• Hosts file modification to block spyware

Recommended and used by me.

As described on the site:

What it does ...
The Hosts file contains the mappings of IP addresses to host names. This file is loaded into memory (cache) at startup, then Windows checks the Hosts file before it queries any DNS servers, which enables it to override addresses in the DNS. This prevents access to the listed sites by redirecting any connection attempts back to the local machine. Another feature of the HOSTS file is its ability to block other applications from connecting to the Internet, providing the entry exists.

You can use a HOSTS file to block ads, banners, 3rd party Cookies, 3rd party page counters, web bugs, and even most hijackers. This is accomplished by blocking the connection(s) that supplies these little gems.

How to install:

The readme file has some instructions, but here's how I did it.

1. Create a sub-directory such as c:\fix_host_file
2. Unzip all the files into there.
3. In windows explorer, run the .bat file ... it will prompt you to proceed, do that.

It will confirm that it's done. That's all you do. After that, you'll see various pieces of websites that cannot be found -- those will be the ads and other "junk" that the hosts file is now blocking.