HOSTS file changed by Spybot? Why?

[phermi]

I think my original post about this did not come through, or at least I can't find it. My apologies if it gets duplicated.

Can someone tell me:
1) The reason for Spybot to change the hosts file in such a dump way
2) The implications of removing the added lines (attached)

Thanks

[md usa spybot fan]

phermi:

From the title of your post:


HOSTS file changed by Spybot? Why?
If you are running Spybot 1.5.2 and immunized the item "Global (Hosts)" under Windows, you added Spybot's HOSTS file entries to your system's HOSTS file.


Can someone tell me:
1) The reason for Spybot to change the hosts file in such a dump way
2) The implications of removing the added lines (attached)
1) If you mean dumb way, I don't think it's dumb. Unlike most processes that add entries to the HOSTS file it identifies what added the entries.
2) The sites listed will no longer be blocked.

[phermi]

Thanks for you reply.

It is DUMB and let me tell you why. If in fact you want to BLOCK a website you do not need to create a loopback request to your machine. I am sure Spybot developers can find a more elegant way of doing so that re-directing web sites requests to the localhost.

[md usa spybot fan]

phermi:

If you have a more "elegant" way of blocking access to sites that works for all browsers and processes that access the internet using a domain name, I'm sure Patrick Kolla would be receptive to your suggestion.

[phermi]

For you and Patrick:

Let's use HOSTS also to store signatures and get ride of include files. If we can add anything the progam need into USERS FILES why do we need anything on the PROGRAM FILES? Or, we can use the registry for that too.

If the progam knows the ste to block, Patrick or anyone else needs to find to pur that somewhere else. The success of the Spyware protection can not depend on an USER file that many people use for other purposes.

Please feel free not to reply any more.