AntiVirus Software Has Evolved

If you're looking at buying, upgrading or simply reconditioning a computer system, the single most important thing on your mind must be which brand of antivirus software that you will use. Over the years virus protection has become an industry in its own right and whether you are a regular user of online applications or simply an email account holder, if you do not pay consideration to the latest and best virus protection software on the market you should prepare yourself for a rough and very brief user experience.

Viruses historically were associated with computer crashes and caused personal devastation, loss of income and data, not to mention the interruption to an individual's main form of communication. But they have moved on ...

The most up to date antivirus software packages will go so much further than just alerting you to potentially major hazards to the computers, because the industry has spiraled, it has been a bit like the traditional "good vs. evil" scenarios in the movies where the plot becomes thicker and thicker, perhaps inspired by the cold war, terrorism or old fashioned criminal activity. Need I go on?

It seems that for every good hearted genius there is it's equal and exact opposite and so virus protection software has been born out of a war of the geniuses and we have all been caught up in the web in which they have weaved their battles. Sounds a bit melodramatic?

Perhaps you should speak to the victims of these modern day viruses, I guarantee they will now if never before advocate the use of the best virus protection software packages on earth as they will have witnessed the devastation the viruses cause. The modern computer viruses can lay dormant for months awaiting their wake up messages whilst users are completely oblivious to the fact their entire life, and what is perhaps worse the life of their friends, family and email contacts who do not subscribe to the virus protection software are soon to be wiped away.

Viruses in today's world come in the form of worms, trojans, spyware, registry trackers and more and they range from the sublime to the ridiculous, the occasional spy, the thief, the industrialist, the fraudster and the downright bloody minded. In order to protect yourself against this clear and present danger, you should be informed of the risk and in turn take the most appropriate action whilst choosing the best virus protection for your circumstances.

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Fake AVG Antivirus 2011 Virus Removal

Fake AVG Antivirus 2011 is a rogue antivirus program that cleverly poses as the AVG free antivirus and has been fooling many people of late. This application is a creation of malicious hackers that want to cheat you into purchasing false upgrades, or worse, get your precious credit card number from you. This program can cause lots of issues and can render your computer useless until you have removed it completely. Aside from the numerous pop-ups that indicate your PC is infected with severe threats, it can also block important Windows features such as Task Manager, internet access and genuine antivirus programs, while slowing down your system. Luckily, the fake AVG Antivirus 2011 can be easily taken out of your system with the help of the removal guide explained below.

What Is This Virus?

The Fake AVG Antivirus 2011 is actually a virus infection, more popularly known as a "malware" (malicious software) infection, which probably entered your system with the help of Trojans that bypass your security protection. Once this virus installs itself, it will start to work the next time you login to Windows, and set about displaying a huge number of error notifications. The virus will also cause your computer to perform much slower than normal and will give you a hard time in using certain applications. All of these actions are part of the hackers plan to convince you that you are in need of assistance via the 'professional upgrades' that the fake AVG will offer you (at a price). This type of infection can be obtained from malicious websites or rogue downloads. You should not trust this program, nor the solution it will offer you, as it cannot do anything to make your system perform better. The real problem is the program itself and so its warnings must be ignored. Instead, to fix your PC, you must remove the program effectively.

How To Remove This Virus From Your PC

The way to remove the Fake AVG Antivirus 2011 is described in a 2-step process. The first step requires that you neutralize the virus from operating in order for you to proceed to the next one, which is removing it from your system. The first step can be quite difficult to accomplish as the virus will not permit the Fake AVG Antivirus 2011 interface to be closed using its exit command and you can't call on Task Manager to terminate the program. You either have to use a program terminator such as "rkill" or enter Windows using "Safe Mode" to fix the problem. When the virus has been stopped can you only remove it by locating all the traces of the virus and then delete them from your system. Understandably, many have found this 2-step process to be quite challenging, especially to those who are not comfortable using Windows inner workings.

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Best Antivirus Software - How do we Choose

With the invention of the computer, came the invention of computer viruses and countless other malicious threats to the machine. Virus-protection software counteracts this problem and continues to evolve as viruses and malware become more complex. New viruses, worms, Trojans and other threats to a computer appear almost daily, and a virus-protection software program can detect many of them. Running a computer without virus-protection software is extremely dangerous, especially when using the Internet or email. Virus-protection software is a necessity, otherwise you may find your files missing or corrupted, your identity stolen or your computer system destroyed.

There are various important points that you need to consider while buying an antivirus software for your compute or laptop device.

Scope of Protection:

Though most security tools claim to have multi-layered protection, some are definitely more thorough than others. The best antivirus software will include conventional protection from threats such as viruses, Trojans, worms, and spyware, but the tool also includes defense from keyloggers, e-mail borne threats, phishing scams and rootkits, etc.

Efficiency:

Since virus protections tools are designed to protect from threats so if they don't work well then what's the use of them. Therefore, it is advisable to first read antivirus reviews on different brands and then choose the best one to suit your protection demands. Antivirus software reviews provide a fair idea about which tool you should choose.

Easy installation and setup procedure:

Antivirus software should not be hard to install. The setup procedure must be easy so that you could run the protection tool without any hassle.

Easy to use:

Many people think that antivirus software is a complex thing to run. And it is true, because many such tools possess complex features, which a layman cannot understand. Therefore, the tool must be easy so that a beginner can also install and run all the features without any problem.

Features:

Features are again one of the most vital points that you must consider. However, the features associated with the tool must be well-rounded.

Updates

Security software must possess update feature. Viruses are identified and added to databases every time. Therefore, it is important that the virus definition lists updates in the same manner. Today's best antivirus software tools are well equipped with automatic updates and don't even slow down your computer.

Help and Support Facility:

Today's antivirus software comes with an in-depth manual and provides easy solutions to the user. In addition, support features are also provided. Many leading companies offer 27x7 support via live chat, email, or phone.

Antivirus Software for Mobile Phones

Antivirus software for mobile phones and other digital hand-held devices, such as Pocket PCs, are programs designed to protect these devices from malicious threats. Mobile devices such as smartphones and PDAs are used in an interactive environment with large amounts of data exchange, and as such, they are vulnerable to attacks from viruses and other forms of mobile threats. Mobile antivirus software such as Norton and Eset provide mobile security for compatible devices.


The Ideal Mobile Antivirus


An effective mobile antivirus software is a specially developed program that offers similar levels of protection on different platforms. The antivirus should be a small program that can be installed and uninstalled easily, and should be designed with an intuitive interface for ease of use. Mobile phones are available in a range of brands and models, each with different firmware, and an antivirus solution should be able to support the most common platforms. Typical protection offered by mobile antivirus software include scanning attachments and file transfers, scanning traffic and filtering spam SMS.

Features


Antivirus software developers have diversified into the mobile antivirus market because the threats are real and their customers seek solutions to the problem. Not all antivirus offer the same quality of protection, and some developers may incorporate security features that are unique. For example, Norton's mobile antivirus software blocks "snoopware," malicious codes designed to intrude a mobile phone and export personal data, or initiate the camera. Some antivirus programs, such as Eset Mobile Antivirus, allow users to view comprehensive statistics and summary of past detections and quarantined files. Another brand, F-Secure, incorporates an anti-theft feature.

Proactive Protection


Antivirus with a proactive protection system is able to detect and destroy threats before they can cause harm to a mobile device. A proactive technology may use advanced heuristics to protect against previously unidentified threats by checking for suspicious behavior. An antivirus program that updates its virus definition files (list of identified viruses to be targeted) regularly is able to keep abreast of latest and newly introduced threats, and eliminate them from the mobile device. Mobile antivirus software has fast signature scanners that run in the background and may be set to run automatically without requiring prompts from the user.

On-Demand Scans


A mobile phone user may run on-demand scans to check memory, active processes and files, and removable media devices for malware. On-demand scans are supported by most mobile antivirus software, and allow the user to scan the device when presence of a malicious software is suspected. An on-demand scan searches deep into the system and reports any activity that the system does not recognize, or has not initiated. On-demand scans are more resource-intensive and may considerably slow down other processes.


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How to Choose an Antivirus Solution in Practice

Choosing antivirus protection can be very difficult. The market is highly competitive and the products are on the leading edge of information technology.

Antivirus vendors have both the knowledge (gained in day-to-day war with cybercriminals) and money to wage an epic brand battle on the field of the computer security. There are a lot of vendors and each of them is pushing dozens of features in their product to the market. How do you really choose between them? Let me try to go deep into this subject in this article.

Security is boring

Security is always in a conflict with usability. Whether you're working with your documents, playing videogames or watching a movie, no security measures or procedures actually help you with your activity. On the contrary, they're messing around - slowing down your computer, asking for different passwords, forcing you to chose an appropriate folder to save your files in and so on.

Yes, I understand the necessity; a security payload is the price for your safety, but it's just no fun at all. Modern marketing tries to get people engaged, to have fun, to receive some kind of closure by using a product. What kind of closure can you expect from antivirus software?

The only thing you need from an antivirus solution is to shut up and remove the viruses. That's why antivirus vendors never have a huge fan base. LOST has 7.5 million fans on Facebook, Symantec has 35 thousand.

To make matters worse, almost no security measure gives you a guarantee or any kind of psychological closure. Remember the movie "Mission Impossible"? There was a very well-protected computer and still Tom Cruise came and hacked it. With any antivirus product, there is always a possibility that the viruses still penetrate your defense. That's just sad.

Race without end

Antivirus software developers are constantly in a war with cybercriminals and with each other.

There are a lot of ways to earn money on the Internet illegally - spam, prescription drug sales, pornography, gambling, identity theft, credit card fraud, and so on. And where the money is, bright (but devious) minds apply their knowledge to get it. Every day, criminals are trying to find a new way to infect your PCs.

When a new virus is created, it's tested against the most important antivirus protections; they must not be able to detect it. Then it's pushed "in the wild" and starts to do its dirty work. Antivirus software labs in the world are working 24x7x365 attempting to detect new viruses via "honey pots" and various other techniques. Normally, when they get an example, it's not very hard to create a cure. Within hours (sometimes minutes) after detection, the software of this particular vendor can and will protect you against this virus. (The top antivirus brands also have proactive protection against yet unknown viruses. They try to analyze the behavior of any new program and define whether it's a virus or not. But the intelligence of such programs is still not very good.)

Normally, all major antivirus labs in the world exchange information about the latest viruses with each other. So we can assume that all the antivirus products are very good at finding new viruses. The problem is that hundreds of new viruses are developed every day. You never know when somebody will make a mistake and

Article Source: http://goo.gl/RHGVs

Ten Things to Help Protect Against Computer Viruses

A computer virus program infects computers by copying itself onto the programs stored in a computer. These viruses typically cause negative effects such as corrupting the memory of a computer or causing a program to operate incorrectly. While many viruses are sophisticated, there are steps a person can take to help protect against computer viruses.

Anti-Virus Software

Installing an anti-virus software program is the first line of defense when protecting a computer from viruses. Anti-virus programs are available for purchase, but many are also available free of charge.

Automatic Updates

After installing the anti-virus protection, set the anti-virus program for automatic updates. This ensures that the latest updates for the anti-virus programs download and install automatically.

Firewall Protection

Installing a firewall is another important step to prevent a virus infection. The firewall blocks unauthorized users, such as hackers, from gaining access to the computer as well as limits the amount of network ports open to the public

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What Makes McAfee AntiVirus Plus 2010 Tick

These are 5 features that set the McAfee AntiVirus Plus 2010 above other programs:

1. Enhanced graphical user interface
2. Improved real-time checking and protection
3. The IM or instant messaging filter and security has been greatly improved, to secure all your chat messages across various networks
4. Email security has been totally revamped, and is more secure in the latest version
5. With the integration of better firewall software, McAfee boasts of a highly sophisticated product line.

Indeed, finding a very good product on the internet can be a challenge as there are millions of choices, and finally making a choice is a lot harder to make, as it may turn out more expensive than your other options.

But here's the good news: Competing firms in the AntiVirus market, has spurred competition, which made possible the emergence of versatile, affordable, and highly innovative products to give customers better choices.

To a lot of people, however this creates confusion. To counter this predicament, many users suggest a buyer should consider the following factors before he gives his credit card details, or cash to purchase the product: the item's price, quality of the product, its manufacturer, and its features.

For certain companies, the need to find the best product, especially for those heavily dependent in software technologies, always goes hand in hand with the cost. Large corporations always poke at a balanced strategy of buying the most economical product in the software market that may use the same or even better platforms than the major brands.

Quite a few online customers that always pay a visit to online suppliers, and stare at the variety of software products placed on the squeeze page; many are usually annoyed by a very common question - "What is the best AntiVirus software out there?" Obviously any person that is looking to have the superior applications and PC maintenance products at the cheapest rates in supply, will have to wade through pages and pages of goods to acquire the models that would match the current need.

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Overview on the best top 10 antivirus

Antivirus programs have always owned and played a crucial task throughout the Home windows clients on the market known. This can be and because all versions of Windows operating systems always consist of just a few refuge break that remiss hackers can impact. Regardless of how complicated Microsoft has been attempting to decrease these types of refuge hole each time these launch Replacement windows, hackers always seem have any idea where to get over the safety. Those which need this odds devoid of fitting any antivirus purposes on their platforms will usually find out that this laptop will not be working competently, lag, play incredibly poorly or perhaps run strategies that they do not initiate. With this mentioned, anti-virus is not an option just a must.

However, what normally anti-virus applications ought to end users install onto their own Glass os? So, determined by several antivirus reviewcurrently, you can find top 10 antivirus purposes that have been valued at a go straight down are them.

Kaspersky Antivirus Review

The antivirus requests from Kaspersky often locations first on the list of top 10 antivirus functions in many antivirus review available. It is certainly inclusive and intensely helpful in determining, fixing and quarantining basic risks along with viruses, worms, malware, spyware and adware, Trojans, root paraphernalia, bots as well as other perhaps undetermined dangers. A couple of best known elements the program is iChecker and iSwift. iChecker searches and pictures files on demand so that the formula works better. iSwift checks the resources around to get used only if the system in lethargic to amplify up formula tempo.

The following requests that most of the time can make it on the set of top 10 antivirus functions will be the ZenOK antivirus requests. Put together by zenok.com, these anti-virus is also able to discover and prevent known and undetermined risks by detecting the malicious deeds exposed by any possible threats. The Ultra-light check is also particularly beneficial as end users will not experience to await for your deciphering approach to full as a result of its instantaneous deciphering function. Another profit is that it curbs approach archive periodically using only about one percent of approach assets.

Unpick Portal Venue Pandemic Blocker would be the next during this time's antivirus review. It really is mainly that will keep a community proof against hazards. It is extremely in contrast to mount. After its been installed on users' side, it still needs to be mounted involving the users' computing device along with the Www, normally inside a firewall or gate.

Norton Anti-virus 2011 scarcely misses its lay in addition with regards to top 10 Antivirus review. It uses always been hence well-known for years as a result of its functioning. However, the bad information can it be may often crash or cause other purposes to do unexpectedly. One of the reasons is really because Norton Anti-virus 2011 utilizes approach means quite greatly.

AVG antivirus could be the next in a register. It scans viruses rapid. In addition to that, the LinkScanner characteristic tests hyperlinks before others are dropped at the links making sure that members acquire absolute safeguard. Additionally it seems that AVG antivirus flushes out dangers speedy when compared with most of other gratis antivirus applications currently living.

Article Source: http://goarticles.com/article/Overview-on-the-best-top-10-antivirus/4462612/

Top 10 Antivirus Protections for Your Computers

Computer virus is very common and it acts like as virus infects human. If you don’t have antivirus in your computer then the virus spreads throughout your system and obliterates everything which is present in it. You must need to treat your computer in the way you treat your valuable items by the antivirus programs to keep your computer safe and sound from dangerous viruses.

Many modern antivirus software has enhanced their level of protection, resource efficiency and overall speed. They can help to speed up your computer and give your computer full protection. There are 10-15 large antivirus brands although they seem similar yet they have number of significant differences. The important thing is their price, usability, performance and management. Here are the top 10 antivirus which can be fulfilling your need security for your computer.

1) Kaspersky

2) AVG

3) Avast

4) Panda Security

5) Norton

6) McAfee Security

7) Avira Antivir

8) BitDefender

9) ESET NOD32

10) Webroot Antivirus

Source :-bitdefenderreview.com

Various Benefits of Antivirus Programs and Some of the Leading Names

There are various antivirus software which are available in the market and they have a number of benefits associated with them. The different antivirus tools keeps your computers safe and you can use them on your machines and keep them going. With the advent of the internet, security is one of the major issues which rocks the cyber world and the antivirus software keeps a tab on these factors. When you are working on your computer, it is definitely a part of a network and the Internet is an open platform where various programs or files are readily available.

Some of the malicious files and folders have a tendency to infect your machines but the antivirus tools keep them away from invading all the vital information which your devices carry. With the advancement of technology, hacking is also rampant on the Internet and cyber crime is one of the major worries. With the assistance of antivirus software programs these kinds of crimes can be protected and the regular activities which you engage in as a user on the Internet are much safer.

While selecting the various antivirus software for your computers, it is better to select some of the premier brands which provide quality products and also offer warranty periods to their customers. Among the leading names, Symantec is one of the frontline brand which is quite famous for producing high quality security software since its operation in the market from 1982. The company is well known in the market for producing antivirus tools both for the personal and the business segment.

Source: http://goo.gl/qmbXe

How to Easily Uninstall Avira Antivirus From Your PC

Have You Encountered Error Messages While Trying to Remove Avira from Your Computer?

Launched in 1988, Avira is said to be one of the most effective personal antivirus software brands that you can install in your system. With more than 100 million users from around the world, it is one of the most widely used antivirus software brands in the market today.

However, there are times when this personal antivirus software needs to be uninstalled from a system. If it stops scanning your computer for viruses, for example, you might need to remove and reinstall the program from your computer. Another reason why you might want to uninstall Avira is when you want to change to a different antivirus software. What happens if the Avira antivirus software cannot be uninstalled from your computer using the (Add/Remove) Programs functionality in the Microsoft Windows Control Panel? This is where an uninstall tool like the Perfect Uninstaller proves to be handy.

Why It Pays to Use an Uninstall Tool like Perfect Uninstaller

As mentioned earlier, one of the most common problems that computer user's encounter when trying to uninstall Avira or any other hard-to-remove programs from their computer is receiving error messages. Or, there are times when 'stubborn' registry files stay on the system and when you reinstall another program with these erroneous or corrupt files still present, the computer may not work as smoothly.

This is the exact issue addressed by the uninstall tool such as the Perfect Uninstaller. To give you an idea about why it pays to go for this brand of software when trying to remove a program or uninstall Avira from your system, take a look at the set of features that it offers:

Complete and easy removal of antivirus software and other programs which cannot be removed using the (Add/Remove) Programs functionality in Windows.
Complete emptying of corrupted registry files and entries.
Forcibly uninstall any corrupted program.
Registry restoration.
Easy-to-use interface and much faster program removal than the (Add/Remove) applet.

As you can see, these features alone are reasons enough to use the Perfect Uninstaller for your computer. Aside from its ability to completely uninstall Avira, this Avira uninstall tool can also get rid of other antivirus programs, Internet Explorer or even Microsoft Office.

When looking for a brand of uninstall tool to use, you need to make sure that the website offers good quality support just in case you encounter any problems using the program. You should also check on the operating system requirements and see to it that the interface of the uninstall tool that you will utilize is user-friendly.

Source: http://goo.gl/GmOBY

Features and Benefits of Avast Free Anti-Virus

Protects against viruses, spyware and other forms of malicious software.

Able to detect Root-kits deep within the computers operating system and stops them in their tracks.

Uses information gathered from their user community called Avast Community IQ. Users send back samples of malicious software which is analyzed for up-to-date protection.

Code emulator helps check suspicious code in an isolated environment to protect your computer from damage.

Boot-time scanner can scan your computer before viruses are activated. Only 32 bit operating is supported.

Wake-up for scan allows Microsoft Windows to be taken out of sleep mode, perform a scan and then sent back into sleep mode.

Scheduled scanning allows what files are to be scanned and when.

Avast Intelligent Scanner uses a white list to determine which files should be scanned and then only scan those "white listed" files if they have changed.

Behavior Shield monitors your computer and blocks any suspicious behavior and informs the user.

File System Shield scans opened and executable files in real time.

Mail Shield scans all incoming and outgoing e-mails for malware.

Web Shield scans web pages for malware and doesn't slow down you computer. P2P Shield checks your downloaded files.

IM Shield checks downloaded files while using instant messaging or chat.

Network Shield blocks viruses on your network by blocking URL's and using an intrusion detection system.

Smart virus definition updates are done in small portions reducing the overall load on the computer.

New Silent/Gaming Mode disables pop-ups when you're playing online games.

Automatic processing mean infected files are processed without requiring user involvement.

Not included in Avast free:

Silent Firewall Antispam Avast Sandbox - allows opening suspicious programs in a secure area.

Script Shield - detects scripts running on web pages.

Command-line scanner - run scans from command line.

Antivirus Software - What Separates the Good From the Bad

An antivirus software program detects, removes, and prevents the entry of computer viruses, trojan horses, and other malware. There are various types and brands of antivirus programs and all these use different strategies for the function. The malware detection pattern and removal methods differ from program to program. So it is always important to install the program suiting your operating system and browsing habits. Some antivirus programs have a drawback in a way that they lower the system performance. When buying an antivirus product, look for the price, the performance, and its ranking. It is good if you do a little bit of research before opting for one.

The most common methods used by antivirus programs to identify viruses and other malware are the Signature based detection, Heuristic-based detection, and File emulation. Signature based detection is the most popular amongst the three. In this method, the software program compares file contents to an in-built virus signature dictionary. However, the drawback is that due to the addition of new viruses every day, the dictionary needs to be updated very often. Heuristic-based detection and file emulation are similar in many aspects. There are more methods used by different programs. The different methods help identify the unwanted programs and malware by certain aspects in the codes and characteristics. For the antivirus programs to function there are certain minimum system requirements. Ensure that your system meets these requirements before you install a product.

Some of the very popular antivirus programs are AVG, Kaspersky, McAfee, ESET and Norton. Different websites rank and provide details on the new antivirus programs and the latest versions of the existing programs also. Some of the antivirus programs which are ranked as the best antivirus 2010 software programs are BitDefender, Kaspersky, Nod32, and McAfee. Few of the other recommended antivirus 2010 software programs are AVG, The Shield Deluxe, Trend Micro, F-Secure, and Panda Antivirus Pro 2010. These ratings and rankings are based on various antivirus test results conducted by the latest programs in the market. There are some websites which gives detailed information on the test results and the ratings given for each criterion used in the test. This can help you understand the program best suiting your requirements.

There are various professional companies and organizations who are only into the lab testing of antivirus programs and they work primarily for IT companies by testing the programs provided to them. So before an organization decides to implement particular antivirus software widely in the organization, they contact the lab and ask them to perform a test on the program. The lab will perform professional test cases with malware and adware programs on the antivirus and give the result to the organization.

Source: http://goo.gl/Lgv6y

Choosing the Best Antivirus Software

Have you ever wondered where all those computer viruses come from? As mysterious as it seems, computer viruses can cause a great deal of damage to the computer user when infected. Therefore, one has to choose the best antivirus software to protect one's computer from being infected. This is because once infected, the user will lose personal data to others and this could be the cause of identity theft.

So how does one choose the best antivirus software? Basically, you must first find out how frequently is virus definitions updated. Virus definitions are defined (pardon the pun) as the basis of the antivirus solution in determining whether one's computer has been infected or not. So the more updated is the antivirus tool, the higher the chance of preventing your computer from being infected. So consider this the most important aspect in choosing an antivirus program that could be updated frequently and quickly.

A computer can be infected when the user browses the internet and opens websites or emails. So the antivirus software has to be configured in such a way that it can automatically update its virus definition whenever the user goes online. If the software is really good, the software should be able to scan incoming and outgoing emails for viruses automatically. This is because most viruses are spread through emails without the acknowledgment of either the sender or the recipient.

However the best way to assume that the antivirus software is the best is to check whether the software could perform automatic scanning of the whole system. This is because often a computer can be infected with virus without any apparent damage. Not only should the antivirus be able to detect the virus but also be able to get rid of the virus. Some antivirus software can only detect but not get rid of the virus. So based on these tips, you should be able to consider the best antivirus solution to get.

source: http://goo.gl/NHsXo

avast! Free Antivirus wins 12th straight VB100 award

PRAGUE, Czech Republic – avast! Free Antivirus won its twelfth straight VB100 award for malware detection for AVAST Software in the latest Virus Bulletin test. avast! Free Antivirus combined high scanning speed with very good detection skills that exceeded the best that many paid-for consumer and high-end business products could offer.
“We saw some stomping good scores, highly impressive in all sets. The WildList and clean sets were handled without a glitch, earning AVAST another VB100 award for its free product,” wrote John Hawes in his review in the Virus Bulletin. “The company boasts an impeccable 12 out of 12 record in the last two years of our comparatives.”
avast! caught all 100% of the In-the-wild viruses and scored a 98.94% on total detection. avast! also had a high score in proactive detection which tests the ability of an antivirus program to identify unknown viruses without a specific malware signature. Proactive detection shows the ability of avast! Free Antivirus to offer multilayer protection and technologies that go far beyond the simple signature detection of traditional programs.
Complimenting avast!’s high detection skills were its fast scanning speeds. Only one program out of the 69 tested, McAfee VirusScan Enterprise + AntiSpyware Enterprise 8.8, had a faster throughput speed than avast!. However avast! handily beat McAfee’s product in both detection and resource usage.
Test results showed that avast! provided quite fast scans without slowing the computer down. avast! had a miniscule 1% increase in RAM usage increase during scanning – the top score among all tested products.
Although a free consumer product, avast! still provided better detection than several antivirus products targeting the business market. avast! detection topped the results posted by McAfee VirusScan Enterprise and Symantec Endpoint Protection 11.
Virus Bulletin ran its test on computers running Windows XP SP3. Over 40% of all global computers use this operating system according to the publication.

Market for Anti-Virus Software Keeps Growing

NEW YORK - The cyber security landscape is facing new pressure from a few key areas. According to a recent report by Symantec(SYMC_), targeted attacks on enterprises are becoming more common. The report also highlights the growing use of social networks as a means of attack distribution and an expected increase of attacks on mobile platforms.

While these particular threats remain only a subset of cyber security concerns, their potential to increase dramatically is worth highlighting. Since social networks and mobile devices are two prominent areas of high user growth, their related security threats could see corresponding expansion. The expansion of the addressable market for anti-virus software should bolster Symantec stock.

Symantec is the leader in the security software market and competes with McAfee(MFE_) (acquired by Intel(INTC_)), Computer Associates, AVG, TrendMicro and Kaspersky Labs.

G Data Antivirus Proceeds to Help Japan

G Data Software has announced that they will donate $7 USD (5 €) to the Japanese Red Cross for every purchase made in the G Data online store through April 11, 2011. If you've been waiting to buy G Data Antivirus, G Data InternetSecurity, G Data TotalCare, or G Data NotebookSecurity, now's the time to purchase.

Or if you prefer to donate directly, Google makes it easy by handling the yen/dollar conversion so you can donate directly to the Japanese Red Cross.

DDoS attack virus wipes hard drives

A malicious code embedded in personal computers to attack Internet sites in Korea began to destroy hard drives of their host computers on Sunday, communication authorities said.

Key government agencies and financial institutions suffered cyber assaults Friday and Saturday with minor damage caused.

On Sunday, the code for the so-called “distributed denial-of-service” attacks activated an order to delete all data in personal computers in which the virus was planted, the Korea Communications Commission said.

A DDoS attack uses “zombie’ computers to launch simultaneous access to selected sites and swamp them with traffic.

The code also activated programs to block those computers from downloading vaccine programs to treat the virus, it said.

The destruction of host computers usually starts four to seven days after the computers are embedded with the DDos code. But this time, it began only two days after the infection, the KCC said.

Norton 360 5.0: Social Networking Security

Things have come a long way since the days of the early antivirus software. Just developing an antivirus these days isn’t considered good enough, so internet security suites were born which cover everything from viruses to spam to malware.
Norton 360 was born out of a need for a simplistic security solution for the layman. The latest revision of the popular suite Norton 360, 5.0 was launched earlier this month.

User Interface

Norton 360 5.0 installation is simpler than most other antivirus and security suites. On first impressions, the new Norton 360 5.0 doesn’t look a lot different than the previous versions except for the Verisign logo on the left bottom of the UI.The broad features of the suite are PC Security, Identity Protection, Backup and PC Tuneup.

Trend Micro acquires Mobile Armor

Mobile Armor now to be called as Trend Micro Endpoint Encryption offering
Trend Micro, a provider of Internet content security, has completed the acquisition of Mobile Armor on 1 February 2011.
The acquisition is a part of Trend Micro's data protection portfolio extending encryption offerings in the cloud. The agreement was announced on 29 November 2010.
Mobile Armor Data Armor Suite has now changed to Trend micro Endpoint Encryption offering after the acquisition.
The product is now a centrally managed encryption offering that includes full disk and file/folder capability, delivers software-based encryption and support for self-encrypting drives, and covers PCs, Windows Smartphones and Removable Media, said the company.
Trend Micro chief product officer Steve Quane said they are pleased to complete the acquisition of Mobile Armor and welcome new employees, partners and customers to the Trend Micro family.
"Trend Micro is helping government agencies, enterprise customers, SMBs and consumers around the globe protect their data whether stored on a local PC or mobile device or in a virtualized environment or public cloud," Quane said.
http://us.trendmicro.com/us/partners/strategic-partners/mobile-armor/