An anti-spyware and anti-virus software program, Adaware Antivirus, according to its developer, supposedly detects and removes malware, spyware and adware, computer viruses, dialers, Trojans, bots, rootkits, data miners,[citation needed] parasites, browser hijackers and tracking components.

Adaware accomplishes this by striking deals with malware operators and site owners to distribute its software in exchange for money.

In the 2008 Edition, Lavasoft bundled Ad-Aware Pro and Plus for the first time with an antivirus scanner,[10] which used the Avira engine[11] and this arrangement continued for a few years.

[13][14][15] According to PC World Magazine, an older version of Ad-Aware, the Anniversary Edition, could locate only 83.6% of malware in a comparative test carried out by the security firm AV-TEST.

Neil J. Rubenking of PCMag performed a lab test on version 8.3 and Ad-Aware scored 9.2 points, beating its previous best 9.1.