Panda Security, The Cloud Security Company, today announced the release of Panda Cloud Office Protection 6.0, the only Software-as-a-Service endpoint security solution that includes Device Control technologies designed to prevent the spread of malware through the improper use of external devices. These controls allow organizations to improve productivity by enforcing policies to deny access, force read-only access, or grant total access on multiple device types (USB flash drives, digital cameras, DVDs and more) through the PCOP Web-based console.

The new version also includes Malware Freezer, a module that ‘freezes’ detected malware for seven days by placing it in quarantine. This tool ensures system stability, restoring false positive files.

Panda Cloud Office Protection 6.0 is a cloud-based security service for PCs, servers and corporate laptops managed remotely from anywhere through its Web-based console.

Panda Cloud Office Protection’s infrastructure is fully hosted in the cloud, eliminating the difficulties managing remote users and hardware costs associated with a client-server security model. As always, Panda’s endpoint security service can be installed remotely, either through a distribution tool or email, without requiring the installation of a remote access add-on. The solution also offers group policies for advanced configuration of protection levels; concise and informative malware and threat reports; and a unified, centralized quarantine.

The new version is hosted in Windows Azure, a cloud platform hosted in Microsoft data centers and designed to support highly available, scalable and reliable applications. Windows Azure uses a set of privacy and security controls that ensure maximum protection of its hosted data and applications.

For more information, please visit http://www.pandasecurity.com/enterprise/solutions/cloud-office-protection/

PandaLabs, Panda Security’s anti-malware laboratory, today published its Quarterly Report for Q1, analyzing the IT security events and incidents from January through March 2012. In the first quarter of 2012 alone, six million new malware samples were created, in line with the overwhelming figures of previous years.

Malware Statistics

Trojans set a new record for becoming the preferred category for cybercriminals to carry out their information theft, representing 80 percent of all new malware. In 2011, Trojans ‘only’ accounted for 73 percent of all malware. Worms took second place, comprising 9.30 percent of samples, followed by viruses at 6.43 percent. Interestingly, these two malware categories have swapped positions compared to the 2011 Annual Report, where viruses stood at 14.25 percent and worms were third with 8 percent of all circulating malware.

As for the number of infections caused by each malware category, the ranking coincides with that of new samples in circulation. Trojans, worms and viruses again occupied the top three spots. Interestingly, worms only caused eight percent of all infections despite accounting for more than nine percent of all new malware. This is quite noteworthy as worms usually caused many more infections due to their ability to propagate in an automated fashion. In any event, the figures simply corroborate what is well known: Massive worm epidemics have become a thing of the past, and have been replaced by an increasing avalanche of silent Trojans, cyber-criminals’ weapon of choice for their attacks.

China Tops List of Infections per Country

The average number of infected PCs across the globe stands at 35.51 percent, down more than three points compared to 2011, according to Panda Security’s Collective Intelligence data. China once again led this ranking (54.25 percent of infected PCs), followed by Taiwan and Turkey. The list of least infected countries is dominated by European countries -nine out of the first ten places are occupied by them. Japan is the only non-European country among the top ten nations with under thirty percent of computers infected. The top three places are occupied by Sweden, Switzerland and Norway.

Countries with the most malware infections:

The Quarter at a Glance

PandaLabs highlights several top security incidents during Q1 in the report. There was a marked increased in ‘ransomware’ attacks over the past quarter especially due to the so-called ‘Police Virus’. This virus displays messages containing the logos of international law enforcement agencies to trick users into believing that their computers have been locked by the police for visiting inappropriate websites or making illegal downloads. To unlock it, users have to pay a fine, usually in the range of one hundred euros, dollars or British pounds (depending on the target of the attack). However, those messages don’t come from the police, but from the Trojan itself.

The report also covers the latest attacks on Android cell phones, distribution of malware via Facebook, the Megaupload case, cyber-war and the latest activities of the Anonymous and LulzSec hacktivist groups.

According to Luis Corrons, technical director of PandaLabs, ”Although it’s still early in the year, so far what we have seen in 2012 is a continuation of past trends. Cyber-criminals are still trying to steal users’ information and money by any means possible”.

As always, PandaLabs advises all users to keep their computers adequately protected. With this in mind, Panda Security offers its free tool Panda Cloud Antivirus.

The quarterly report can be downloaded from: http://press.pandasecurity.com/press-room/reports/

Panda Security, The Cloud Security Company, today announced that Panda Cloud Antivirus, the world’s fastest growing cloud-based antivirus, has achieved the Advanced+ rating in the latest “On-demand Detection of Malicious Software” test from the independent review lab AV-Comparatives.org.

The test compared Panda Cloud Antivirus to 19 other antivirus programs. Panda Cloud Antivirus successfully detected 98.6 percent of the more than 300,000 samples used by AV-Comparatives.org, performing better than free solutions from Avast, AVG and Microsoft and paid programs from Eset or Trend Micro, and reinforcing the product’s powerful protection capabilities.

The AV-Comparatives.org tests also examined false positives, which the lab recommends people consider when evaluating products as they can sometimes cause as much trouble as real infections. Panda detected all but ten clean files as malware, whereas other antivirus solutions reported 54 false positives on average. The full report is available at http://www.av-comparatives.org/en/comparativesreviews/detection-test

This is the second Advanced+ certification awarded by AV-Comparatives to Panda Cloud Antivirus in its ‘On-demand Detection of Malicious Software’ tests. More information on the first certification is available at: http://press.pandasecurity.com/news/panda-cloud-antivirus-achieves-advanced-rating-in-its-first-participation-in-av-comparatives-tests/. This recognition follows the excellent results obtained by Panda Cloud Antivirus in a recent evaluation conducted by the AV-Test.org test lab: http://press.pandasecurity.com/news/panda-cloud-antivirus-ranks-as-best-performing-free-antivirus-in-recent-av-test-evaluation/

Panda Cloud Antivirus Free Edition 1.5.2, launched last February, includes performance improvements as well as new features suggested by Panda Security’s user community. Since Cloud Antivirus’ initial release in 2009 as the first free “in the cloud” security service for home users, millions around the world have benefitted from its award-winning free antivirus protection and incredibly lightweight footprint. The latter is a major benefit of Collective Intelligence, Panda’s proprietary technology for automatically collecting and processing millions of malware samples in the cloud instead of locally on the user’s PC.

For more information about Panda Cloud Antivirus or to download the product, please visit: http://www.cloudantivirus.com

The pic of the seal is available at: http://press.pandasecurity.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/logo_od_ADV+_mar2012.jpg

Panda Security, The Cloud Security Company, today announced the beta release of Panda Global Protection 2013, its comprehensive solution for protecting the information and digital life of home computer users. The beta can be downloaded for free at http://www.pandasecurity.com/promotions/betatest/. Along with the release of the beta, Panda has also announced the launch of a beta testing competition: All users testing the solution will receive a 50 percent discount on the purchase of the final product, whereas the ten beta testers suggesting the most helpful improvements will each receive a $200 Amazon.com gift certificate.

Panda Global Protection 2013 is the most comprehensive solution in Panda Security’s new retail product lineup. The product has continued to improve with the latest version, providing even better protection against all kinds of threats.

The product leverages Panda’s unique Collective Intelligence technology to collect threat intelligence from millions of computer users and deliver automated, instantaneous protection against known and unknown malware. By gathering information on malware from the worldwide Panda community, Collective Intelligence continuously improves protection levels and offers more rapid response to new malware attacks.

The new release builds on the core functionality that has positioned Panda Global Protection as the preferred solution among PC users: a highly effective antivirus engine to protect against known and unknown malware; a firewall with WiFi security to block intruders and hackers; Panda USB Vaccine to prevent USB devices from spreading infections; confidential information filters to keep personal data safe; backup and system recovery; and PC performance tuning.

Panda Global Protection 2013 is specifically designed for highly active users with the most demanding protection needs. TheThe Panda Safe Browser preserves user security and privacy on the Internet and specifically social networking sites. It also lets users encrypt private files and folders to prevent theft of personal, banking and financial data as well as any kind of valuable multimedia content.

Benefits of the new Panda Global Protection 2013 also include:

• New user interface look and feel, making it easier than ever to use the tools included in the 2013 lineup.
• Improved antivirus engine with better detection and disinfection capabilities.
• New password manager: Encrypted password repository that protects your digital identity and allows you to log into websites with just one click.
• New installer that makes installation easier and faster than ever.
• New feature to automatically shut down the computer after completing a scan
• Compatible with Windows 8 Consumer Preview, the beta version of Microsoft’s new operating system.
• New system for sending questions to Tech Support. Resolve your queries faster.
• Improved operating system vulnerability detection

To download the free beta, please visit: http://www.pandasecurity.com/promotions/betatest/

Panda Security, the Cloud Security Company, today announced that Panda Cloud Antivirus Free Edition, the world’s fastest growing cloud-based antivirus, has been ranked first in performance tests ran by the prestigious AV-Test.org independent lab. The institute evaluated the protection, repair, usability and performance impact of 23 home user and 8 corporate antivirus products under Windows 7 in January and February 2012.

Both Panda’s free antivirus solution and Panda Internet Security 2012 have been certified by AV-Test.org with an overall score of 14.5. Panda Cloud Antivirus Free Edition was the best free antivirus software, outperforming multiple paid solutions and achieving top rankings in usability (5.5 out of 6 points). In terms of accuracy, Panda Cloud Antivirus recorded only one false positive –a legitimate file erroneously tagged as malware– out of the more than 500,000 test files, whereas other products tested averaged six detections. In addition, it obtained an excellent score in protection (5 points), well above the average for other solutions.

AV-Test evaluations measure how much each solution impacts overall system performance while still delivering good levels of protection. Of all products tested, Panda Cloud Antivirus Free Edition had the least impact, registering 40 percent below average for other products analyzed. The full report is available at: http://www.av-test.org/en/tests/test-reports/

Panda Cloud Antivirus Free Edition 1.5.1, the software version tested by AV-Test and launched in June 2011, includes performance improvements as well as new functionality requested by Panda Security’s user community. Since Cloud Antivirus’ initial release in 2009 as the first free ‘in the cloud’ security service for home users, millions of PC users around the world have benefitted from its award-winning protection and light footprint. This low resource usage is a primary benefit of Collective Intelligence, Panda’s proprietary technology for automatically collecting and processing millions of malware samples in the cloud instead of locally on the user’s PC, as is the case with traditionally architected antivirus solutions. The current version is 1.5.2. For more information, please visit: http://blog.cloudantivirus.com/2012/02/27/panda-cloud-antivirus-1-5-2/

For more information about Panda Cloud Antivirus and to download the product, please visit http://www.cloudantivirus.com

Konica Minolta, a leading provider of IT and office equipment, has been working with Panda Security to help protect its highly distributed workforce in Portugal for more than eight years.

For Konica Minolta, the benefits of being able to manage the protection of the entire network remotely is of special relevance with its dispersed IT infrastructure. By eliminating the need of local teams being dedicated to security or constantly traveling between the branches to provide internal IT support, Konica Minolta is able to focus on its core business. Konica Minolta’s IT infrastructure is made up of approximately 200 computers mainly concentrated at its headquarters in Prior Velho, Lisbon, with offices in three other strategic cities (Porto, Coimbra and Faro).

“The antivirus solution Panda Security for Enterprise guarantees the protection of all workstations and servers, which are easily managed from a single location through the Panda AdminSecure tool”, said Delfim Oliveira, IT Manager of Konica Minolta Portugal. This gave Panda a competitive advantage over its competitors. “The security decision was strongly motivated by Panda being the most innovative company on the security solutions market”, explained Oliveira.

Panda Security has been able to meet all of Konica Minolta’s needs. “Since installing Panda’s products we haven’t had any infection issues, which provides us with significant peace of mind” said Oliveira.

One of the most outstanding features of Panda Security for Enterprise is “the ease of management provided by the AdminSecure centralized console”, which sets it apart from its competitors.

Konica Minolta’s experience of dealing with Panda Security reflects the support mantra to provide a quality service by maintaining a close relationship. Delfim Oliveira described the relationship with Panda’s support technicians as follows: “Whenever it was requested, Panda Security support displayed technical competence and professionalism, solving incidents with either a remote fix or in some cases an onsite visit”. However, he clarified that “The stability of the Panda solution installed on our systems ensures no current incidents and the experience we have gathered during our years of partnership allow proactive protection against new threats”.

Panda Security for Enterprise provides the most advanced proactive protection in a multi-tier flexible architecture covering all network layers. Its functionalities include network access and application control. Panda Security for Enterprise provides complete protection against known and unknown threats, based on a combination of the most advanced proactive technologies and comprehensive, periodic audits.

Panda Security’s solution combines unauthorized Internet access filtering, anti-spam and anti-malware protection, content filtering and detailed reports.

For more information about Panda Security for Enterprise, please visit:  http://www.pandasecurity.com/enterprise/solutions/enterprise

For more on Konica Minolta’s customer success story, please visit:  http://press.pandasecurity.com/press-room/case-studies/

Panda Security – The Cloud Security Company – today announced the launch of its new channel partner recruitment campaign, “Security to the power of the cloud”. The campaign includes a webinar series to show the benefits offered by the company’s cloud-based solutions to resellers. Partners can sign up for the online seminars at http://securitytothecloud.pandasecurity.com.

The training sessions will mainly focus on Panda Cloud Partner Center, a new management console for partners, with a demo of the product. These seminars will run in both the morning and afternoon at 11:00 (GMT +1) and 17:00 (GMT +1) respectively. The first webinars will be held on April 3 and 5.

“Our concept of ‘Security to the power of the cloud’ is based on three major pillars for channel partners: simplicity, margin and control”, said Paula Quiros, Director of International Marketing and Communication at Panda Security. “Partners demand easy-to-use tools that make their job simpler, return the expected margins and help them keep sales processes under control”, she added.

With Panda Cloud Partner Center, partners can manage all channel activity online in real-time, while remotely enabling protection for customers’ email and endpoints, such as servers, PCs and laptops.

Additionally, Panda Cloud Partner Center lets partners manage and monitor customers’ lifecycle and take better advantage of new business opportunities through better insight into license extension and cross-selling opportunities. It also simplifies the renewal process for service providers with customizable tools to streamline channel management, enabling them to assign new and existing customers trial versions of new products.

Partners interested in attending these webinars organized by Panda Security can sign up at http://securitytothecloud.pandasecurity.com.

Panda Security, The Cloud Security Company, today announced the beta release of Panda Antivirus Pro 2012 compatible with Windows 8 Consumer Preview. Users who have installed the beta version of the new Microsoft operating system will benefit from the best protection against malware. Consumers can download it free from http://www.pandasecurity.com/windows8

Panda Antivirus Pro 2012 is the easiest-to-use protection in Panda’s 2012 consumer product lineup, designed specifically to offer maximum protection with minimum resource consumption. Panda’s 2012 solutions leverage Collective Intelligence, the company’s exclusive cloud-computing technology, to collect threat intelligence from millions of computer users and deliver automated, instantaneous protection against known and unknown malware. Every day, PandaLabs receives nearly 73,000 new files that Collective Intelligence automatically analyzes, classifies and remedies. By gathering information on malware from the worldwide Panda community, Collective Intelligence continuously improves protection levels and offers more rapid response to the newest and most dangerous malware attacks.

According to Enrique Aguilera, Vice President of Consumer Sales & Marketing: “Making our 2012 solutions compatible with Microsoft’s upcoming operating system was essential for us. For over 20 years, Panda Security has been innovating and developing new technologies to protect our customers from all kinds of threats: Wwe are always there when users need us.”

For more information and to download the free beta, please visit: http://www.pandasecurity.com/windows8

Panda Security, The Cloud Security Company, and Microsoft have signed a collaboration agreement to develop cloud-based antivirus security services on Windows Azure. The new version of Panda Cloud Office Protection 6.0 is hosted in Windows Azure, a cloud platform designed to host, scale and manage Web applications. Windows Azure uses a set of privacy and security controls that ensure maximum protection of its hosted data and applications.

“The agreement with Microsoft has increased our management capabilities. It has provided us with virtually unlimited IT infrastructure and enhanced our dynamic adjustment capabilities”, said Pedro Bustamante, Senior Research Advisor at Panda Security.

According to Gonzalo Díe, Director of Platforms and Development at Microsoft Ibérica, “The agreement with Panda Security has strengthened Microsoft’s leadership in the cloud computing arena. We are delighted that Panda Security, the first IT security company to harness the power of cloud computing, has chosen Windows Azure to streamline the processes related to Panda Cloud Office Protection. This partnership shows our continued commitment to bringing the most innovative solutions to market.”

New version with numerous improvements

Panda Cloud Office Protection 6.0 is a cloud-based security service for PCs, servers and corporate laptops managed remotely from anywhere through its Web-based console.

The new release includes device control technologies that prevent the spread of malware through the improper use of external devices such as USB flash drives, digital cameras, DVDs and more. These controls will allow organizations to improve productivity by enforcing policies to deny access, force read-only access, or grant total access on multiple device types via a single Web-based console.

In addition, Panda Cloud Office Protection includes policies to block dangerous malware activity, self-protection against malware designed to damage or remove the antivirus, and real-time access to Collective Intelligence, offering one of the best antivirus solutions on the market today.

Migration to Windows Azure

Panda Security decided to migrate its new solution to Windows Azure to be able to manage an even larger number of computers, effectively deploy the service to new countries and prevent service downtime. Windows Azure has provided an adequate work environment and let the company maintain most of the technologies used in the original platform.

The main benefits offered by Windows Azure to Panda Security are:

• Greatly reduces the time required to deploy a new product version.
• Reduces operating and maintenance costs by up to 30 percent.
• Improves certification and quality assurance processes, as it enables technicians to carry out tests in an environment equal to the production environment.
• Improves user-perceived application performance.

The major components of the Windows Azure platform are the following:

• Windows Azure. Windows Azure is a development, service hosting and service management environment that provides developers with on-demand compute and storage to host, scale and manage Web applications on the Internet through Microsoft data centers.
• Microsoft SQL Azure. Microsoft SQL Azure is a cloud-based relational database service built on SQL Server 2008 technologies.

To download the free beta, please visit: http://www.pandasecurity.com/promotions/betatest/pcop

PandaLabs, the anti-malware laboratory of Panda Security –The Cloud Security Company– has reported on a new bot called Ainslot.L. This malware is designed to log user activities, download additional malware and take control of the system. Additionally, it acts as a banker Trojan, stealing log-in information related to banks. It also scans the computer looking for and removing other bots so that it becomes the only bot on the system.

“The fact that Ainslot.L removes other bots from infected systems definitely caught our attention”, explained Luis Corrons, technical director of PandaLabs. “It eliminates all competition, leaving the computer at its mercy. It reminds us of the popular ‘Highlander’ movies, – There can be only one –.”

It spreads in a fake email purporting to come from UK clothing company CULT. The message, which is very well crafted, informs users that they have placed a £200 order on CULT’s online store and the invoice amount will be charged to their credit card. The text includes a link to view the order which actually downloads the bot onto the computer.

According to Corrons, “Phishing emails are not usually so well done. There is no doubt that this time fraudsters have been very careful to try to make these messages look as real as possible to get as many bites as they can”.

More information is available in the PandaLabs Blog.