Editing Spyware (section)

===Anti-spyware programs===
{{see also|Category:Spyware removal}}
Many programmers and some commercial firms have released products designed to remove or block spyware. Programs such as PC Tools' [[Spyware Doctor]], Lavasoft's ''[[Ad-Aware SE]]'' and Patrick Kolla's ''[[Spybot - Search & Destroy]]'' rapidly gained popularity as tools to remove, and in some cases intercept, spyware programs. In December 2004, [[Microsoft]] acquired the ''[[GIANT AntiSpyware]]'' software,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://news.microsoft.com/2004/12/16/microsoft-acquires-anti-spyware-leader-giant-company/ |title=Microsoft Acquires Anti-Spyware Leader GIANT Company |date= 16 December 2004 |access-date=21 December 2020 |website=PressPass |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050617082537/http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2004/dec04/12-16GIANTPR.mspx |archive-date=17 June 2005 |url-status=live}}</ref> re{{nbh}}branding it as ''Microsoft AntiSpyware (Beta 1)'' and releasing it as a free download for Genuine Windows XP and Windows 2003 users. In November, 2005, it was renamed [[Windows Defender]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://blogs.technet.com/antimalware/archive/2005/11/04/413700.aspx |title=What's in a name?? A lot!! Announcing Windows Defender! |website=[[Microsoft TechNet#Blogs|blogs.technet.com]] |last=Garms |first=Jason |date=4 November 2005 |access-date=21 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051123220536/http://blogs.technet.com/antimalware/archive/2005/11/04/413700.aspx |archive-date=23 November 2005}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://blogs.technet.com/stevedod/archive/2005/11/04/413701.aspx |title=Microsoft Windows AntiSpyware is now......&quot;Windows Defender&quot; |website=[[Microsoft TechNet#Blogs|blogs.technet.com]] |last=Dodson |first=Steve |date=4 November 2005 |access-date=21 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051124234251/http://blogs.technet.com/stevedod/archive/2005/11/04/413701.aspx |archive-date=24 November 2005}}</ref>

Major anti-virus firms such as [[NortonLifeLock|Symantec]], [[PC Tools (company)|PC Tools]], [[McAfee]] and [[Sophos]] have also added anti-spyware features to their existing anti-virus products. Early on, anti-virus firms expressed reluctance to add anti-spyware functions, citing lawsuits brought by spyware authors against the authors of web sites and programs which described their products as "spyware". However, recent versions of these major firms home and business anti-virus products do include anti-spyware functions, albeit treated differently from viruses. Symantec Anti-Virus, for instance, categorizes spyware programs as "extended threats" and now offers [[real-time protection]] against these threats.

Other Anti-spyware tools include FlexiSPY, Mobilespy, mSPY, TheWiSPY, and UMobix.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Qabalin |first1=Majdi K. |last2=Naser |first2=Muawya |last3=Alkasassbeh |first3=Mouhammd |date=2 August 2022 |title=Android Spyware Detection Using Machine Learning: A Novel Dataset |journal=Sensors |language=en |volume=22 |issue=15 |pages=5765 |doi=10.3390/s22155765 |pmid=35957337 |pmc=9371186 |issn=1424-8220 |doi-access=free }}</ref>