Here's the kicker: it was done so by my parents.

I am 18 and no longer tied by any legal guardianship terms to my parents. I moved out to college a little while ago, but apparently my parents found it still necessary to "monitor" my computer activity. I love them and I'm sure they have the best intentions in mind, but I am also offended by this illegal activity.

I discovered the Spector Pro box in my parents house recently and it dawned on me what could be happening. I researched the program, and sure enough when pressing the default key code (cntrl-alt-shift-s i think) the password window popped up. I've searched the hard drive top to bottom and realized that the "stealth mode" was installed.

No spyware program that I've found detects it. My question is: Is it possible to remove this program without re-installing windows entirely?

Thank you all for your time!

p.s. My apologies if I have posted in the wrong forum. Mods, feel free to move this thread if need be.

is it not under add/remove programs?

infact i've got an idea, downlaod a firewall (preferably ZoneAlarm Pro) when it tries to access the internet for connectivity to send the details to the viewer (your parents) it won't be able to send... as it needs internet access

@Napster: Thank you for your response.

Regarding your first post, no. It is a "stealth" program that is extremely tricky to remove.

Regarding your first post, I am afraid that will not be enough. I need to physically remove it from this computer, I do not want it to be on here.

I would immensely appreciate any additional expertise anyone could offer.

Man, you are 18 and your parents are still tracking you down!!! I feel that way sometimes.

Found this web site, looks pretty useful. Spector :: Spector Removal Instructions
I did run their free scan and I'm clean

That is an excellent site, but unfortunately it only works if the installation is on the hard drive. The one on my computer is running in complete "stealth mode," and is thus impossible to detect with any spyware scan. I've tried many, including the one on that site. There are no Spector files installed on my computer and no Spector applications running. The only way I know it exists is by pressing cntrl-alt-shift-s, the default key-code, which opens a small menu asking me to enter the password.

I've heard a friend's account of his trouble with this program as well, and he says he had to re-install windows to get it off. That is how hard it is to detect and delete this program.

Give the following link a look see. Farm Fresh Meat: How To Remove Spector Pro 6.0 Keylogger

Also try a rootkit scanner to see if that will find it. Also you should have a talk with your parents.

LC