When I open Windows Task Manager and choose the folder Processes, I can read that aawservice.exe uses 97-99 % of my CPU.
When I from the Ad-Aware window click Stop Scan nothing happens.
To stop Ad-Aware I need to use Windows Task Manager and I receive the message: This program is not responding.
In order to fix the problem I
• uninstall and reinstalled again from Ad-Aware home site,
• run avast 4.8 home antiviruses,
• run F-secure online scanner found 1 Tracking Cookie witch was deleted and
• run Tune Up Utilities 2008. This program found a lot of errors and fixed them,
but none this did solve the problem.
Hmmm… Not sure if you should ask for help to Ad-aware forums and technical support.
Indeed, Ad-aware is not a top most antisypware tool nowadays.
You could test better ones. I suggest SUPERantispyware, MBAM or Spyware Terminator to scan for spywares and trojans. If any infection is detected, better and safer is send the file to Quarantine than to simple delete than.
My suggestion would be to abandon adaware as it really isn’t in the premier league of anti-spyware any more rather than spend time trying to get to the bottom of this.
Spybot Search & Destroy is better than adaware, certainly the latest version, but there are better than Spybot S&D IMHO such as those mentioned by Tech.
It happened to me too. It happens from time to time. Run it in SAFE MODE. I think it’s a bug. I think I’m going to uninstall it. Malwarebyte is much better.
Ad-Aware is different
Better is who catches your infection on a given day
as long as you have ad-aware installed and updated try the boot scan/ safe mode scan
Be sure and post back if Ad-aware cannot complete in safe mode!!!
do you have any other anti-spyware-malware installed?
Which OS, Firewall, AV??
update and run an AV scan
if AV is also “nonresponding”
try one of the on-line avscans
Dr Web Cure it is also worth a shot as is the aforesaidmentioned Malware Bytes Anti Malware Free
Spybot has also found some nasties that MBAM missed - As Dirty Harry said “Do you feel lucky”
Ad-Aware sucks! Keep away. I used to love the old Ad-Aware PE free, but these 2007 and 2008 versions can cause only problems.
Why bother with it when there is SAS and MBAM!
