[Xenophobic Alien]

Format c:

[satchmodog9]

http://www.download.com/Spybot-Search-Destroy/3000-8022_4-10122137.html
http://www.lavasoftusa.com/software/adaware/

[freedom44]

Do you have microsoft xp? If so you can download their anti-spyware beta program for free from their website.

[Keith in Iowa]

http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/spyware/software/default.mspx

[satchmodog9]

also buy thihttp://www.symantec.com/sabu/nis/nis_pe/s

[eclectic]

The only solid way is to reinstall the OS from scratch

[decal]

Spybot, Ad-Aware and SpywareBlaster.

http://www.safer-networking.org/en/

http://www.lavasoftusa.com/software/adaware/

http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/spywareblaster.html

[Revel]

Ignore the format comment above please. It will erase your harddrive.

Go here and download:

http://www.lavasoftusa.com/support/download/

Install

Let it update its definitions and Run the Scan
It is the best one for free.

After that you can do a search for "Spybot search and destroy" on google. And run that one too. It might catch things Adaware did not.

Lastly download firefox or Mozilla and don't use IE.

[teenyelliott]

Do both of the things in post #4, then if you still have problems, go to castle cops, and post your problem in one of their forums. They will take you step by step through fixing what you need to fix, it's free, and they are the real deal. Takes a few days, though.

[pepperhead]

Almost every webpage I visit, I am bombarded with pop-up ads.

Get firefox, install adblock on it and look up "flash popups" and disable them.

[Daralundy]

There are various free software that might help you. Adaware, avast! antivirus, avg free, spybot, or spyware doctor. You can probably find them here:

http://www.download.com/2001-20_4-0.html

[hole_n_one]

The links on your FR homepage are all screwed up.

The destination sites are ever changing while sometimes leading to porn sites.

Well?

[blam]

"I downloaded "Total Access" from EarthLink, but it didn't do any good. I can't block all the pop-up ads, and I can't find a way to get rid of the spyware. I did a free spyware scan, and it determined I do have an almost dangerous level, but how do I get rid of it?"

I had exactly the same problem. I took my computer to a shop locally and he took most of the software for "Total Access" out, took the disc and threw it in the trash. I still use Earthlink but, I don't know how, lol.

Anyway, I had 509 viruses that were removed and he installed a free version of anti-virus software called AVG. The whole thing cost me $105.00

Works great now.

[InterceptPoint]

This is guaranteed to solve your problem.

Go to Gladiator Security Forum and post a description of your problem. Then just do exactly what they tell you to do. You will have to download and run several free spyware programs including HiJackThis but the results will astonish you. It may take you 2-3 days and several cycles of running the software and reporting the results on the forum but in the end you will be spyware-free.

These guys helped me save my daughters computer when I was ready to trash it and do a reformat. They are the angels of anti-spyware.

[ChefKeith]

Go to FReeper HolyMoly's home page link there for everything you need.

And put up a firewall also.

[Redcloak]

Don't fear the Penguin.

But seriously...

Actually, I am serious.

...but I digress.

Stop using the Earthlink browser. IIRC, it's nothing more than a skinned version of Internet Explorer. Go grab a copy of Firefox. Firefox won't play nice with the pop-ups. Once you've connected to the internet (with the Eathlink dialer, I presume), Firefox will get you out onto the net. Once you've gotten out, you should be able to get something like Adaware or Spybot S&D and do your downloading in peace. You may also want a copy of HijackThis to see what's running on your box.

[pepperhead]

You can also stop alot of them cold also by editing your hosts file.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hosts_file

[edchambers]

You've got alot of good advice here, other than format C:, while I enjoy formatting a hard drive and reinstalling an OS, most people do not, and it's probably not neccessary.Adaware and Spybot Search and Destroy will most likely get the job done.There are a few others worth mentioning, Yahoo Toolbar has it's own anti spy and a fairly effective pop up blocker.Also Spyware Blaster will block spyware from installing in the first place.CCleaner "crap cleaner" will remove excess garbage from your hard drive and registry.If you've downloaded,installed and ran all of the above and you're still having problems try running them in safe mode that will usually keep the spyware from reinstalling from memory. Good Luck .

[decal]

The problem with HijackThis is you'll need someone who knows what he's doing to interpret the results.

X-rayPC does all that for you.

http://www.x-raypc.com/

[HAL9000]

It's obvious from the replies that there are dozens of anti-spyware programs available - but none of them are comprehensive enough to protect against all of the Windows spyware in circulation.

If your time is valuable, it's better to use an operating system that isn't plagued with malware.