Spy Sweeper - worst software and company ever!

[C & C Antiques and Collectables]

I am experiencing a disgraceful lack of response from Webroot Software
regarding constant problems with their Spy Sweeper program. I would like
to know if anyone else here has any experience of this company. I
suspect that a company as bad as this one will have upset many other
users.... I would like to see if my suspicions are justified.

 

[Guest]

I am experiencing a disgraceful lack of response from Webroot Software
regarding constant problems with their Spy Sweeper program. I would like
to know if anyone else here has any experience of this company. I
suspect that a company as bad as this one will have upset many other
users.... I would like to see if my suspicions are justified.

I use spy sweeper and it works great. Know several other people who use it
and no one has had any problems. good luck.

 

[Aaron]

First time I've heard anything bad about them.

Aaron

 

[C & C Antiques and Collectables]

I use spy sweeper and it works great. Know several other people who use it
and no one has had any problems. good luck.

When did you last update your definitions?

I downloaded them earlier this week, the download included a corrupted
file which now prevents Spy Sweeper from running. Webroot's initial
reply to my request for help was an auto response that included a link
to a downloadable file that was supposed to fix the corrupted backup
file. For me, it doesn't fix anything.

In my experience sending email to Webroot support either meets with no
response or an automated one, both have proved equally useless - and for
me sum up Webroot as a company and Spy Sweeper as a product!

 

[C & C Antiques and Collectables]

First time I've heard anything bad about them.

Which version are you using Aaron and have you ever had occasion to
contact their support?

When did you last download Definition Updates?

 

[robin]

try installing the latest version 3.2 and see if that corrects the problem,
that worked for me, i had the same problem you had

robin

 

[C & C Antiques and Collectables]

try installing the latest version 3.2 and see if that corrects the problem,
that worked for me, i had the same problem you had

That is the version I am (correction) was using Robin.

Did you download definitions this week and get the corrupted file?
I have sent yet another email to Webroot earlier this evening, and not
even an auto response so far. I asked support yesterday evening to honor
their claim of a 30 day unconditional refund if not delighted with the
product - and I most certainly am not delighted with it - so far I have
not had a reply of any kind from Webroot.

Their so called support is appalling, and in my experience, their 30 day
guarantee isn't worth a fart! In all my years of buying computer
software I've never received such pathetic after sales.

robin

 

[cerealkiller9]

-----Original Message-----

try installing the latest version 3.2 and see if that corrects the problem,
that worked for me, i had the same problem you had

That is the version I am (correction) was using Robin.

Did you download definitions this week and get the corrupted file?
I have sent yet another email to Webroot earlier this evening, and not
even an auto response so far. I asked support yesterday evening to honor
their claim of a 30 day unconditional refund if not delighted with the
product - and I most certainly am not delighted with it - so far I have
not had a reply of any kind from Webroot.

Their so called support is appalling, and in my experience, their 30 day
guarantee isn't worth a fart! In all my years of buying computer
software I've never received such pathetic after sales.

robin
"C & C Antiques and Collectables"

--
Charlie

use "reply to" header for email
.

I am running 3.0 and have a couple of minor issues with it.
I have never contacted tech support, I simply uninstalled
the program using Control Panel -> Add/Remove Programs then
I went to the registry, did a Find and removed all registry
keys that were resident, did a search for Files and Folders
and deleted any files and folders that were still remaining.

A little time consuming but it solved my problem. I find
it's always faster to fix the damn thing yourself than to
contact tech support.

My searches consisted of: spy sweeper, spysweeper and webroot.

Feel free to email me at the address above, it is legit.
The web site is our clan web site for America's Army. Ahhh,
my tax dollars at work...

All info is presented as is and used at your own risk.

 

[Guest]

1. GET A COPY OF 3.2 SPYWSEEPER BY FILLING OUT THE DOWNLOAD FORM.
2. ***ALWAYS TEMPORARILY DISABLE THE ANTI VIRUS AUTO PROTECT BEFORE
INSTALLING/UNINSTALL A SOFTWARE***.
3. DISABLE ALL THE OPTIONS/ SHIELDS IN YOUR CURRENT SPYSWEEPER AND UNINSTALL
IT.
4. GO TO DRIVE WHERE YOU HAD INSTALLED THE SPYSWEEPER> GO TO PROGRAM FILES>
DELETE THE WEBROOT FOLDER.
5. GO TO YOUR REGISTRY > SELECT HOTKEY CURRENT USER>
(a) GO TO SOFTWARE> WEBROOT…..DELETE THIS KEY AND ITS SUB KEYS; (b) GO TO
SOFTWARE> MICROSOFT>WINDOWS> CURRENT VERSION>EXPLORER>MENU ORDER> STARTUP>
WEBROOT…….DELETE THE WEBROOT KEY AND ITS SUB KEYS.
6. REBOOT THE MACHINE> PERFORM STEP (2)> INSTALL THE FRESH COPY OF THE SPY
SWEEPER 3.2> REBOOT THE MACHINE.
7. START SPYSWEEPER; UPDATE YOUR DEFINITIONS.

THIS SHOULD WORK.

THE WEBROOT MANAGEMENT HAD MAJOR PROBLEMS EARLIER. THEY HAVE FIXED ALL THE
PROBLEMS EXCEPT THE ONE THAT YOUR SOFTWARE WON’T SHOW YOUR ACTUAL
SUBSCRIPTION PERIOD !!!

 

[C & C Antiques and Collectables]

[...]

I am running 3.0 and have a couple of minor issues with it.
I have never contacted tech support, I simply uninstalled
the program using Control Panel -> Add/Remove Programs then
I went to the registry, did a Find and removed all registry
keys that were resident, did a search for Files and Folders
and deleted any files and folders that were still remaining.

A little time consuming but it solved my problem. I find
it's always faster to fix the damn thing yourself than to
contact tech support.

[...]

To be honest I have given up on Spy Sweeper, there are too many issues
with it that I am not happy about. I am going for a refund, which
incidentally Webroot have finally agreed to.... not without much hassle!

 

[C & C Antiques and Collectables]

THE WEBROOT MANAGEMENT HAD MAJOR PROBLEMS EARLIER. THEY HAVE FIXED ALL THE
PROBLEMS EXCEPT THE ONE THAT YOUR SOFTWARE WON’T SHOW YOUR ACTUAL
SUBSCRIPTION PERIOD !!!

Thanks for the advise but I have given up on Spy Sweeper, it just
doesn't impress me enough to put up with all that hassle.

 

[support]

I am running 3.0 and have a couple of minor issues with it.
I have never contacted tech support, I simply uninstalled
the program using Control Panel -> Add/Remove Programs then
I went to the registry, did a Find and removed all registry
keys that were resident, did a search for Files and Folders
and deleted any files and folders that were still remaining.

A little time consuming but it solved my problem. I find
it's always faster to fix the damn thing yourself than to
contact tech support.

My searches consisted of: spy sweeper, spysweeper and webroot.

Feel free to email me at the address above, it is legit.
The web site is our clan web site for America's Army. Ahhh,
my tax dollars at work...

All info is presented as is and used at your own risk.

First, let me apologize to anybody for trouble you may have had with
our software.

We here at Webroot strive for excellence in customer service. We have
made it our goal to answer our technical support tickets within 24
hours of receipt.

Unfortunately, sometimes problems will arise that may cause a delay in
this response time.

When we see a common issue arise, as it did with the corrupted
definition file released over the weekend, we try to find a solution
that works for all of our affected customers. The tool that we
developed to solve the problem worked for approximately 95% of our
affected user base.

It is unfortunate that the remaining 5% cannot be resolved as easily.

We ask that anyone still experiencing problems stemming from corrupted
definition file please reopen the ticket and let us know that the fix
did not work.

Alternately you can also visit
http://support.webroot.com/ics/support/ticketNew.asp and fill out a
new support ticket with 'My Issue Is Not Listed' selected for the
Issue Type field. Please add the text 'Corrupted Def File' and your
original ticket number to the summary field. This will help us quickly
identify you and resolve your individual problem.

 

[C & C Antiques and Collectables]

[...]

First, let me apologize to anybody for trouble you may have had with
our software.

We here at Webroot strive for excellence in customer service. We have
made it our goal to answer our technical support tickets within 24
hours of receipt.

Unfortunately, sometimes problems will arise that may cause a delay in
this response time.

[...]

How refreshing to see a direct response from Webroot, it does you some
credit to contribute to this thread. IMO it would do Webroot far more
good if it had pooled whatever resources it had at its disposal and
responded promptly to *all* of their customers pleas for help.

You knew you had a problem that was causing serious problems to your Spy
Sweeper customer base, for your company to ignore email pleas for help
is extremely poor practice.

It is not usually good etiquette to publicly post private email, but as
this is a copy of an auto response I see no harm in it. So for anyone
following this thread who is interested, this is a copy of the response:

[start copy]
We apologize for any trouble you have recently experienced with our
software. A corrupted file in our definition update distributed this
weekend triggered the problem.
[end copy]

With the exception of a link to a download patch and no other
explanation or instructions, I would suggest that Webroots response to
this *serious* problem was both casual and poorly thought through.

We can and do, all make mistakes, it is without doubt an imperfect
world. How we react to our mistakes separates the professional from the
amateur, unfortunately in my personal experience Webroot's reaction to a
serious mistake has been decidedly amateurish.

 

[C & C Antiques and Collectables]

I am experiencing a disgraceful lack of response from Webroot Software
regarding constant problems with their Spy Sweeper program. I would like
to know if anyone else here has any experience of this company. I
suspect that a company as bad as this one will have upset many other
users.... I would like to see if my suspicions are justified.

Proof (if it were needed) of Webroots poor after sales. I sent an email
with a "Read Confirmation" request, and received this yesterday:

<start copy>
Your message

To: Tech Support
Subject: Spy Sweeper Program Version 3.2.0 (Build 142) Using Spyware
Definitions 383
Sent: Tue, 21 Sep 2004 15:44:12 -0600

was deleted without being read on Fri, 24 Sep 2004 16:48:35 -0600
<end copy>

Don't hold your breath waiting for a reply to any email that is sent to
Webroot Support!

 

[PsyB]

You make it sound as if Webroot is of some consequence in the real
world. Why anyone would willingly install any of their software in the
first place is beyond me!
-=[PsyB]=-

 

[Shenan Stanley]

Proof (if it were needed) of Webroots poor after sales. I sent an
email with a "Read Confirmation" request, and received this yesterday:

<start copy>
Your message

To: Tech Support
Subject: Spy Sweeper Program Version 3.2.0 (Build 142) Using
Spyware Definitions 383
Sent: Tue, 21 Sep 2004 15:44:12 -0600

was deleted without being read on Fri, 24 Sep 2004 16:48:35 -0600
<end copy>

Don't hold your breath waiting for a reply to any email that is sent
to Webroot Support!

You know - you could have gotten that response if they refuse to answer your
read receipt as well. I always refuse to acknowledge read receipts - it's
no ones business if I read their email or not.

 

[C & C Antiques and Collectables]

You know - you could have gotten that response if they refuse to answer your
read receipt as well. I always refuse to acknowledge read receipts - it's
no ones business if I read their email or not.

I've no problem with anyone who wishes to prevent a read receipt from
going out, but for a company to run it's client support system in such a
way speaks volumes to me about its attitude.

 

[Guest]

I am shocked at the way webroot has acted. That is really not a good way to
earn business. I hope this thread continues...

The response from webroot support is terrible. If the middle or upper
management does not know about it, then maybe someone should make them aware
of it. I know that the tech support person is the lowest on the pole (dumb
and even dumber), but management should be made aware. If "Charlie" needs a
training lesson, then maybe a good shot in the rear will set him straight.
Afterall, if no customers contact support, then no support is needed.
"Charlie" should get the boot!

cyber does not need support like that.

biz

 

[C & C Antiques and Collectables]

I am shocked at the way webroot has acted. That is really not a good way to
earn business. I hope this thread continues...

Me too. I've been a computer software buyer for more years than I care
to remember, Webroot after sales is without doubt the worst I've
experienced by a very long way!

The response from webroot support is terrible. If the middle or upper
management does not know about it, then maybe someone should make them aware
of it. I know that the tech support person is the lowest on the pole (dumb
and even dumber), but management should be made aware. If "Charlie" needs a
training lesson, then maybe a good shot in the rear will set him straight.
Afterall, if no customers contact support, then no support is needed.
"Charlie" should get the boot!

You have got a crossed wire, Charlie does not work for Webroot (thank
god), Charlie is the unfortunate guy that Webroot have been
ignoring..... i.e. me!!