spyware thing, but I hadn't run a scan in a while cause I try to avoid stupid things that ovbiously are spyware.

Well, I'm using Ad-Aware (http://www.lavasoftusa.com/software/adaware), and I think it's a great program.
I've also tried Spyware Search & Destroy, but if it find adwares/spywares in system files, it just delete the whole file, which can cause big problems to the system, so I think Ad-Aware is the best program. I haven't tried the Microsoft Spyware thingy though.