ANTI VIRUS SOFTWARE'S

Antivirus software-based 2014

2014-06-02T08:00:00.001-07:00

History

Most of the computer viruses written in the early and mid-1980s were limited to self-reproduction and ^[6] That changed when more and more programmers became acquainted with virus programming and created viruses that manipulated or even destroyed data on infected computers.

had no specific damage routine built into the code.

There are competing claims for the innovator of the first antivirus product. Possibly the first publicly documented removal of a computer virus in the wild was performed by Bernd Fix in 1987.^[7]^[8] There were also two antivirus applications for the Atari STplatform developed in 1987. The first one was G Data ^[9] and second was UVK 2000.^[10]

Fred Cohen, who published one of the first academic papers on computer viruses in 1984,^[11] began to develop strategies for antivirus software in 1988^[12] that were picked up and continued by later antivirus software developers. In 1987, he published a demonstration that there is no algorithm that can perfectly detect all possible viruses.^[13]

In 1987 the first two heuristic antivirus utilities were released: Flushot Plus by Ross Greenberg and Anti4us by Erwin Lanting.^{[citation needed]}

Also in 1988 a mailing list named VIRUS-L^[14] was started on the BITNET/EARN network where new viruses and the possibilities of detecting and eliminating viruses were discussed. Some members of this mailing list like John McAfee orEugene Kaspersky later founded software companies that developed and sold commercial antivirus software.

Before internet connectivity was widespread, viruses were typically spread by infected floppy disks. Antivirus software came into use, but was updated relatively infrequently. During this time, virus checkers essentially had to check executable files and the boot sectors of floppy disks and hard disks. However, as internet usage became common, viruses began to spread online.^[15]

Over the years it has become necessary for antivirus software to check an increasing variety of files, rather than just executables, for several reasons:

Powerful macros used in word processor applications, such as Microsoft Word, presented a risk. Virus writers could use the macros to write viruses embedded within documents. This meant that computers could now also be at risk from infection by opening documents with hidden attached macros.^[16]
The possibility of embedding executable objects inside otherwise non-executable file formats can make opening those files a risk.^[17]
Later email programs, in particular Microsoft's Outlook Express and Outlook, were vulnerable to viruses embedded in the email body itself. A user's computer could be infected by just opening or previewing a message.^[18]

As always-on broadband connections became the norm, and more and more viruses were released, it became essential to update virus checkers more and more frequently. Even then, a new zero-day virus could become widespread before antivirus companies released an update to protect against it.

Identification method

One of the few solid theoretical results in the study of computer viruses is Frederick B. Cohen's 1987^[13]

demonstration that there is no algorithm that can perfectly detect all possible viruses.

There are several methods which antivirus software can use to identify malware:

Signature based detection is the most common method. To identify viruses and other malware, antivirus software compares the contents of a file to a dictionaryof virus signatures. Because viruses can embed themselves in existing files, the entire file is searched, not just as a whole, but also in pieces.^[19]

Heuristic-based detection like malicious activity detection, can be used to identify unknown viruses.

File emulation is another heuristic approach. File emulation involves executing a program in a virtual environment and logging what actions the program performs. Depending on the actions logged, the antivirus software can determine if the program is malicious or not and then carry out the appropriate disinfection actions.^[20]

Signature-based detection

Traditionally, antivirus software heavily relied upon signatures to identify malware. This can be very effective, but cannot defend against malware unless samples have already been obtained and signatures created. Because of this, signature-based approaches are not effective against new, unknown viruses.

As new viruses are being created each day, the signature-based detection approach requires frequent updates of the virus signature dictionary. To assist the antivirus software companies, the software may allow the user to upload new viruses or variants to the company, allowing the virus to be analyzed and the signature added to the dictionary.^[19]

Although the signature-based approach can effectively contain virus outbreaks, virus authors have tried to stay a step ahead of such software by writing "oligomorphic", "polymorphic" and, more recently, "metamorphic" viruses, which encrypt parts of themselves or otherwise modify themselves as a method of disguise, so as to not match virus signatures in the dictionary.^[21]

Heuristics

Some more sophisticated antivirus software uses heuristic analysis to identify new malware or variants of known malware.

Many viruses start as a single infection and through either mutation or refinements by other attackers, can grow into dozens of slightly different strains, called variants. Generic detection refers to the detection and removal of multiple threats using a single virus definition.^[22]

For example, the Vundo trojan has several family members, depending on the antivirus vendor's classification. Symantecclassifies members of the Vundo family into two distinct categories, Trojan.Vundo and Trojan.Vundo.B.^[23]^[24]

While it may be advantageous to identify a specific virus, it can be quicker to detect a virus family through a generic signature or through an inexact match to an existing signature. Virus researchers find common areas that all viruses in a family share uniquely and can thus create a single generic signature. These signatures often contain non-contiguous code, using wildcard characters where differences lie. These wildcards allow the scanner to detect viruses even if they are padded with extra, meaningless code.^[25] A detection that uses this method is said to be "heuristic detection."

Rootkit detection

Main article: Rootkit

Anti-virus software can attempt to scan for rootkits; a rootkit is a type of malware that is designed to gain administrative-level control over a computer system without being detected. Rootkits can change how the operating system functions and in some cases can tamper with the anti-virus program and render it ineffective. Rootkits are also difficult to remove, in some cases requiring a complete re-installation of the operating system.^[26]

Real-time protection

Real-time protection, on-access scanning, background guard, resident shield, autoprotect, and other synonyms refer to the automatic protection provided by most antivirus, anti-spyware, and other anti-malware programs. This monitors computer systems for suspicious activity such as computer viruses, spyware, adware, and other malicious objects in 'real-time', in other words while data loaded into the computer's active memory: when inserting a CD, opening an email, or browsing the web, or when a file already on the computer is opened or executed.^[27]

Issues of concern

Unexpected renewal costs

Some commercial antivirus software end-user license agreements include a clause that the subscription will be automatically renewed, and the purchaser's credit card automatically billed, at the renewal time without explicit approval. For example,McAfee requires users to unsubscribe at least 60 days before the expiration of the present subscription^[28] whileBitDefender sends notifications to unsubscribe 30 days before the renewal.^[29] Norton AntiVirus also renews subscriptions automatically by default.^[30]

Rogue security applications

Main article: Rogue security software

Some apparent antivirus programs are actually malware masquerading as legitimate software, such as WinFixer, MS Antivirus, and Mac Defender.^[31]

Problems caused by false positives

A "false positive" is when antivirus software identifies a non-malicious file as a virus. When this happens, it can cause serious problems. For example, if an antivirus program is configured to immediately delete or quarantine infected files, as is common on Microsoft Windows antivirus applications, a false positive in an essential file can render the Windows operating system or some applications unusable.^[32] Recovering from such damage to critical software infrastructure incurs technical support costs and businesses can be forced to close whilst remedial action is undertaken.^[33]^[34] For example, in May 2007 a faulty virus signature issued by Symantec mistakenly removed essential operating system files, leaving thousands of PCs unable to boot.^[35]

Also in May 2007, the executable file required by Pegasus Mail on Windows was falsely detected by Norton AntiVirus as being a Trojan and it was automatically removed, preventing Pegasus Mail from running. Norton AntiVirus had falsely identified three releases of Pegasus Mail as malware, and would delete the Pegasus Mail installer file when that happened.^[36] In response to this Pegasus Mail stated:

“

On the basis that Norton/Symantec has done this for every one of the last three releases of Pegasus Mail, we can only condemn this product as too flawed to use, and recommend in the strongest terms that our users cease using it in favour of alternative, less buggy anti-virus packages.^[36]

”

In April 2010, McAfee VirusScan detected svchost.exe, a normal Windows binary, as a virus on machines running Windows XP with Service Pack 3, causing a reboot loop and loss of all network access.^[37]^[38]

In December 2010, a faulty update on the AVG anti-virus suite damaged 64-bit versions of Windows 7, rendering it unable to boot, due to an endless boot loop created.^[39]

In October 2011, Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE) removed the Google Chrome web browser, rival to Microsoft's ownInternet Explorer. MSE flagged Chrome as a Zbot banking trojan.^[40]

In September 2012, Sophos' anti-virus suite identified various update-mechanisms, including its own, as malware. If it was configured to automatically delete detected files, Sophos Antivirus could render itself unable to update, required manual intervention to fix the problem.^[41]^[42]

System and interoperability related issues

Running multiple antivirus programs concurrently can degrade performance and create conflicts.^[43] However, using a concept called multiscanning, several companies (including G Data^[44] and Microsoft^[45]) have created applications which can run multiple engines concurrently.

It is sometimes necessary to temporarily disable virus protection when installing major updates such as Windows Service Packs or updating graphics card drivers.^[46] Active antivirus protection may partially or completely prevent the installation of a major update. Anti-virus software can cause problems during the installation of an operating system upgrade, e.g. when upgrading to a newer version of Windows "in place" — without erasing the previous version of Windows. Microsoft recommends that anti-virus software be disabled to avoid conflicts with the upgrade installation process.^[47]^[48]^[49]

The functionality of a few computer programs can be hampered by active anti-virus software. For example TrueCrypt, a disk encryption program, states on its troubleshooting page that anti-virus programs can conflict with TrueCrypt and cause it to malfunction or operate very slowly.^[50] Anti-virus software can impair the performance and stability of games running in theSteam platform.^[51]

Support issues also exist around antivirus application interoperability with common solutions like SSL VPN remote accessand network access control products.^[52] These technology solutions often have policy assessment applications which require that an up to date antivirus is installed and running. If the antivirus application is not recognized by the policy assessment, whether because the antivirus application has been updated or because it is not part of the policy assessment library, the user will be unable to connect.

Effectiveness

Studies in December 2007 showed that the effectiveness of antivirus software had decreased in the previous year, particularly against unknown or zero day attacks. The computer magazine c't found that detection rates for these threats had dropped from 40-50% in 2006 to 20-30% in 2007. At that time, the only exception was the NOD32 antivirus, which managed a detection rate of 68 percent.^[53]

The problem is magnified by the changing intent of virus authors. Some years ago it was obvious when a virus infection was present. The viruses of the day, written by amateurs, exhibited destructive behavior or pop-ups. Modern viruses are often written by professionals, financed by criminal organizations.^[54]

Independent testing on all the major virus scanners consistently shows that none provide 100% virus detection. The best ones provided as high as 99.9% detection for simulated real-world situations, while the lowest provided 91.1% in tests conducted in August 2013. Many virus scanners produce false positive results as well, identifying benign files as malware.^[55]

Although methodologies may differ, some notable independent quality testing agencies include AV-Comparatives, ICSA Labs, West Coast Labs, Virus Bulletin, AV-TEST and other members of the Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization.^[56]^[57]

New viruses

Anti-virus programs are not always effective against new viruses, even those that use non-signature-based methods that should detect new viruses. The reason for this is that the virus designers test their new viruses on the major anti-virus applications to make sure that they are not detected before releasing them into the wild.^[58]

Some new viruses, particularly ransomware, use polymorphic code to avoid detection by virus scanners. Jerome Segura, a security analyst with ParetoLogic, explained:^[59]

“

It's something that they miss a lot of the time because this type of [ransomware virus] comes from sites that use a polymorphism, which means they basically randomize the file they send you and it gets by well-known antivirus products very easily. I've seen people firsthand getting infected, having all the pop-ups and yet they have antivirus software running and it's not detecting anything. It actually can be pretty hard to get rid of, as well, and you're never really sure if it's really gone. When we see something like that usually we advise to reinstall the operating system or reinstall backups.^[59]

”

A proof of concept virus has used the Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) to avoid detection from anti-virus software. The potential success of this involves bypassing the CPU in order to make it much harder for security researchers to analyse the inner workings of such malware.^[60]

Rootkits

Detecting rootkits is a major challenge for anti-virus programs. Rootkits have full administrative access to the computer and are invisible to users and hidden from the list of running processes in the task manager. Rootkits can modify the inner workings of the operating system^[61] and tamper with antivirus programs.

Damaged files

Files which have been damaged by computer viruses, e.g. by ransomware, may be damaged beyond recovery. Anti-virus software removes the virus code from the file during disinfection, but this does not always restore the file to its undamaged state. In such circumstances, damaged files can only be restored from existing backups or shadow copies;^[62] installed software that is damaged requires re-installation^[63] (however, see System File Checker).

Firmware issues

Active anti-virus software can interfere with a firmware update process.^[64] Any writeable firmware in the computer can be infected by malicious code.^[65] This is a major concern, as an infected BIOS could require the actual BIOS chip to be replaced to ensure the malicious code is completely removed.^[66] Anti-virus software is not effective at protecting firmware and the motherboard BIOS from infection.^[67]

Other methods

A command-line virus scanner,Clam AV 0.95.2, running a virus signature definition update, scanning a file and identifying a Trojan

Installed antivirus software running on an individual computer is only one method of guarding against viruses. Other methods are also used, including cloud-based antivirus, firewalls and on-line scanners.

Cloud antivirus

Cloud antivirus is a technology that uses lightweight agent software on the protected computer, while offloading the majority of data analysis to the provider's infrastructure.^[68]

One approach to implementing cloud antivirus involves scanning suspicious files using multiple antivirus engines. This approach was proposed by an early implementation of the cloud antivirus concept called CloudAV. CloudAV was designed to send programs or documents to a network cloud where multiple antivirus and behavioral detection programs are used simultaneously in order to improve detection rates. Parallel scanning of files using potentially incompatible antivirus scanners is achieved by spawning a virtual machine per detection engine and therefore eliminating any possible issues. CloudAV can also perform "retrospective detection," whereby the cloud detection engine rescans all files in its file access history when a new threat is identified thus improving new threat detection speed. Finally, CloudAV is a solution for effective virus scanning on devices that lack the computing power to perform the scans themselves.^[69]

Some examples of cloud anti-virus products are Panda Cloud Antivirus and Immunet.

Network firewall

Network firewalls prevent unknown programs and processes from accessing the system. However, they are not antivirus systems and make no attempt to identify or remove anything. They may protect against infection from outside the protected computer or network, and limit the activity of any malicious software which is present by blocking incoming or outgoing requests on certain TCP/IP ports. A firewall is designed to deal with broader system threats that come from network connections into the system and is not an alternative to a virus protection system.

Online scanning

Some antivirus vendors maintain websites with free online scanning capability of the entire computer, critical areas only, local disks, folders or files. Periodic online scanning is a good idea for those that run antivirus applications on their computers because those applications are frequently slow to catch threats. One of the first things that malicious software does in an attack is disable any existing antivirus software and sometimes the only way to know of an attack is by turning to an online resource that is not installed on the infected computer.^[70]

Specialist tools

Using rkhunter to scan for rootkitson an Ubuntu Linux computer.

Virus removal tools are available to help remove stubborn infections or certain types of infection. Examples include Trend Micro's Rootkit Buster,^[71] and rkhunter for the detection of rootkits, Avira's AntiVir Removal Tool,^[72] PCTools Threat Removal Tool,^[73] and AVG's Anti-Virus Free 2011.^[74]

A rescue disk that is bootable, such as a CD or USB storage device, can be used to run antivirus software outside of the installed operating system, in order to remove infections while they are dormant. A bootable antivirus disk can be useful when, for example, the installed operating system is no longer bootable or has malware that is resisting all attempts to be removed by the installed antivirus software. Examples of some of these bootable disks include the Avira AntiVir Rescue System,^[72] PCToolsAlternate Operating System Scanner,^[75] and AVG Rescue CD.^[76] The AVG Rescue CD software can also be installed onto a USB storage device, that is bootable on newer computers.^[76]

Usage and risks

According to an FBI survey, major businesses lose $12 million annually dealing with virus incidents.^[77] A survey bySymantec in 2009 found that a third of small to medium sized business did not use antivirus protection at that time, whereas more than 80% of home users had some kind of antivirus installed.^[78] According to a sociological survey conducted by G Data Software in 2010 49% of women did not use any antivirus program at all.^[79]

Antivirus Software: Fighting Blame, Not Hacks

2013-10-19T05:02:00.000-07:00

Antivirus Software: Fighting Blame, Not Hacks

Craig Elliott, chief executive officer of Pertino, a cloud-networking startup, knows that the antivirus software his company uses won’t deter all hacking attacks. That won’t stop him from using it. “It’s a safety blanket,” he says. “It’s CYA [cover your ass] more than anything else.” That’s why the antivirus industry, born in the late 1980s to combat floppy-disk viruses, has staying power, even in this era of sophisticated hacks from China and elsewhere.

Although the word virus generally applies to all manner of computer attacks, data security pros no longer just worry about old-style viruses—programs or pieces of code that replicate and spread from computer to computer, degrading their performance. The new threat: advanced forms of malicious software, or malware, such as online banking password-stealers and military-grade spying software.

Recent incidents like the attack on the New York Times by Chinese hackers, which antivirus software failed to stop, illustrate the challenge facing industry leaders such as Symantec and McAfee. A weakness of antivirus software is that it’s designed to zero in on so-called signatures, or identifiable patterns in code. When an antivirus company finds a piece of malicious software, it adds a signature to its database, which is included in software upgrades sent to users.

STORY: Mandiant, the Go-To Security Firm for Cyber-Espionage Attacks

The approach was effective until more sophisticated malware arrived on the scene in the early 2000s. Now identifying a piece of attack software after the fact has limited value because the most advanced malware is custom-built for specific attacks—and never used again. Today’s hackers also prefer to infiltrate networks via e-mail and social media, making attacks harder to detect. The Times attack is thought to have begun with infected e-mails sent to employees.

After the Times disclosed that Symantec software failed to identify the malware used in the breach, the Mountain View (Calif.)-based company issued a statement saying that antivirus protection alone is not enough to thwart advanced attacks.Symantec (SYMC) and Santa Clara (Calif.)-based McAfee are upgrading their security software to keep pace with hackers, such as adding blocking features that crunch traffic data to determine whether an unknown e-mail attachment or website is trustworthy.

“The industry will likely change pretty dramatically,” says Francis deSouza, Symantec’s president of products and services. “We’re seeing more malware than we’ve ever seen before, and we’re seeing more custom malware than we’ve ever seen before. Those trends have profound implications for the antivirus industry.” Michael Fey, chief technology officer for McAfee, which is owned by Intel (INTC), says “one product is not a silver bullet.”

STORY: Cyberwars Reach a New Frontier: the Airport

Despite this, companies aren’t likely to dump their antivirus software. Even if they wanted to because of cost or performance concerns, many simply can’t, says Amrit Williams, chief technology officer of Lancope, a company which sells software that scans computer networks for malware. Retailers that accept credit cards, for instance, must comply with the Payment Card Industry (PCI) data-security standard, which mandates antivirus protection. Corporate security chiefs in industries that don’t require antivirus software can choose to buy it—or risk their jobs if they go without it and get attacked, Williams says. Consumer and corporate purchases of software to combat online threats will account for $8 billion of the $66 billion in worldwide spending on computer-security technology this year, according to Gartner (IT).

Another reason demand for antivirus companies’ products is likely to remain high is that there’s still a threat from less sophisticated attacks, says Steven Ashley, an analyst with financial services firm Robert W. Baird in Milwaukee. The New York Times is still a Symantec customer, though it is “exploring other options,” says spokeswoman Eileen Murphy.

“Antivirus is an important element that will always be there,” says Ashley. “Even if someone broke into a guarded office or facility, you won’t take down the fence around it.” At least one company, though, has done just that. Palo Alto Networks(PANW), a maker of network-security equipment, has no official policy on antivirus software, says co-founder Nir Zuk. Its 840 employees are not required to have antivirus software on their machines, and the company uses its own network-security products to defend against attacks. Most infections occur in the first 48 hours after a new piece of malware is released—before antivirus companies can get a fix out to customers, Zuk says, citing his company’s research.

STORY: How the Experts Would Fix Cyber Security

“I think there’s value in AV—most CTOs won’t get rid of it,” he says. “It’s just that I think the cost of it, and the fact it only works on some machines, and the fact that it’s not detecting targeted or new attacks, makes me want to invest my money in other solutions.”

Articles Index with click to select

2013-07-23T11:38:00.001-07:00

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Articles Index

Antivirus Software Technology

Threats are abundant with information systems. One nasty virus can cripple your machine, steal your personal information, and infect other devices. Protecting your computer from malware is perhaps the most important aspect of computer ownership. The first step in protecting your system is understanding how antivirus software operate.

iLivid Virus

The iLivid virus presents itself as a tool called "iLivid Free Download Manager." The virus tricks people into thinking that the application will assist with media downloads. Learn more about the dangers of iLivd.

Firefox Redirect Virus

Firefox Redirect Virus causes unwanted results by redirecting your Internet searches. Follow these steps to help you remove the Firefox Redirect Virus.

Fake Antivirus Software

Fake antivirus software will conduct false virus scans on your computer. Learn how to detect these threats.

What is Sirefef Malware?

Learn about the dangers of Sirefef (ZeroAccess) Malware and how to prevent it.

Website Compromises at UNC Chapel Hill

The first step in solving any problem is first understanding you have a problem. This is particularly true when it comes to managing the problems brought on by website compromises and date breaches.

Bugs, Mice, and Antivirus

So what do computer viruses and real life cockroaches have in common? Nothing really, except the lessons you learn from trying to overcome one can also be applied to the other.

JS.Fortnight Worm

The Fortnight worm arrives in the body of an html-rendered email, redirecting Internet Explorer to porn sites.

Klez Help Center

The Klez virus uses a variety of techniques to fool and aggravate users

BadTrans.B

Tips for removing the BadTrans.B virus and blocking it in email

Common Botnets

A botnet is a collection of compromised (infected) computers under the collective control of remote attackers. The malware on the infected computer is known as a bot, a type of backdoor or remote access trojan (RAT). Here is a collection of the most common botnets.

Stuxnet, Winsta.exe, and Cover-ups

Stuxnet is - without dispute - the most important malware in history. It would be nice if for once the industry (including vendors and journalists) would put their self-interests on hold, would stop trying to save face, and would instead delve into the truth of Stuxnet so at least we have the real facts.

Is Stuxnet Really Targeting Iran?

There has been no shortage of claims that Iran was the intended target of the Stuxnet worm. But the reality is, these claims are completely unfounded. Here are a few of the true facts behind Stuxnet.

2003: Year of the Black Sheep

It seems appropriate that the Chinese dubbed 2003 as the Year of the Black Sheep. Among other things, the sheep is a symbol of untidiness - and from a virus standpoint, the year was indeed a mess.

Conficker: More Conflict than Worm

Barely a week after the 60 Minutes April Fools' Conficker doomsday update failed to materialize, the closely watched Conflicker.C did finally manage an update. And in an ironic twist, the worm itself debunks much of the hype surrounding it.

PowerPoint Zero Day Vulnerability In-the-Wild

Microsoft has released Security Advisory 969136 warning of a newly discovered zero day PowerPoint vulnerability. The flaw impacts PowerPoint versions found in Windows versions of Office 2000, 2002, 2003, and Office 2004 for Mac.

60 Minutes, Conficker, and April's Fool

Is the Conficker worm set to detonate some evil payload on April 1st? According to 60 Minutes, it seems so. Here's the non-FUD behind the Conficker worm.

Winthb 'Virus' Tied to Backdoor Trojans

A family of backdoor and autorun trojans are working together to plague users. One symptom that may appear - the drive volume name and icon may be changed. The more insiduous aspects of the infection are far more silent and may be overlooked when users attempt manual removal.

A Storm of Scary Email

In recent weeks, a rash of spam has been sent that bear much resemblance to the all-too-familiar tactics of the Storm botnet.

What is JS/Psyme (and How to Get Rid of It)

Many users have experienced repeated warnings of infection by Psyme each time they open their browser. Depending on the antivirus in use, the name given in the warning may be any of the following: Downloader.Psyme (Symantec), Troj/Psyme (Sophos), Trojan.VBS.KillAV (Kaspersky), TrojanDownloader.VBS.Psyme (CA),Trojan.Downloader.JS.Psyme (Kaspersky), VBS/Petch.A (F-Prot), VBS/Psyme (McAfee)

What is the Storm Worm?

The so-called Storm worm is actually not a worm, but rather a family of Trojans that typically include a backdoor, SMTP relay, P2P communications, email harvester, downloader, and often a rootkit.

U.Z.A. O/S Eliminator Worm

The so-called "U.Z.A. O/S Eliminator" worm appears to have originated in Maldives sometime in late July or early August 2007. The worm exploits the autorun feature, enabling it to spread from removable USB/thumb drives to other computers.

Freedom / Outlaw Worm

The Freedom 'virus' is a worm that infects local and USB drives, disables access to Task Manager, Registry Editor and other system utilities, and may try to delete MP3 files found on infected systems. Here's how to clean it.

Ransomware: Trojans Demand Money From Victims

Having your computer infected with a virus or other malicious software is upsetting enough. But over the past year, a new type of attack promises to be even more disconcerting. Dubbed ransomware, this new attack infects the system, encrypts the files, and then demands payment from its victims.

Trojan.MeSpam Makes You the Spammer

Instead of relying on bots to do the dirty work, Trojan.MeSpam makes you the culprit. Once infected, every forum post you make, every webmail you send, and every blog comment you leave will also deposit a link pointing to a nefarious website.

2013-02-24T09:41:00.000-08:00

Kaspersky ONE

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Key Features

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Key Features

Helps to protect against theft and loss – even if the SIM card has been replaced
Scans for mobile viruses, spyware and more – in real-time
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Optimised for minimal impact on battery life

Android Tablet Protection

When you download the latest Android app, how do you know that you’ve not downloaded a virus along with it? Protect yourself with real-time scanning and frequent, over-the-air updates – plus advanced web filtering and anti-theft technologies.

Key Features

Real-time antivirus protection
Automatic virus-scanning of apps
Cutting-edge anti-theft technologies
Web filtering to block dangerous links
Personal Web Account for remote management
Minimal impact on tablet resources and performance
Optimised interface

System Requirements

Windows PC Protection

Operating Systems	Hardware Requirements
Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition (Service Pack 2 or higher) Microsoft Windows XP Professional (Service Pack 2 or higher) Microsoft Windows XP Professional 64-Bit Edition (Service Pack 2 or higher)	Processor 800 MHz or higher 512 MB available RAM
Microsoft Windows Vista Home Basic (32/64-Bit) Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium (32/64-Bit) Microsoft Windows Vista Business (32/64-Bit) Microsoft Windows Vista Enterprise (32/64-Bit) Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate (32/64-Bit) Microsoft Windows 7 Starter Microsoft Windows 7 Home Basic (32/64-Bit) Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium (32/64-Bit) Microsoft Windows 7 Professional (32/64-Bit) Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate (32/64-Bit) Microsoft Windows 8 (32/64-Bit)	Processor 1 GHz or higher 1 GB RAM (32-Bit) or 2 GB RAM (64-Bit)
Required for all installations
Approximately 480 MB free space on the hard drive (depending on anti-virus database size) CD/DVD drive for installation of the program from CD ROM Computer mouse Internet connection for product activation Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 or higher Microsoft Windows Installer 2.0

Antivirus on Windows 8

2012-12-21T05:09:00.001-08:00

Antivirus on Windows 8:

Looking at Your Options

By: Zafar Ali Khan

Microsoft will include antivirus in Windows 8 for the first time in the history of Windows. But will this software--the new version of Windows Defender--provide adequate protection against viruses, spyware, and other malware? Let's take a closer look at what Windows Defender provides, and whether its features are enough to keep you safe.

Bear in mind that even though Microsoft will include Windows Defender in Windows 8, PC manufacturers may disable the program on new PCs that carry preinstalled antivirus software from a third-party such as Norton or McAfee. The preinstalled third-party antivirus options are usually limited-time trials, so your initial decision may be whether to keep any preinstalled antivirus; if you decide against keeping it, you'll need to decide whether to enable Windows Defender and use it or to switch to another third-party antivirus program.

The most important thing to consider when choosing antivirus software is its protection strength--how well it detects, disables, and removes viruses, spyware, and other malware. In this article I'll focus on comparing the protection strength of Windows Defender to that of other antivirus programs.

Protection Strength of Windows Defender

Windows Defender in Windows 8 looks a lot like Microsoft Security Essentials.

Though we haven't fully tested Windows Defender in Windows 8 yet, we have tested Microsoft Security Essentials, which uses the same antimalware engine as Windows Defender.

Windows Defender and Microsoft Security Essentials also have very similar interfaces. Consequently, using the results from the existing Security Essentials review for a casual comparison seems reasonable. Security companies regularly update their products, and the results you obtain with the most recent iteration of each package could very well differ from those discussed here, but the earlier data does give us a rough idea of how Security Essentials and Windows Defender match up to their competition.

In a roundup review that we posted three months ago, based on evaluations that we conducted in conjunction with AV-Test, a well-respected antivirus-software testing lab, we appraised the performance of seven free antivirus programs. In this group, Security Essentials placed fifth. Our reviewers found it easy to use and deemed it the best of the seven at completely removing malware that it uncovered; but they also found its malware detection rate rather lackluster: It spotted 97 percent of known malware samples, whereas programs turned in detection rates as high as 99.9 percent.

To compare the protection strength of Security Essentials to that other free and paid antiviruses, you can refer to AV-Test's website for its latest testing results. Those results, at this writing, show that Security Essentials provides great malware repair and removal: placing third, just behind Bitdefender and Kaspersky. But the program's results for malware detection are much worse: It placed 21st in a field of 22.

Additional Free Antivirus Options

If you'd like to save some money, but prefer to use some other program, you have quite a few options. Again, I'll refer to our roundup review from last April, which evaluated seven free antivirus suites. Here are the top four you might consider using:

AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition was the highest-ranked of the seven free antivirus programs we assessed earlier this year.

AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition: Though it had the lowest detection rate of the top four free antivirus programs with a 98.7 percent detection rate against known malware (Avast, Panda, and Avira finished with rates of 99.1 percent, 99.9 percent, and 99.7 percent, respectively), it handily outperformed Security Essentials (which finished with a detection rate of 97 percent). And though it wasn't as good at completely removing malware as Security Essentials (66.7 percent versus 80 percent), it was the only antivirus to disable 100 percent of detected malware; Security Essentials finished at 93 percent on this measure. AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition also tied Panda Cloud Antivirus for the top rate of blocking brand-new threats, at 85.7 percent, whereas Security Essentials was at 71.4 percent.

Avast Free Antivirus: Avast's freebie provided strong detection of known malware samples, at 99.1 percent. Its rate of completely removing malware (67 percent) fell short of Security Essentials' rate (80 percent) and the two programs delivered matching 93 percent rates for disabling active malware. Avast Free Antivirus did provide better blocking of real-world malware, achieving a 78.6 percent rate, compared to Security Essentials' 71.4 percent.

Panda Cloud Antivirus: This tool provided the second highest protection against known malware samples overall at 99.9 percent, compared to 97 percent by Security Essentials. Though Panda's malware repair percentage was among the lowest in the group of seven, it tied with AVG for the best performance at fully blocking brand-new threats, turning in a rate of 85.7 percent, versus Security Essentials' mark of 71.4 percent.

Avira Free Antivirus: Avira provided the third-highest detection rate (out of seven free antiviruses tested) for spotting known malware samples: 99.7 percent, compared to Security Essentials' rate of 97 percent. Though it scored lower than Security Essentials on AV-Test's remaining detection and repair tests, Avira did provide much faster scanning.

Paid Antivirus Options

Though free antivirus programs can provide adequate protection for most users, the best protection must be bought. To compare these, I'll refer to a roundup review of paid security suites that we posted in January of this year. Here are the top four programs you might consider purchasing, with their prices for one year of protection on three PCs lited parenthetically:

G Data InternetSecurity 2012 earned the top ranking among paid antivirus programs in our January roundup.

G Data InternetSecurity ($45): Among 14 paid packages tested, G Data Internet Security provided the best protection against known malware with a 99.99 percent detection rate. At the same time, it had minimal impact on PC performance, and an acceptable complete malware removal score of 60 percent.

Norton Internet Security ($50): This program delivered solid detection of known malware, at 99.94 percent, but it suffered from a higher-than-average false-positive rate and a relatively low malware removal mark of 50 percent.

Bitdefender Internet Security ($80): Bitdefender turned in the second-highest malware detection rate among paid programs, at 99.96 percent, and it also distinguished itself with a very good removal rate (90 percent), but its scan speeds tended to be slow, and the software had a relatively large impact on PC performance.

Kaspersky Internet Security ($65): Kaspersky's paid antivirus software combined good malware protection (at 99.34 percent) with an acceptable malware removal rate of 60 percent.

When you buy an Internet Security suite, in addition to getting better protection, you usually get more features and services than you would with a free antivirus program. For example, most Internet Security suites include a firewall to help block intrusions and data theft (these firewalls tend to be better than the free firewall built into Windows), as well as a spam filter to help you control your junk email. Many security software vendors offer tech support for removing malware if you do become infected, and they may provide additional security features such as sandboxing, and even extras like online storage or PC tune-up utilities.

Choosing Your Antivirus for Windows 8

If your Windows 8 PC comes with a third-party antivirus preinstalled on it, you should firstcheck the program's ranking; if it doesn't rank in the top four, consider opting out and using something else. As we've seen, the free antivirus built into Windows 8 should be easy to use and should provide excellent malware removal, but it will likely be relatively weak at detecting malware in the first place.

Though Windows Defender will still certainly protect you from most malware and may be suitable for some users, you may prefer to install on of the better-performing free antivirus programs offered by AVG, Avast, Panda, and Avira. Or for superior protection and more features, consider buying antivirus protection from one of the top vendors: G Data, Symantec (Norton), Bitdefender, or Kaspersky.

Norton 360 2013 - 1 User / 3 PC Special Discount

2012-09-28T06:12:00.000-07:00

Norton 360 2013 - 1 User / 3 PC Special Discount

you want to buy Norton 360 2013 - 1 User / 3 PC,yes ..! you comes at the right place. you can get special discount for Norton 360 2013 - 1 User / 3 PC in amazon.You can choose to buy a product and Norton 360 2013 - 1 User / 3 PC at the Best Price Online with Secure Transaction in amazon...

Norton 360 2013 - 1 User / 3 PC by Symantec

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Norton 360 2013 - 1 User / 3 PC Description . Norton 360 combines proactive threat protection, automatic backup, and computer tune-up tools in a comprehensive solution that helps keep you safe from threats, guards your files against loss, and optimizes PC performance. Read more Norton 360 2013 - 1 User / 3 PC

Norton 360 2013 - 1 User / 3 PC Feature

Provides a single, comprehensive solution that protects you from threats, guards your files against loss, and optimizes your PC's performance.
Lets you share, surf, shop, bank, and socialize online without downloading threats, getting ripped off, or having your passwords and identity stolen
Automatically backs up your files-so you don't have to remember to do it-without getting in your way
Cleans up and tunes up your PC to keep it running fast and trouble-free
Protects without slowing you down or getting in your way

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

Norton 360 2013

(view larger).

Norton 360 2013 brings together proactive threat protection, automatic backup, and computer tune-up tools in one comprehensive solution that helps keep you safe from threats, guards your files against loss, and helps your computer run its best.

Protects Against

All types of viruses and spyware
Online identity theft when you bank or shop
Bad files and websites when you browse and share
Phishing scams
Theft of your personal information
Hard-to-remove infections
Spyware
Spam
Social network threats when you socialize
Loss of files due to a hard drive crash or other mishap
Slow PC performance

Key Features and Benefits

Provides a single, comprehensive solution that protects you from threats, guards your files against loss, and optimizes your PC’s performance.

Seamlessly combines proactive threat protection with automatic backup and computer tune-up tools.

Lets you share, surf, shop, bank, and socialize online without downloading threats, getting ripped off, or having your passwords and identity stolen.

Our five patented layers of protection quickly and accurately detect and eliminate almost any threat without false alarms.
Ultra-fast network defense layer stops threats before they can reach your PC.
Powerful threat-removal layer targets and gets rid of aggressive, hard-to-remove infections that less sophisticated products often miss.
Browser protection blocks “phishing” websites set up to trick you into revealing your passwords, credit card numbers, and other confidential information.
Scans your Facebook News Feed for dangerous downloads, suspicious links, and unsafe websites.
Advanced reputation and behavior antivirus technology protects you from all types of viruses, even those that haven’t been invented yet.

Automatically backs up your files, so you don’t have to remember to do it, without getting in your way.

Backs up your photos, music, and other important files to your choice of disc, USB device, or online to one of our secure data centers.
Automatic sensors can tell when you aren’t using your PC, so you won’t be interrupted by backups.
Protects files you back up online with government-grade encryption.
Restores files with just a few clicks.
Lets you download files you back up online to any computer that has an Internet connection and even share them by simply emailing a link.

Cleans up and tunes up your PC to keep it running fast and trouble-free.

Fixes common problems that can slow down your computer or cause it to crash or freeze.
Gets rid of unnecessary files and optimizes your hard drive.
Frees up system memory.

Protects without slowing you down or getting in your way.

Superior performance means fast browsing and file scanning.
Scans and runs updates only when you’re not using your computer.
Works quietly in the background to block threats and won’t constantly annoy you with pop-up alerts asking you to take action.

Cloud-based Norton Management puts you in complete control and simplifies protecting your various devices.

Lets you fix, update, renew, or install Norton products on additional PCs, without having to find your install CD or product key.
Brings together your other Norton protection products for your Mac computer, smartphone, and tablet, in one convenient location.

Symantec provides free 24x7 chat and phone support for a period of one year. Continuing support is available with an active service period subscription.

System Requirements

Operating Systems Supported

Microsoft Windows XP (32-bit) Home/Professional/Tablet PC/Media Center (32-bit) with Service Pack 2 or later
Microsoft Windows Vista (32-bit and 64-bit) Starter/Home Basic/Home Premium/Business/Ultimate with Service Pack 1 or later
Microsoft Windows 7 (32-bit and 64-bit) Starter/Home Basic/Home Premium/Professional/Ultimate
Microsoft Windows 8 and Windows 8 Pro (32-bit and 64-bit)¹

Minimum Hardware Requirements

300 MHz for Microsoft Windows XP, 1 GHz for Microsoft Windows Vista/Windows 7/Windows 8¹
256 MB of RAM
300 MB of available hard disk space
CD-ROM or DVD drive (if not installing via electronic download)

Email scanning supported for POP3-compatible email clients

Browser Support for Phishing Protection, Safe Search, and Password Management

Microsoft Internet Explorer 7.0 or higher (32-bit only)¹
Mozilla Firefox (32-bit only)
Google Chrome

Browser Support for Vulnerability Protection

Microsoft Internet Explorer 7.0 or higher (32-bit only)¹
Mozilla Firefox (32-bit only)

1. Some protection features not available in Metro browsing.

Product Description

Norton 360 combines proactive threat protection, automatic backup, and computer tune-up tools in a comprehensive solution that helps keep you safe from threats, guards your files against loss, and optimizes PC performance.

How to Uninstall Avast! Free Antivirus 7

2012-09-07T04:21:00.003-07:00

How to Uninstall Avast! Free Antivirus 7

To completely Uninstall avast! Free Antivirus 7 from your computer, you need to remove the avast! Internet Security (Size, 375.00MB), the Google Chrome (Size, 166.00MB) and the Microsoft Visual C++ 2008 Redistributable – x86 9.0. 30729 .4148 (Size, 10.19MB), which are listed in Add or Remove Programs or Change or uninstall a program (for Windows 7/Vista Operating System). Read more details below.

EditSteps

1
Launch the Change/Remove option for avast! Internet Security item.

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2
Enter the Uninstall section on avast! INTERNET SECURITY Setup.
3
Click on Yes button on avast! Uninstall info box.
4
You could send your feedback to avast!.
5
Save your personal data, restart your computer.

Remove Windows Secure Workstation

2012-08-31T05:31:00.000-07:00

Windows Secure Workstation

is a fake antivirus program that CANNOT DETECT AND REMOVE any kind of virus, malware and trojan. Windows Secure Workstation can do nothing but just show pop ups to convince the user that the computer has been infected by malwares and urge the user to purchase the full version of Windows Secure Workstation. Windows Secure Workstation infections are known to spread by means of fake online system alerts that warn the user about infections that require the user to download Windows Secure Workstation to remove them. Windows Secure Workstation will start automatically when Windows boot. Then Windows Secure Workstation will do a fake scan on the computer and then it will show the fake report. Do not purchase Windows Secure Workstation as it can do nothing.The user should switch to Safe Mode to make sure any scans detect Windows Secure Workstation and remove Windows Secure Workstation with anti-malware applications that are designed to handle such threats.

Windows Secure Workstation provide fake features such as provide fake features such as Firewall, Automatic Updates, Antivirus Protection, Anti-phishing, Advanced Process Control, Autorun Manager, Service Manager, All-in-one Suite, Quick Scan, Deep Scan, Custom Scan and etc. All of them cannot protect the computer from any kind of malware.

Windows Secure Workstation can be removed by using Emsisoft HiJackFree to stop the processes and kill the files from the hard drive. Then, the user has to restore the registry entries added and modified by Windows Secure Workstation. Finally, all the file related to Windows Secure Workstation must be deleted from the hard drive. All of them has been shown in the removal guide below.

The computer users should remember that any time when they encounter a web page that states that the computer is infected, they should not believe them as the majority of these pages are scams trying to get them to install the actual infection. The second method that can be used to install this fake antivirus is through hacked web sites that install Windows Secure Workstation on to the computer without their knowledge by exploiting vulnerabilities in the outdated programs.

Windows Secure Workstation should be removed immediately!

Windows Secure Workstation Removal Guide

Kill Process

(How to kill a process effectively?)

[random].exe

Delete Registry

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings "WarnOnHTTPSToHTTPRedirect" = 0

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System "DisableRegedit" = 0

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System "DisableRegistryTools" = 0

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System "DisableTaskMgr" = 0

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\policies\system "ConsentPromptBehaviorAdmin" = 0

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\policies\system "ConsentPromptBehaviorUser" = 0

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\policies\system "EnableLUA" = 0

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run "Inspector"

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Settings "net" = "2012-6-15_4"

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Settings "UID" = "prrdetmjne"

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\ASProtect

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\About.exe

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\avgserv9.exe

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\driverctrl.exe

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\lsetup.exe

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\netutils.exe

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\ppvstop.exe

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\sperm.exe

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\vshwin32.exe

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\wrctrl.exe

... and many more Image File Execution Options entries.

Remove Folders and Files

%AppData%\NPSWF32.dll

%AppData%\Protector-[random].exe

%AppData%\result.db

%CommonStartMenu%\Programs\Windows Secure Workstation.lnk

Bethesda admits

2012-08-31T05:12:00.000-07:00

Bethesda admits

Skyrim players may never get Dawnguard on PS3

If you own an Xbox 360 and Skyrim, you’ve been able to download and play the Dawnguardexpansion since June. If you’re a PC gamer, then you only had to wait a bit longer and got it earlier this month. PS3 gamers may now never get access to the content in Dawnguard.

That’s the news coming out of Bethesda via their forums. Administrator and global community lead Gstaff posted an update on the state of PS3 DLC for the game, and it’s not looking great. Gstaff explains that releasing sizeable DLC is a complex issue, and it seems like for the PS3 it might be just a bit too complex.

No detail is given as to what the specific problem/s is, but Bethesda is preparing PS3 gamers for the reality that Dawnguard, and for that matter any other Skyrim DLC, may never reach the platform. TheSkyrim development team hasn’t given up, but also admits they have a problem they can’t guarantee can be solved.

Such news comes as a major blow for both PS3 gamers and Sony. If the PS3 architecture is too complex to allow for DLC in such games, then the future doesn’t look very bright for future titles that try and get the maximum out of the hardware and provide players with sizeable additional content.

Rest assured, Bethesda will have tried everything to get Dawnguard working on PS3. They want the revenue it would bring, and they certainly don’t want the bad press that will obviously surround this over the coming days.

I’d like to know what the exact problem is they can’t overcome, but I’d also like to know if this is a failing on Bethesda’s part or a shortcoming of the PS3 architecture. Maybe Sony should pay Bethesda a visit and see what’s going on.

Webroot Secure

2012-08-31T04:47:00.002-07:00

Webroot Secure:

Anywhere: PC, Android and iOS protection under one license:

Security software running on your PC is a necessary evil, and depending on your choice of security suite, one that can have a significant impact on the performance of you system.

So if a company offered you a security suite that boasts a 6-second install, only required 6MB of storage, and system scans that took less than 2 minutes to perform, you’d be interested, right?

That’s exactly what Webroot is claiming to offer with the launch of its latest suite called SecureAnywhere released today.

Webroot Software has a history of offering security tools starting with Windows Washer in 1997, then Spy Sweeper in 2002. In 2006 it began offering antivirus, then added firewall protection before moving to a full consumer security suite for PCs in 2008.

With the introduction of SecureAnywhere, Webroot is not only trying to offer protection without the system resources overhead, but has also extended security to mobile devices including both iOS and Android platforms. In fact, with a single license it’s possible to offer protection for up to 5 PCs and 3 mobile devices.

The quick install, scans, and minimal hard drive requirements stem from the fact SecureAnywhere is a cloud-based solution. Even the firewall is handled in the cloud. There’s no signature files, just a cloud database and threat intelligence network that uses information from all machines running the suite to offer better protection.

The software is broken down into three components: Identity Shield, Web Threat Shield, and Core System Shield. Together they offer protection against keyloggers, screen grabbers, trojans, and phishing attacks, as well as monitoring all content on websites you visit and offering a predictive protection function for those times when you are offline.

For the novice PC users Webroot is promising a pop-up free experience that offers protection without the decision making. But at the same time advanced features are there including 124 settings and a selection of tools for additional threat detection. As for system scanning, there’s 6 options to cater for your needs.

Because SecureAnywhere is cloud based, Webroot has managed to offer up management of all your devices through a single web portal. That means multiple PCs, tablets, smartphones, all secured through one interface. Combine that with a password management system, online backups, secure file erasing, encrypted personal data, and file synchronization, and you have a pretty complete security package for all your devices under a single license and yearly subscription.

As you’d expect, there are several license options available for SecureAnywhere. For the PC user there’s SecureAnywhere AntiVirus offering a “basic antimalware service” for 1 PC for $39.95 or 3 PCs for $49.95. SecureAnywhere Essentials adds a firewall, ID protection, and 2GB of online file backup for $59.95 covering 3 PCs.

If you want mobile device protection alone there’s SecureAnywhere Mobile Security for either Android or iOS. In both cases there is a free edition available from the respective app stores offering antivirus, secure web browsing, device locking, and call/SMS blocking. A Premium edition for $19.99 is also available and adds application inspection, password management, SIM card blocking, and device wiping features.

If you want both PC and mobile device protection then the best value choice is SecureAnywhere Complete, which protects up to 3 PCs and 3 mobile devices for $79.95. As well as offering all the features of the Essentials and Mobile Security packages, Complete ups the online storage to 10GB, and extends password management and file syncing across all PCs as well as mobile devices.

SecureAnywhere has already received an Editors’ Choice award from PCMag suggesting its protection, low resource requirements, and coverage of mobile devices under a single license could be a killer combination.

As SecureAnywhere is available for iOS, you’d expect there to be a license covering Macs too. Although not available yet, Webroot is promising Mac support in early 2012.

Read more at Webroot and view a comparison of the PC SecureAnywhere products

Computer Clean Up System

2012-08-22T02:57:00.002-07:00

Computer Clean Up System

With all of the recent news stories about identity theft, it got me thinking about my PC. What kinds of information did I have stored on it? And is it really something that a hacker might want?

After a little digging around (and several Internet tutorials later!) I was astounded at the amount of personal information I found. All the websites I had visited, months of stored cookies and more were all stored in several different locations throughout my PC. Anybody looking at my PC could see that I liked to shop at Amazon.com, what news stories I had read and that my wife was pregnant.

Knowing I was in need of a computer clean up, here’s what I found:

Internet History

This is a record of all the websites I’d visited. Because my history is used in a few different ways, it’s stored in several places on my PC. For example, you know how when you start to type in a website address (URL) and your computer finishes it for you? That’s because of your Internet History list!

Cache (also known as Temporary Internet Files)

Cache is a file that stores information from web pages that I often visit. This means every image, animation, link and sound from all the websites I’ve visited is stored on your PC. Essentially anyone looking at my cache would be able to see everything that I saw the last time I was on the Internet.

Cookies

Have you ever bought something from a website that required a login, like Amazon.com? I have and when I go back days later, I’m greeted with "Welcome back Jeffrey!" at the top of the page. I used to wonder — how did the website magically remember my name?

Simple – the website used a file called a Cookie. Cookies are little files that websites write and store on your computer. Every time I visit a certain website, it will look for its cookie on my hard drive. It uses the information stored within the cookie to know my name, my shopping preferences and lots of other information about me.

Recent Documents List

Did you know that Microsoft Windows keeps a record of every document that you open on your computer? This record can be easily accessed from the Start menu and anyone who looks at my computer can see what I was last working on.

Index.dat file

This is the trickiest kind of file. Index.dat houses a record of my cookies, my history, my temporary files and my cache. I could separately delete my cookies, my history and my cache, but a record of them would still exist in my index.dat file. But the worst part is, because of the way Windows is designed; this file cannot be manually deleted.

After discovering all of these web tracks, I decided a computer clean up was in order. Being somewhat computer savvy, I knew that I could manually delete some of these files and perform a computer clean up myself.

But keeping my computer clean was another matter. I knew that a computer clean up shouldn’t be a spring-cleaning activity. I wanted my computer to be clean everyday and I knew I didn’t have the time to manually delete files every single time I left the Internet.

My Computer Clean Up Solution

PC Confidential is a program that was designed for the purpose of cleaning all the files on your computer that a hacker could potentially use to build a profile for you and steal your identity. Did you know that…

Every website you visit, picture you view, video you watch, online chat you have, and more is all being recorded in hidden files. With just a little effort, this information could be available to your spouse, your boss, your kids, or even a hacker trying to steal your identity!

Why jeopardize your family, reputation, job, or identity any longer? With PC Confidential, you won’t be putting your privacy at risk anymore. PC Confidential was specifically designed to protect your sensitive information and ensure that no one will be able to access what you do on your PC.

You don’t have to guess what private information is sitting on your computer anymore. You can download our Free Personal Privacy Scan and within seconds know how much of your personal information is at risk and permanently delete this data so that it can NEVER be recovered.

Virus Definitions

2012-08-22T02:53:00.000-07:00

Virus Definitions

What are Virus Definitions?

A virus definition (also known as a virus signature) is a unique string of bits, or the binary pattern, of the machine code of a virus. The term "virus definitions" typically refers to the database of all current virus signature files used by a particular anti virus software for virus detection. Virus definitions are the primary method of detection for most anti virus software programs.

How are Virus Definitions Used?

During a virus scan, anti virus software compares the content on a computer (including the hard disk, boot sectors, RAM, and removable drives) against its virus defintion database. In the virus defintition database, each defintion, or pattern of binary code is unique to each variant of a virus. This enables anti virus software to effectively detect viruses upon the discovery of any of the code included in the virus defintion database.

Why are Virus Definitions Important?

For anti virus software to provide effective protection, it is essential that the virus definition database used is comprehensive and frequently updated. Virus authors are constantly creating new variants and new viruses in attempt to exploit vulnerabilities in user’s systems. All it takes is one worm or virus to wreak havoc and cause major destruction to a system or network. In order for anti virus software to provide maximum protection, it should be able to detect all known viruses, including the latest threats.

Examples of trusted anti virus software products that utilize an extensive database of continuously updating virus definitions include: McAfee and Norton. Both of these anti virus products also provide automatic virus definition updating, ensuring that users stay up-to-date with the latest threats.

Computer Virus
Computer Worms
Virus Definitions
Spyware
Adware
Rootkits
Keylogging
Trojan Horse
Running Virus Scan in Safe Mode
W32
Browser Hijacking
Virus Hoax

Postcard Virus
Merry Christmas Virus
Invitation Virus
Life is Beautiful Virus
ILOVEYOU Virus
Wireless Network Protection
Wi-Fi Protection
Permanently Erase Files
Computer Clean Up
Delete AutoComplete
Computer Fraud
Share Digital Photos

Tags: virus protection
Posted in Antivirus & Antispyware

How to Keep Your Computer Virus Free

2012-08-21T05:36:00.002-07:00

How to Keep Your Computer Virus Free

Viruses are one the most painful and frustrating problems to confront on your computer, and getting one of these can cost thousands of dollars and trash your precious PC. Using a few simple and effective tips, you can greatly decrease the chances of obtaining a virus and keep your computer running like new.

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Portable & Mobile X-Ray detectors Minimum Time on Target

To effectively learn how to prevent a virus you must understand a virus and how it operates on your computer. A computer virus is a piece of software, and it is obtained through a download or an attachment that can ruin the functionality or software on your computer. They basically piggyback on real programs, and every time said program runs the virus has an opportunity to reproduce and cause harm.

Mal ware comes in different shapes and sizes and to help prevent damage it is important that you understand the various forms they come in so you can take the right precautions to protect your PC.

Email-Viruses: These viruses can be very harmful and dangerous and the important thing to know is that you can obtain this virus from simple reading an infected e-mail.

Prevention: Use caution, if an e-mail looks suspicious or strange do not read it delete it. Be weary of changes in the vocabulary pattern of your contacts, this can be a great way to spot an e-mail virus. Be sure to make e-mails that look like spam directly into the spam folder.

Trojan Horse: The notorious Trojan Horse can be recalled from history and Hollywood and is something you do not want to find on your computer. Trojans are the masters of disguise, they may claim to be a game or and application, but it can actually do damage when you run them.

Prevention: Trojan horses are becoming more common everyday so be sure to use caution when downloading files on the web. Do not download any game files. Trojan horses are very common on fake game downloads. If you must download a file from the internet, research it. Download from trusted websites and only download programs that you know and trust. If a deal like a free game seems to be to good to be true, it probably is. Use wit and common sense to battle these viruses with your prevention immune system.

Worms: We all are aware of the worms that ruin apples and live in the ground, but when talking about computers, worms can sneak in your computer and create chaos. Computer worms use computer networks and security holes to dig its way into your computer. Most worms are harmless, but some have been known to delete files or send documents via email.

Prevention: The best way to prevent worms on your computer is to keep your firewall turned on. Make sure you never turn off your fire wall and be aware of icons that might indicate that it is turned off. Keep up to date on security updates. A lot of work goes into making security updates and the people in charge strive to update their software to comply with new and changing worms and Mal ware. Make sure you only obtain these updates from a trusted source. It is becoming more and more common for dangerous software to disguise itself as anti-virus software so stay vigilant. If a pop up comes up saying something like "free anti-virus" do not open it. Use your task manage to close to program.

Simple tips to be aware of: Always use common sense when browsing the internet and never download files that you are not familiar with. When it comes to your anti-virus software, be certain that you invest in a good one and use any that are available to you. Webroot Anti-Virus is a great anti-virus software, and is the one I use on my computer. Depending on your internet provider, you may receive a free version of an anti-virus software such as Macafee. Macafee is not as good as Webroot, but it is nice to have more that one anti-virus. Use it, it is nice to have a back up. Just remember to stay cautious and informed on Mal ware software. You do not need to be an expert to spot dangerous software most will have a different format and look strange.

I wish you the best of luck and hope you found this information useful in preventing viruses on you computer.

Webroot Anti-Virus
Get access to Webroot Anti-Virus software to keep your computer safe

McAfee Antivirus
Information on the McAfee security system

Tips to keep your Computer Virus Free
Norton article on tips to keep your computer safe and virus prevention.

How to Get Rid of a Computer Virus | eHow.com
How to Get Rid of a Computer Virus. Computer viruses come in many forms and can cause various kinds of damage to your system. Fortunately, most viruses are easily dealt with and effective methods for eliminating them are often...

11 Ways To Prevent Computer Viruses

2012-05-25T05:02:00.001-07:00

11 Ways To Prevent Computer Viruses

It doesn’t matter if you’ve been on the Internet for five minutes or five years, you’ve probably thought about ways in which you can prevent a computer virus from entering your machine. A virus can compromise your personal information and even destroy your computer completely. Luckily, there are many low cost things you can do to protect yourself and stay one step ahead of the hackers. Here are 11 things you can do to help prevent computer viruses from invading your computer.

1. Install a reliable anti virus program – From the first moment you turn your computer on, you should have a trusted anti virus program by your side. Even if you have a machine that isn’t hooked up to the Internet, a reliable anti virus program is a low cost and common sense addition to any machine. There are even free anti virus programs you can download that work almost as well as industry giants like Norton and McAfee.

2. Install anti-spyware and anti-malware programs – As good as the best anti virus programs are, they sometimes need a little bit of help. Thankfully, many of the top anti-spyware programs are completely free. Spybot Search and Destroy and CCleaner are just two free programs that can help prevent computer viruses from doing any damage on your machine. As helpful as these programs are, however, you must update them and run them on a regular basis for them to do any good.

3. Avoid suspicious websites – A good virus protection program will alert you when you visit a website that attempts to install or run a program on your computer. Many less than reputable adult websites do this, so if you get a warning, don’t go back, you may end up with a bug you can’t get rid of.

4. Never Open Email Attachments Without Scanning Them First – The most common way viruses are spread throughout the Internet is still via email. Some attachments, like pictures, now display in emails and don’t require an attachment to be manually opened, but other documents do. Make sure you use an email client that scans all email attachments before you are allowed to open them. This will help prevent computer viruses from getting a foothold on your machine.

5. Set up Automatic Scans – Many of the top anti virus programs, as well as the best anti-spyware programs, now have settings that will let them automatically run during down times or in the middle of the night. Of course, your computer must be on for this to happen, but having daily scans run when nothing else is going on is a great way to prevent even the latest computer viruses from sticking around too long.

6. Watch Your Downloads – Part of the fun of the Internet is downloading music, movies and other items. However, since these downloads are so massive, it can be easy to sneak a virus along for the ride. Only download these files from trusted sites that you can count on, or, at the very least, scan them before you open them.

7. Updates, Updates, Updates – There is a reason why Windows has a feature called Critical Updates. There is an entire branch of Microsoft dedicated to staying one step ahead of the hackers out there so when they manage to fix a possible security loophole, you need to download the patch right away. Help Microsoft help you prevent computer viruses from causing too much trouble.

8. Know What To Look For – Even if you are just a casual computer user, you should have an idea of how your machine operates, what normal pop up windows look like and what popular viruses are out there, that way, when your computer begins exhibiting tell tale signs, you’ll know. You can help prevent computer viruses by staying updated and educated.

9. Stay Away From Cracked Software – It is so secret that you can download illegal, cracked versions of some programs online. As tempting as it may be, these files are almost always infested with advanced and difficult to detect bugs. Play it safe and get your software from the source.

10. Install a Firewall – A firewall is a program that screens incoming Internet and network traffic. Along with your virus program, it can help prevent unauthorized access to your computer.

11. Be prepared to Lock Down – If you hear of a virus that is spreading like wildfire through the Internet, make an extra effort to be careful. Don’t open any suspicious emails or accept any downloads for a week or two until your virus protection program has been updated and you are, once again, safe.

Firewall Protection

2012-05-25T04:55:00.000-07:00

Firewall Protection - Why You Need It?

If your house has an alarm system, surveillance cameras, or any type of security equipment to prevent burglars, then you can compare it to a firewall. A firewall will monitor and limit connections to your computer from the internet and other users. A computer without a firewall is defenseless, and makes it easier for hackers or unwanted programs to invade your computer. There are two types of firewalls, hardware or software.

Routers are devices that act as hardware firewalls. They prevent other users and unwanted software from entering your network. Routers are not only great for firewalls, but also can be used for sharing and connecting computers to a network. Some people use Network Address Translation (NAT) routers as firewalls, even though NAT routers primary purpose is to share an internet connection with local computers. If you do not have a router firewall, you can use a software firewall that will do the job.

There are many software firewalls out there, but only a few are free. Most of the software firewalls are shareware, trials or subscription. Some free versions only have some features and if you want the full package, you will need to pay. Window XP comes with a decent firewall, but you need to make sure you have Service Pack 2 and the latest updates installed.

You can check to see if your Windows XP firewall is running by clicking Start / Control Panel / Windows Firewall, or another way is My Computer / Control Panel / Network Connections / Right click your "Local Area Network" and click properties / Click on the Advance tab then click Settings. You can click to turn your windows firewall on or off.

Software firewalls can be very complex as they contain several features. Some of the features are antivirus and antispyware, program control, e-mail protection and privacy control. These features help boost your protection for your computer, since a firewall alone cannot do everything. A disadvantage of having a software firewall instead of a hardware firewall is that it will use your computer's resources to function. Make sure you have enough memory to prevent your system from crashing. Software firewalls can manage inbound and outbound traffic by placing policies or rules. These policies will allow or reject your programs from accessing the internet, and prevent any unwanted internet programs from invading your computer. These policies are at the owners control and may change any setting as they wish.

Firewalls may give the user increased security by protecting your computer from hackers, as opposed to having no firewall. Hackers will try anything to get into your computer by searching through your computer's ports. Your computer has many ports. They are used to connect to the internet, but sometimes they are left open. Hackers can send a virus or spyware to these ports, and take control of your computer. To prevent this from happening, a firewall will make sure all unused ports are closed.

If you plan to access the internet without a firewall, it is like putting your hand in a beehive. The risk of you being stung are high, and it is the same risk for your computer to be hacked. Without a firewall your ports will be opened, and make it vulnerable for hackers. Therefore, choose a proper firewall that suits your needs. For more information, visit my blog PC Software Revealed for details about the recommended software to keep you computer safe.

11 Ways Computer Viruses Are Spread.

2012-05-25T04:52:00.000-07:00

11 Ways Computer Viruses Are Spread

t is the worst nightmare of every computer user: you wake up one day and realize that you have a virus, and you don’t know quite how to get rid of it. Most people these days understand what a virus is and how harmful it can be, but they are still somewhat unsure how computer viruses spread. The truth is that there are dozens of different ways in which a virus can spread from computer to computer, but let’s take a look at the most frequent ways in which people run into viruses, spyware and Trojans on the Internet.

1. Email attachments. The world became familiar with the phenomena of email attachments carrying viruses thanks to Microsoft’s Outlook Express automatically opening every attachment to every email you received a few years back. Now that email clients no longer do this, the infection rate from email attachments is significantly lower, but it can still be a common problem. The golden rule is that if you don’t know what an attachment is, don’t open it. To this day, many email users never open attachments, no matter what. You don’t have to take such drastic steps to protect yourself, however; simply use common sense when opening attachments in your email.

2. Rogue Websites. It is depressing to know that you may become infected with spyware or a virus by doing nothing more than simply visiting a website, but it is true. Many adult websites, gambling websites and other less than trustworthy websites will attempt to automatically access your computer when you visit them. They often install adware bugs that will cause a flurry of pop ups to appear on your screen. This adware will often allow for other programs with even more nefarious purposes to be installed and before you know it, your computer will be swamped. To stop these rogue websites, adjust the settings on your antivirus software and firewall so that no outside connections can be made and no programs can be installed without your express permission.

3. Networks. If your computer is connected to a home network or if your work computer is part of a larger network, you may find yourself with an infection through no fault of your own. Someone else on the network downloaded a bug by accident, and within minutes, the entire network could be infected. There isn’t much you can do to stop these kinds of infections, short of having your network administrator ensure that everyone’s antivirus software is up to date so that the invading bug can be removed as quickly as possible.

4. Infected Boot disks. Now that hard drives are obscenely large, the overwhelming percentage of us don’t bother to use boot disks anymore, but a virus can still be spread if an infected disk is in your hard drive and you attempt to restart. When you start your computer, your machine will always check your drives to see if a disk with boot information is present. If one is, your computer will likely automatically attempt to boot from the disk and not from your drive. If a virus is present, it will often be activated and you will become infected. Always know the origin of any disk you put into your drive.

5. Phishing Schemes. Learning how computer viruses spread is important to keep yourself, and your personal information, safe online. Phishing schemes are one of the chief ways in which people end up with their identity stolen and a computer fill of viruses. A phishing scheme starts when you receive an email from a website claiming to be your bank or credit card company. You are asked to click a link and log in, but the truth is that you’ve just given away all of your personal information. Often times, when you visit these sites, spyware, adware and viruses are automatically installed on your computer (see Rogue Websites, above). Your lender or credit card will often send out a real notice that let’s you know that a phishing scheme is going around. The smartest thing you can do is to simply call your bank or credit card company if you receive an email saying there is a problem with your account instead of blindly following links in your email.

6. Infected Software. One of the great things about the Internet is how many free games and programs there are out there, but these free programs often come at a price. Too many rogue websites intentionally infect their freeware (like Kazaa) with trojan viruses so that you unknowingly infect your computer every time you download a free game or piece of software. The key here is to only download freeware or shareware from a trusted source like CNet that always ensures your safety.

7. Hackers. The Internet today is a much more law abiding place than it was ten years ago. Not only did most people not have antivirus protection and firewalls that could stop incoming attacks, most people didn’t even know what they were. Today, people understand the value of good online protection, but hackers can still pose a problem if you allow your protection software to lapse. The best way to beat hackers is to ensure that you have a firewall and up to date antivirus software.

8. Instant Messaging. It is difficult to find a computer in this day and age that doesn’t have at least one instant messaging service installed on it. Unfortunately, these programs are often targets of hackers who see an easy way to trick people into clicking links that lead them to rogue websites. Common sense can keep you out of trouble, however. Only chat with people you know and never follow links to sites that you don’t recognize. You should easily be able to keep Internet worms, viruses and other bugs at bay.

9. Fake Anti Virus Software. This is one of the most frustrating ways to become infected with a virus or worm. There are dozens of anti virus and anti spyware programs you can download for free on the Internet and a surprising number of them actually do exactly the opposite of what they claim. The product websites make outrageous claims that their product can protect you from a whole range of threats, when, in reality, their product will only make things a thousand times worse. Only download antivirus programs from trusted sites or from websites that you know are completely legit.

10. From Mobile Devices. A recent story in the newspaper should serve as a wake up call for anyone who is getting ready to plug in a mobile device into their computer for the first time. A family purchased a digital picture frame from a local store and when they attempted to install the software that came with it, they inadvertently infected their computer with a virus. There really is no way to stop such an infection from happening, since we all buy peripherals that work with our computer, but we can ensure that we have the tools ready to go if an infection should happen. Keep your anti virus software up to date at all times and you should be able to wrestle control back from any Internet bug.

11. Friends and Relatives. Often times, we are sent viruses through our email from people that we know and trust. The social networking site Facebook has had to battle this very problem when their serves get a bug and automatically send out emails to everyone on the system that are infected. Often times, these emails are extremely generic sounding and come with suspicious attachments, but people often open them anyway since they have come from a friend or from a site they trust, like Facebook. Remember, if you get an attachment with an .exe extension or a .dll, don’t ever open it.

Learning how computer viruses spread is the best way we can put an end to their reign of terror online. It is only with the right knowledge and the best antivirus protection software that Internet users everywhere can beat online bugs for good.

EMAIL VIRUSES

2012-05-25T04:43:00.001-07:00

EMAIL VIRUSES EFFECTING COMPUTER.

Beware of Email Viruses in Spam - Top Tips to Stay Safe

Giving you more know how of Email virus is the intent of this article. Internet browsing is not the only pastime for people.

Getting connected and using the computer for communication is also a pastime for many. For those who are not web browser savvy you may by now know how to send and receive mails.

You may open a mail account and soon you will find so many mails from people you do not seem to know. Sometimes you even find some junk mail from people you seem to know. It is a bad world out there and just beware even if you get a stupid mail that seems to be from your friend do not open it. For now crooks adopt spoofing-A technique by which they use another email id so that you may accept the mail and open it. Phishing is a means used where the "From email id" is spoofed to appear as though it is from your credit card company or your bank. This is to entice you to part with your PIN number and other password with which they will rob your account.

Spamming is popular on the net. Advertising companies target your mail box in a means to send adverts across. But that is not all. You may find a variety of annoying and destructive mail or sometimes mail that has attachments. Many times these attachments contain

Worms
Viruses
Trojan Horses

What is an email virus, worm or Trojan? Email viruses are not viruses in the true sense of the term. They are more Trojans and worms. Normal computer viruses replicate on its own; but Email viruses cannot replicate without human intervention. Yet for all that they have cause major damage and shut down many email systems.

Means of Infection

Attachments

Humans are gullible and it is this gullibility that virus writers use. The only means of infecting your computer via emails is by opening an attachment that contains a Trojan, a worm or a virus. Once you do this you infect your computer and cause the damage the virus or Trojan is supposed to accomplish. If it is a worm then you have caused more extensive damage not only to your self but to all on the internet. A worm is an email sending virus and send emails to all the others using the email id's from you're the address book of your mail account. The worm thus uses your mail box to spread to others.

Email Sending Virus: Spam Infects You

Email sending virus-If you know what file extension are then remember this always when opening your mailbox. Any file with extensions

.pif, .exe, .com, .vbs, .vb, .bat, .bin, .dot, .reg, .js, .jse, .scr(Trojans), .wmz, .ocx, .wsf, .wmf are dangerous files do not open such attachment if you are not sure. In case you do not know what extensions are just do not open any files if you are not sure who the sender is. Also if you find too many extensions do not open the file. For Example it may look like letter.txt.exe or personal.doc.vbs.

Email Client Configuration

Another means of infection is the configuration of your email client. Under any circumstance do not allow any program to "automatically download and run any email attachments". It may contain viruses that can damage your PC. Also many email clients allow MIME extensions allowing others to encrypt and embed files and send it. Opening files from a sender you do not know can also give you an infection.

For most cases it is your email client that you use that cause the most problems. The latest email virus the recent KAK virus (JS/Kak, WScript.Kak, Kakworm, VBS/Kak) exploited a problem in the email client MS-Outlook signatures to spread. This used an ActiveX flaw and spread. Nimda activated on some machines by itself and is a combination of a mass mailer worm and virus.

Damage

Email viruses destroy and damage files on computer systems. Most viruses and Trojans are used now-a-days to get financial information that is stored on the computer. Like password and credit card information. Email's are the easiest way to download Trojans which is then used by crooks to obtain personal information. Some email viruses are capable of producing bulk email or spam by sending itself to all the others that are in your address book. The damage can be extensive and cause a denial of service attack on any email server.

Prevention

Email virus detection and email virus protection in the form or email filters are many. Spoofing is used to bypass these filters. Prevention is better than cure and the best way to prevent being infected is

Do not open any mail from people you do not know.
Do not open any mail that looks suspicious. Even, if you get, a 'mail bounce back', when you have not sent a mail.
Do not open any attachments if it contains any of the extensions detailed above. Do not open files that have extensions that you do not know about.
Better not to use an email client. Even if you are using one see that you are able to see the extensions of filenames downloaded. Also disable the signature and auto run features that are exploited by some viruses.
Get a spam filter or activate it with your mail server such that it filters out spam. Since some spam contain Trojans and viruses that can cause damage.
Be careful of any file even from known sources run and antivirus scan before attempting to open the document or file.

Removal

Removal of the virus is best done by getting an antivirus and running it
Also regularly update your antivirus as statistics show that one virus is generated every three minutes.
Get you computer scanned online by a reputed antivirus scanner like PC-Cillin or Bit defender.
In case of new viruses look up alerts and find out ways used to prevent and remove such email viruses.

Over the years quite a few email viruses have turned out to be hoaxes; a search for hoaxes email viruses would turn up with some interesting results. One interesting hoax is the invitation email virus. It says do not open any email with an attached file named invitation. The warning is that the attachment opens an "Olympic Torch" that will burn the whole hard disk. This is untrue but the hoax was very popular and spread rapidly. Just be ever vigilant for any email virus and check out antivirus websites for alerts and hoaxes before passing on any warning.

COMPUTER VIRUS

2012-05-25T04:36:00.001-07:00

What Went Wrong - How Did my System Get Infected with a Virus?

There are a number of warning signs that indicate the presence of a computer virus infection on your computer system.

The same symptoms apply to worm infections and Trojans, malicious code often delivered via contaminated email attachments. The major warning sign is a dramatic decrease in your machine's operating speed, especially if you are connected to a network.

Look for strange operating behavior such as flashing drive or modem lights, corrupted or lost files (especially Word documents and Excel spreadsheets), or unusual program messages (for instance messages that say your files are not in the correct format.) Sometimes programs are disabled and will not open or new icons appear on your desktop. Your speakers my play strange sounds or your monitor's display may be disrupted.

Frequent and unexplained systems crashes are common symptoms of virus infection. Sometimes the system will "han" on start-up or will take an unusually long time to start. You may receive "out of memory" messages or be unable to install new programs. But how does a virus infect your computer in the first place?

How do Computers become Infected by Viruses?

The simple answer to "how do computer viruses infect your computer" is that you have most probably been tricked into doing something that you shouldn't have done, thus allowing the virus to be activated and to propagate. Some of the worst virus and worm infections are attributed to email messages.

The vast bulk of viruses are distributed as attachments to trick email messages. The best piece of advice anyone can follow to protect themselves from computer viruses is, do not open attachments - especially those with the file extensions .vbs or .exe. If you receive a message with an attachment, even from someone you know, send an email asking what the attachment is about and even if they actually sent it.

Many viruses, once activated, send themselves to every email address in the contact list of the infected machine. The virus is designed to appear to be sending benign or useful material or programs. Be suspicious! If you are sending an attachment, clearly state in your message what you are sending (format and content) and expect the same courtesy and caution from your correspondents.

Some Viruses can Crash you PC. Check out the Types of Viruses

People have a very general view that there are many types of computer viruses and are those programs that cause damage or make the system crash.

Malicious code is the general word used and virus is one type of malicious code. Worms and Trojans are different from computer virus and destructive types of worms are sometimes termed as internet types of virus. Computer viruses have made their mark on the PC's since the 90's with different types of viruses causing damage to computers.

The earliest viruses made the most impact as no anti-virus programs were available. The advent of anti-virus programs spelled a death blow to many common types of computer viruses that were written by the various tools to generate types of computer virus. Those who were inept at programming used these various tool to generate the virus. Devious mind always find new ways when they found that the anti-virus software's were able to disinfect and remove the different types of computer viruses they went on to new methods and that is how Trojans and worms came up.

There are a few main types of computer viruses and these computer virus types are classified below depending upon the infection methods:

Boot sector/Master Boot Record Computer Virus

Means of Infection

Boot sector is that area of the computer that is accessed when the computer is turned on. A boot sector virus infects this portion. Once the boot sector is infected the virus is loaded into memory when the computer is turned on. This virus then infects boot sectors on floppies or other removable media Master Boot record virus only infects the Master boot record and not the boot sector

Damage Caused

Boot sector viruses gain complete control of the master boot record or the DOS boot sector by replacing the operating system contents with that of its own. This allows the virus to spread fast and cause damage:

By gaining control of the master boot record and the DOS boot sector the boot sector viruses can sometimes hide the resources that the computer has( the floppy drive even though attached may not be present)
Some boot sector viruses contain instructions to redirect disk reads.
Some boot sector viruses move the master boot record to another location causing the system to crash when it boots up. Other boot sector viruses cause damage to the master boot record
Some boot sector viruses damage the File Allocation Table (FAT) which is the index of all the files on the drive. This causes loss of data

Removal

The best way to remove boot sector virus is to boot the computer with using a clean boot disk and then rewrite the files with the good operating system files on the infected disk. These viruses were very much prevalent in the ninety's and a host of antivirus programs are now available to detect and clean them effectively. Spyware remover helps to keep off the malicious spyware to protect your PC and enhances good performance and speed up your PC.

Continue to : Different Types of Viruses

Boot Sector VirusBrowser HijackerDirect Action VirusFile Infector VirusMacro VirusMultipartite VirusPolymorphic VirusResident VirusWeb Scripting VirusTrojan horse

How to Clean a Laptop's Virus

2012-05-25T02:51:00.000-07:00

INFECTED LAPTOP TO REBUILD LEARN

2012-05-25T02:40:00.000-07:00

How to Rebuild a Laptop Infected With a Virus

Knowing how to rebuild your laptop if it's been infected with a virus may save you the cost of professional help. A virus is a program that infiltrates your computer and replicates itself. Removing a virus is a relatively easy process and takes less than a minute. There are dozens of free antivirus programs on the Web that are capable of removing a virus.

Instructions

- 1
  
  Download and install Webroot Spy Sweeper, Malwarebytes or the Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool (see Resources).
- 2
  
  Double-click the icon of your newly installed anitivirus program.
- 3 Click "Perform Full Scan."
- 4
  
  Left-click "Remove Selected" to completely delete the virus from your computer.
- 5
  
  Restart your laptop. Your laptop should no longer be infected.

Internet Virus Protection Repair

2012-05-25T02:22:00.002-07:00

Help With: Internet Virus Protection Repair

Important issues regarding Internet Virus Protection Repair: Computer errors occur when your operating system becomes filled with junk and important files get removed or corrupted. These types of problems are the consequence of not properly maintaining your system. If left unchecked these problems can result in critical system errors, freezes, and even a complete system crash.

Recommended: Use the Free Scan to diagnose Internet Virus Protection Repair issues as well as other problems plaguing your system. Once registered, this tool can repair the issues that may be causing your system to malfunction while simultaneously boosting computer speed, optimizing memory, improving protection, and much more.

Diagnose Internet Virus Protection Repair Issues

DESCRIPTION	VERSION	ESTIMATED DOWNLOAD TIME
DOWNLOAD – SCAN FOR INTERNET VIRUS PROTECTION REPAIR (Install speedy pc pro optimization tool)	Current as of (May 24, 2012)	56k -> 9m 512k < 1m	DOWNLOAD

Important (depending on your browser settings): when prompted, click "Save" to save the installer to your computer or "Run" to save and begin the installation process. Once installed use the FREE SCAN to search for system deficiencies and Internet Virus Protection Repair related issues. (Note: some advanced computer issues may require additional technical assistance)

Fix System Errors

Many computer problems start in the Windows registry. This complicated database contains valuable information about settings, preferences and relationships. With software installations and uninstalls, it can grow large, unwieldy, unstable and corrupt. This can result in erratic performance, freezes, crashes and a slow computer.

SpeedyPC Pro safely and thoroughly cleans the Windows registry to rid it of errors that drastically affect computer performance. It focuses on such areas as ActiveX entries, shared DLLs (dynamic link library), uninstall entries, font entries, applications paths, file/path references, program shortcuts, file associations and much more.

Improve Performance and Startup Times

When there are too many programs operating at the same time, your computer can slow down. This is because they are all fighting over the available resources. In many cases, there are unneeded processes running. SpeedyPC Pro stops these unwanted processes to improve your PC’s performance. When you turn on your computer, various programs try to launch. Some, such as your anti-virus, are needed. Others just take up resources. SpeedyPC Pro’s Startup Manager helps you stop unneeded programs from launching when you boot up.

Remove Viruses and Malware

Viruses, spyware, adware, keyloggers, Trojan downloaders and other malicious programs can cause all sorts of problems. First of all there is their assigned tasks: to spy on you, steal information, takeover your PC, bring more malware to your machine, and other devious plans. Secondly, malware interferes with applications you need and cause may performance issues. SpeedyPC Pro scans for and ejects active malware that can harm you and your PC.

Repair Many PC Problems with One Tool

Instead of having to buy many software programs to fix and clean your computer, you just need SpeedyPC Pro. It has a wealth of optimization tools and useful utilities. These include:

· Privacy Scanner

Finds and erases such private and confidential information as your credit card numbers, banking info, passwords and Internet browsing history.

· Disk Defragmenter

Optimizes memory by rearranging storage so that parts of the same file are all saved in contiguous locations to improve speed.

· File Manager

Finds the programs you need to open a wide variety of file extensions, including .pdf, .docx, .jpg, .xls, .tiff and many more.

· Clutter Cleaner

Gets rid of junk files, temporary items and other unneeded data that just take up space on your computer.

· Malware Remover

Scans deeply to find and oust viruses, spyware and other malicious programs that can harm you and your PC.

· Registry Cleaner

Fixes registry errors, such as ActiveX, Java, DLL and other common problems that cause poor PC performance.

· Startup Manager

Gives you the power to decide which programs should launch when you turn on your PC. Decreases startup times.

· Performance Problem Finder

Locates unneeded programs and processes that are running, often without your knowledge, and hogging valuable resources.

· BHO Manager

Disables unwanted Browser Helper Objects, also known as plug-ins or add-ons for Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome and other browsers.

· Restore Point Manager

Create restore points for safe cleaning and program installation and removes old ones to free up disk space.

The Barracuda NG Firewall features intelligent.

2012-05-20T10:32:00.001-07:00

The Barracuda NG Firewall is a family of hardware and virtual appliances designed to protect network infrastructure, improve site-to-site connectivity and simplify administration of network operations. Beyond its powerful network firewall, IPS and VPN technologies, the Barracuda NG Firewall integrates a comprehensive set of next generation firewall technologies, including Layer 7 application control, WAN optimization, Web filtering, anti-virus, anti-spam and network access control enforcement.

Central Management Across the Enterprise

With hardware models ranging from the micro branch office up to the large headquarters and datacenters, and a corresponding offering of virtual appliances, the Barracuda NG Firewall is designed for deployment across the entire enterprise. Through the Barracuda NG Control Center, administrators can manage security, content and traffic management policies from a single interface. Centralized management of security and content policy provides a number of benefits, including:

Consistent security posture and policy enforcement across the enterprise
Real-time accounting and reporting across multiple gateways
Comprehensive history and rollback of configuration and policy changes across the network
Centralized version control of anti-spam, anti-virus, Web filter and network access control updates

Intelligent Traffic Management

The Barracuda NG Firewall features intelligent site-to-site traffic management capabilities that optimize both availability and performance of the wide area network. Administrators can control application-level routing and prioritization of traffic across multiple links, tunnels and traffic conditions. Supported link types include dedicated lines, xDSL, 3G wireless mobile networks, and any other link types presented as a copper or optical Ethernet link.

Stops Threats and Reduces Administrative Overhead

The Barracuda NG Firewall is an application-aware firewall solution designed to mitigate threats, enforce policies and optimize traffic flow - resulting in ultra reliable WAN links. As an added benefit, industry leading, centralized management provides visibility of the entire network, reducing administrative overhead and in line costs.

The Barracuda Web Filter

2012-05-20T10:25:00.000-07:00

The Barracuda Web Filter is an integrated content filtering, application blocking and malware protection solution that is powerful, easy to use and affordable for businesses of all sizes. It enforces Internet usage policies by blocking access to Web sites and Internet applications that are not related to business, and it easily and completely eliminates spyware and other forms of malware from your organization. No more productivity loss trying to repair computers or make computers usable again.

Blocks access to Web sites based on domain, URL pattern, or content category
Blocks downloads based on file type
Blocks applications that access the Internet, including IM, music services, and software update utilities
Integrates with "safe search" filters built into popular images search engines
Provides integrated gateway and desktop spyware protection
Uses Barracuda Web Security Agents compatible with Windows PC’s and Macs to enforce Internet policies on off-network computers.

Powerful, Enterprise-Class Solution

The Barracuda Web Filter combines preventative, reactive, and proactive measures to form a complete Web filtering solution. Designed for the enterprise, the Barracuda Web Filter enables you to set up custom policies for particular users and groups across customizable time ranges. The Barracuda Web Filter integrates with popular LDAP directory servers, such as Microsoft Active Directory, for both authentication and group membership information on which to apply custom policies. Sample uses of group policies include:

Restricting access to job board Web sites to only the Human Resources group
Defining separate policies for teachers and students at a school
Enabling compliance officers unrestricted access to the Web for investigation
Providing external instant messaging (e.g., AIM) access only to specific users or groups
Restricting personal Web browsing to non-working hours

For organizations that do not utilize directory servers, policies can be defined for unauthenticated users as a whole, locally defined users and groups, or network IP address ranges.

Best of Breed Spyware Protection

The Barracuda Web Filter employs a unique approach to integrate gateway and desktop spyware protection strategies. In providing Web security at the gateway, the Barracuda Web Filter prevents new spyware and virus infections as they attempt to penetrate the network. In addition, the Barracuda Web Filter facilitates automatic removal of spyware from previously infected Windows computers with the included Barracuda Spyware Removal Tool, an ActiveX control that can be served up automatically upon detection of spyware protocol activity (i.e., “phoning home”). By adaptively targeting those machines that are infected, the Barracuda Web Filter provides widespread protection and removal without requiring preloaded client software on every machine on the network.

Easy to Use

With no client software to install and no modifications required to your network, the Barracuda Web Filter is easy to deploy. It has an intuitive user interface for maintenance and monitoring, making it a virtually maintenance-free solution. Even system updates are made automatically by Barracuda Central, an advanced 24/7 security operations center where engineers work continuously to catalog sites used in personal Web browsing and to provide the most effective methods to combat the ever changing spyware variants. Updates are performed hourly so that your Barracuda Web Filter can provide ongoing enforcement of your Internet usage policy and protection of your network.

Affordable

Large and small organizations alike demand solutions that are affordable not just today, but also in the future as they grow. With no per user license fee, the Barracuda Web Filter is the most affordable content filtering, application blocking, and anti-spyware solution available

Protection Layer Barracuda Spam & Virus Firewall

2012-05-20T10:19:00.000-07:00

Also available as a virtual appliance and hosted service.

The Barracuda Spam & Virus Firewall provides a powerful, easy-to-use and affordable solution for complete protection of an organization’s email infrastructure. It eliminates spam and virus intrusions while safeguarding an organization’s reputation through content inspection based on policy for both inbound and outbound email. Outbound filtering also prevents confidential or sensitive information from being purposely or inadvertently leaked outside the organization.

Anti-spam
Anti-virus
Anti-spoofing
Anti-phishing
Anti-spyware (Attachments)
Denial of Service
Data Leak Prevention
Cloud Protection Layer

Powerful, Complete Solution The Barracuda Spam & Virus Firewall is compatible with all email servers and can fit into nearly any corporate or small business environment. It is used by small organizations with as few as 10 employees and large organizations with as many as 200,000 employees. A single Barracuda Spam & Virus Firewall handles up to 100,000 active email users. Multiple units can be clustered together for even greater capacity and high availability.

The Barracuda Spam & Virus Firewall protects your email server with twelve defense layers:

Network Denial of Service Protection

Rate Control

IP Reputation Analysis

Sender Authentication

Recipient Verification

Virus Scanning

Policy (User-specified rules)

Spam Fingerprint Check

Intent Analysis

Image Analysis

Bayesian Analysis

Rule-Based Scoring

The Barracuda Spam & Virus Firewall architecture optimizes the processing of each email to maximize performance and process millions of messages per day. Unlike software solutions, the Barracuda Spam & Virus Firewall reduces the load placed on the email server by offloading both spam and virus filtering.

All Barracuda Spam & Virus Firewall models include comprehensive outbound filtering techniques including attachment scanning, virus filtering, rate controls and encryption. These features help organizations to ensure that all outgoing email is legitimate and virus-free.

In addition, Barracuda Spam & Virus Firewall includes email encryption using a cloud-based portal and Data Loss Prevention features like attachment content scanning.

Cloud Protection Layer

Barracuda Spam & Virus Firewall includes a Cloud Protection Layer to stop spam and viruses in the cloud. In this mode, inbound emails are first scanned by the cloud before delivery. The Cloud Protection Layer also features multiple delivery options. If the primary delivery destination is unavailable, then emails are delivered to a secondary destination. If both the primary and secondary destinations are unavailable, then undelivered email is stored for later delivery.

Easy-to-Use

With no software to install or modifications required to existing email systems, installation of the Barracuda Spam & Virus Firewall is quick and easy. Once installed, the system administrator uses the intuitive Web interface for monitoring and maintenance. With Barracuda Energize Updates, the Barracuda Spam & Virus Firewall is continuously updated with the latest spam and virus definitions every hour keeping maintenance to the unit at a minimum and eliminating administrative overhead. Updates are provided by Barracuda Central, an advanced 24x7 security operations center that works to continuously monitor and block the latest Internet threats.

Affordable

At Barracuda Networks, we design and build products not only for their power and ease-of-use, but also for their affordability. With no per user license fees, the Barracuda Spam & Virus Firewall is the most affordable enterprise-class spam and virus solution available

eScan Unique Selling Points

2012-05-10T11:52:00.002-07:00

The following points about eScan are the ones which make the BIGGEST impact on prospective customers:

eScan Toolkit: eScanAV Anti-Virus Toolkit (MWAV) is part of the eScan product range and it is one of the most popular supporting tools that is given by us. Customers use eScan toolkit for

malware/adware/spyware removal and also for removing the "after-effects" of malware

infection. It is also available as a stand-alone download.

Many forums across the world suggest and use eScanAV Anti-Virus Toolkit (MWAV) for customers who are affected by "strong" infections. As a result of this toolkit, eScan got the highest marks for malware disinfection from AV-Comparatives.

If a customer purchases eScan, he also gets to use this eScanAV Anti-Virus Toolkit (MWAV) on all computers which DO NOT have eScan. The Toolkit is also available as a stand-alone download.

Endpoint Security: eScan Endpoint Security or device control is a feature which helps customers to secure USB/Flash and other storage devices. Device control also provides for white-listing and device authentication so that users can "disallow" foreign devices from accidentally infecting their systems. Endpoint Security also provides application control, which is used for blocking unauthorized applications.

Lowest memory usage: eScan has one of the lowest memory-footprints (less than 10 MB at idle times) amongst all AV products.

FREE eScan Remote Support: eScan is the ONLY product in the market to provide the eScan

Remote Support facility, integrated in the software, to help consumers to detect and solve malwarerelated issues, in the fastest possible time-frames.

White-listing: eScan, today, can boast of the fastest scanner because, other than regular malware databases which all vendors provide, we also provide white-listing databases, which ensures that our monitoring only checks for "NEW" unknown files or modified files, and not the regular files.

Malware URL Filter: Socially engineered malware attacks pose one of the largest risks to individuals and organizations alike by threatening to compromise, damage or expose sensitive information. These are web pages with links to applications that appear to be safe and are designed to fool the user into downloading them, like a software update, screen saver application, video codec upgrade, Fake AV, etc. Additionally, the download link delivers a malicious payload whose content type would lead to execution. In other words, the web is increasingly being used to quickly distribute malware and evade traditional security programs.

Considering the above, we have now introduced a new feature within eScan (will be shortly available in real-time updates), which will BLOCK access of users to malicious websites / URLs. Malware URL Filter will further strengthen eScan on End points and will help users and systems-administrators to effectively mitigate loop-holes using which "UNKNOWN" malware enters into computers & networks.

Comprehensive Protection with Virtual Keyboard: eScan provides enhanced Web Protection and Privacy Protection features, such as User-based Parental Control, Pop-up Filter, and Virtual Keyboard. Parental Control and Pop-up Filters are customizable features that would help users block offensive content and Pop-ups, respectively.

eScan also includes an advanced Web Phishing Filter that warns users of Phishing Web Sites. It is also equipped with a Virtual Keyboard to protect the system against keyloggers. Users can use this keyboard while typing sensitive information, such as banking passwords or credit card numbers.

Protection from accidental detections of Operating System files (false-positives) :

In April 2010, McAfee customers all across the world suffered a terrible outage because of a critical Operating System file was wrongly detected as malware by the McAfee engine. This problem will NEVER arise with eScan because, with the help of Microsoft, and our own white-listing database, we will NEVER analyze a clean Operating System file. So the probability of wrongly detecting a good OS file as malware is close to ZERO.

Auto-detection of gaming mode: eScan is the ONLY product which features auto-detection of gaming mode. This means that when a gamer is running a popular game, the product will go into "idle" or "lowpriority" mode so that most of the CPU is given over to the gaming product.

OS Vulnerability checks : Most products in the market DETECT non-presence of critical OS updates and warn the user. eScan is the ONLY product which also automatically DOWNLOADS these OS updates (from Microsoft), if necessary, and REMOVE the vulnerabilities.

Auto and free feature additions during the period of contract: eScan is the ONLY product that gives out new features (as auto-updates) to consumers FREE of cost during the contract period. Other vendors give out feature additions as part of NEW Product releases, for which customers have to pay.

Auto-backup of critical files : eScan is also the ONLY product which provides the feature of autobackup of critical OS and Application files. The auto-backup becomes important if a new variant of a fileinfector (like Virut, Virtob or Sality) infects the system.

Windows Based eScan Rescue Disk : eScan Rescue Disk provides you with a Windows based clean environment that helps you to scan and clean the system and fix the Windows registry changes done by viruses.

Works in Safe Mode : In case of infections, eScan also has the ability to scan and clean in safe mode.

Customization : With the eScan customization kit, eScan Channel Community can get customer protection by customizing eScan products with their email-ID, website and buy links

ANTI VIRUS SOFTWARE'S

Antivirus software-based 2014

History

Identification method

Signature-based detection

Heuristics

Rootkit detection

Real-time protection

Issues of concern

Unexpected renewal costs

Rogue security applications

Problems caused by false positives

System and interoperability related issues

Effectiveness

New viruses

Rootkits

Damaged files

Firmware issues

Other methods

Cloud antivirus

Network firewall

Online scanning

Specialist tools

Usage and risks

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Articles Index

Kaspersky ONE

Windows PC Protection

Mac Protection

Android Smartphone Protection

Android Tablet Protection

Windows PC Protection

Antivirus on Windows 8

Antivirus on Windows 8:

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Protection Strength of Windows Defender

Additional Free Antivirus Options

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Choosing Your Antivirus for Windows 8

Norton 360 2013 - 1 User / 3 PC Special Discount

Norton 360 2013 - 1 User / 3 PC Special Discount

Norton 360 2013 - 1 User / 3 PC Feature

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

Norton 360 2013

Protects Against

Key Features and Benefits

System Requirements

Operating Systems Supported

Minimum Hardware Requirements

Email scanning supported for POP3-compatible email clients

Browser Support for Phishing Protection, Safe Search, and Password Management

Browser Support for Vulnerability Protection

Product Description

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EditSteps

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Webroot Secure:

Anywhere: PC, Android and iOS protection under one license:

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Firewall Protection

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