Click this link just as fast as your mouse can get there. Spybot cleans out malicious cookies and spyware you’ve been accumulating on your computer probably without even knowing it. Be aware however that you need to pay close attention when running it – it’s possible to incapacitate software you rely on if you don’t read the instructions when running it – (Mike, this means you!).

A brief explanation in case you’re not familiar with the concept – advertisers dump little ‘cookies’ on your computer as you browse the web. These cookies are used to track what sites you visit and ads you click on, and they build up a profile of your usage. Spyware is also installed by various software packages like Kazaa when you install it, and the spyware reports back to the developer about how you use their software. In both cases, you don’t want this – if you can’t infer why from the description of what it’s doing, then just take my word for it 😉

Spyware blockers have become as important as virus checkers imho, and this one is the new king of the hill, displacing my old favorite ad-aware.