A program has placed UNWANTED items into my favorites. When I delete & sigh back on they reappear.  Spybot does not solve the problem. Whan trying to install"CounterSpy" protection I get  an error message which stops the program from loading.  Any Ideas?  Virus scanners
AVG Free
-- Anti virus scanner


Anti spy/malware
Microsoft Antispyware
-- Anti spyware scanner. Windows XP Home and Professional only.
Spybot Search & Destroy
-- Anti spyware scanner
Adaware SE Personal
-- Anti spyware scanner

Firewalls
Using only one firewall is advised. Dual firewalls may cause problems.
Using a hardware firewall and a software firewall is even more adviced.
ZoneAlarm Free
-- Free firewall - more user friendly
Sygate Personal
-- Free firewall - more configuration options

Removal tools
The following files are not substitutes for the ones described above.
They are either diagnostic tools or removal tools for malware of a certain kind

HijackThis
-- Manual malware remover. Post the HijackThis log GENERATED only if REQUESTED!
McAfee Stinger
-- Virus removal tool. No substitute for a fully functional virus scanner!
CWshredder
-- CoolWebSearch removal tool. Widely known and persistant HIJACKER.