MS AntiSpyware update - via iE?

[John Hall]

So you're saying that the MS AntiSpyware Tool uses
Internet Explorer to get it's updates? Seems like the
tool just goes to the web itself without using IE. Am I
wrong?

 

[Guest]

-----Original Message-----
So you're saying that the MS AntiSpyware Tool uses
Internet Explorer to get it's updates? Seems like the
tool just goes to the web itself without using IE. Am I
wrong?
.

 

[Guest]

-----Original Message-----
So you're saying that the MS AntiSpyware Tool uses
Internet Explorer to get it's updates? Seems like the
tool just goes to the web itself without using IE. Am I
wrong?
.

 

[steve aichele]

-----Original Message-----
So you're saying that the MS AntiSpyware Tool uses
Internet Explorer to get it's updates? Seems like the
tool just goes to the web itself without using IE. Am I
wrong? no
.

 

[STEVE AICHELE]

-----Original Message-----
So you're saying that the MS AntiSpyware Tool uses
Internet Explorer to get it's updates? Seems like the
tool just goes to the web itself without using IE. Am I
wrong? NO, SORRY FOR LATE RESPONSE.

 

[Bill Sanderson]

No--we're saying that it uses the proxy settings, and perhaps other
settings, in common with IE and Outlook Express. For example, if you set
either IE or OE to "work offline" some or all of the features in Microsoft
Antispyware that require Internet access will fail.

It doesn't "use IE," but it wouldn't surprise me at all to hear that it
might use some pieces of OS code in common with IE to get the job done. The
issue of whether IE is a part of the OS is not just something bandied about
in courtrooms--it's very real.

 

[JoeM]

But sometimes that is a good thing

No--we're saying that it uses the proxy settings, and perhaps other
settings, in common with IE and Outlook Express. For example, if you set
either IE or OE to "work offline" some or all of the features in Microsoft
Antispyware that require Internet access will fail.

It doesn't "use IE," but it wouldn't surprise me at all to hear that it
might use some pieces of OS code in common with IE to get the job done.
The issue of whether IE is a part of the OS is not just something bandied
about in courtrooms--it's very real.

 

[John Hall]

Sorry. My question(s) was confusing, so I don't follow the
answer.

Question: Does the AntiSpyware Tool use IE (and hence its
settings such as proxy settings) to access the Internet to
update the Spyware signatures?

 

[Bill Sanderson]

I think that it is a Good Thing, although every time a new HTML rendering
vulnerability is found, I cringe anew.

 

[Bill Sanderson]

Microsoft Antispyware uses the proxy settings in IE to determine how to
reach the Internet.

However, there are definitely instances in which even with those settings
correct, some Internet-related features of Microsoft Antispyware fail--the
Tools, Suspected spyware report, for example. The reasons for this failure
are not known (at least in this forum)--at this point.

 

[Debbi]

Oh, this would explain everything! When I installed MS
AntiSpyware, if I chose to activate automatic updates, the
install program would just freeze. I suspected this was
because I already was infected with an IE-hyjacking
problem, though I never saw IE pop up during the install
(must do it invisibly). What I did to install it
successfully, was forego the automatic update option,
finish the install, then do a scan and get rid of the
hyjacker. I rebooted and was then able to set up the auto-
update feature. One interesting thing was that even
though I used the MS Antispyware tool to reset my IE
settings, I had to later manually reset the default home
page after getting an alert. So the initial reset of the
home page had not "taken", probably because of the
nastyware. But now, at last, my home page is
not "here4search"!! I am totally happy!

Debbi