[T-Mobile, Samsung Galaxy SIII] serendipityguy:
Va ya con dios!

Ok elrene101, this might sound silly but please bear with me.....

How do you know that it is spying on you or like you have Spyware installed?

Do you see banners & popups? if so then it is not spyware, it is adware.

To get rid it is us usually straight forward and simple, just uninstall the app in question.

Lots of time you will probably not know which one of the apps it is with those banner that pops up in the notice area.

So Rule number one, Do not install free apps found on the internet.

Rule number two, Do not install free apps found on line.

Rule number three, Do not install free apps period.

Now I know that these rules may seem harsh, but the fact of the matter is that most of the free apps are free because the developers of these apps need to get paid and they seek payment from sponsors who place these banners or ads into these apps and even into the notice area of your android. Years ago, I too was happy to install cool apps that I found on line and I was slap happy with apps. In the early days of the androids there were very little oversight, most developers were slapping code or copying code found from other apps or from sources on line. The whole app install process was a hit or miss, apps were not being designed for the specific phone model yet. It was either an android app or a iPhone app. You had to install it and hope that it would work on your phone. The stuff that went into the apps were quite unethical with the poor Q&A or the constant freezes, random reboots. Some of the untold stories of an Android developer who has a great following in only like 12 years old. (what does that tell you about best practices?)

Then I started to notice, that these apps were causing my phone to become slow with lag and the battery life was like hole in a bucket.

I then removed all free apps, all of them. just kept the stock, then eventually went for root to get rid of them all.

Install only apps from the market or what is now call the Play & when you can, look for a pro version or a adfree version to reduce the bloat ware or ad ware on your phone. There are a lot of free apps on the market and most of them are great to use, but you have to read the fine print because they will require access to your network or phone to schedule an update or to shut down when an incoming phone call comes in.

I have my android for some time now and upgraded to the S3.... Over the months, I too have tried apps and when I see that the banners are worse the benefit of the app, the app get the boot. Over the months, I have a nice collection of paid apps that I have purchased from the market. So if the app serves no purpose, it will be removed. Now the phone has only the apps that I use on a weekly basis. If there is an app that I have not used in a month, it gets removed. This helps the phone with battery and keeps the rom running smoothly.

If you follow these principles, you will be fine and will not have to format your phone. If you do, dont be afraid to ask for assistance or for some pointers on how to make a back up or how to odin your phone.

Youtube it.

Youtube has helped me with clues and have gaven me a lot of knowledge over a wide range of topics beyound the android.

With that said elrene101, Va ya con dios!