How to Choose Best Antivirus Software?

Unfortunately these days its pretty common for your computer to be effected with some form of malicious software. No need to despair finding a reputable antivirus should safeguard your computer well. Lets look at some of the key points to look out for when selecting an antivirus. Your computer can become useless when it's attacked by a malicious virus. Your system's files, documents, folders and programs can become corrupted.

Your computer may even crash if you fail to take proper action. You don't need to wait until your computer is attacked by a virus before you start taking proper action. You need to install the best antivirus software from day one. The software can easily protect your computer from the onslaught of viruses. You don't need to crack your brain just to select the best antivirus software. Given below are vital tips you can engage:

· Identify your system's operating system
It's important you know your computer's operating system since antivirus programs are usually manufactured to suit specific operating systems. If you're using Windows OS, you need to look for an antivirus program that will match it. If you're using Linux or Mac, you should also go an antivirus program that's meant for them.

Computer Virus Protection Software Reviews - Antivirus Software to Remove Spyware

Choosing an antivirus software is one of the biggest steps that can be taken to help protect your computer. In helping to choose a list of computer virus protection software, reviews will go really far in helping to decide what is needed and what each product will offer. In the end it is up to the user to find the software that will help most to protect from the unknown threats of cyberspace.

One of the higher end products on the market comes from No Adware. They have created an antivirus that will hold its value throughout and has so far made a great impression on the computing community. The price of the product reflects the features and ease of use that is associated with the product. No Adware holds its own against malware, viruses and many other forms of threats that seep in from the internet.

Kaspersky has been rising on the list lately trying to keep with the growing trend of BitDefender. They offer another good antivirus program that houses many of the same features as others but the company has found its shortcoming with the price tag they have given the product. Kaspersky does alleviate the price though by providing excellent support and a great reputation.

Computer Viruses are Bad Luck

OK, so you caught a computer virus and your system is all screwed up and you're frustrated and angry and upset. Bad luck.

Here's something that might make you feel better ...

The universe has true balance. And if a computer virus causes bad luck for the user it can also cause bad luck for the person who launched it.

Computer virus creators are usually very young and do not realize, or care, that they are causing harm to others. They just think it's cool. What they don't realize is that when a virus is launched it also unleashes a mystical power into the world, a malevolent thing that does bad things and makes victims of other people.

Windows Vista Just a False Sense of Security

Microsoft has endowed Vista's kernel with highly restricted access, in a bid to improve security in its new operating system. This extra security has succeeded in locking out hackers, malware purveyors and has apparently locked out security software as well.

Competing security software manufacturers say Vista's security system alone is not enough to protect users from threats. Security firm, Webroot Software reported in January that its security testing of Vista revealed significant holes in its security shields. The tests showed Vista to have ineffective blocking capabilities and weak antivirus capabilities in the default anti-spyware and antivirus components within Vista. Webroot also found problems in Microsoft's Live OneCare security suite.

Webroot said Windows Defender failed to block 84 percent of a testing sample set that included 15 of the most common variations of existing spyware and malware. On top of this, Windows Defender did not perform at the level of many third-party security applications.

There is Not a Perfect Antivirus Software

The other day I heard a friend complain that he spent nearly 4 hours to argue with Norton support people for he couldn't understand why he should paid extra 160 dollars to fix Norton's mistake. It happened when my friend clicked on a game site called "Play Sushi.com" and then he tried to get the website off but he failed. He immediately ran a full system scan with Norton but the anti-virus found nothing.

From then on, his computer was getting slower and slower and had pop-ups. When he explained his issues with Sushi, the guy immediately said it was a virus and my friend should pay $160 for a tech guy to look into it, for Sushi had not any responsibility to fix the virus problem for my poor friend. Well, if it was a virus, why Norton anti-virus which my friend had paid (not expired) found nothing while the computer did meet problem? Norton didn't play its role as an anti-virus obviously here.

The above story could have been a lot worse. I also knew a friend whose Mcafee was disabled by a kind of virus and his computer was fully controlled by the blackguard virus.

Why Computer Geeks Don't Buy Norton AntiVirus Software

Computer viruses can wreck your machine. So we all know that we need to have antivirus software. Many computer novices will take a ride down to PC World and buy a branded product off the shelf, such as Norton AntiVirus. But I did a straw poll among my geeky computer friends about the product that they had on their home computer for protection. Guess what? None of them used Norton.

So what do they know that the average computer doesn't? Well first off, Norton is a pretty good piece of software in detecting and dealing with viruses. However it is something of a resources hog. This means that it needs a lot of computing power to run. Most users will notice a drop off in the performance of their PC.

Importance of Antivirus

The one and only method of removing computer viruses and other malicious stuff is using an efficient antivirus software application. A good quality antivirus application provides real-time protection for e-mail programs and the files they receive. There are a number of antivirus programs available in the market such as Symantec Norton Antivirus, Antivirus McAffe, and Kaspersky Antivirus.

While buying an antivirus, you should keep certain things in mind. You should always purchase an updated version that is also from a reputed distributor or dealer to avoid the risk of having Trojan or virus on your system. As the purchasing process gets over you need to start installing the antivirus. The installer in a series of screen usually provides instructions. All that you need is an internet connection to install the updated software.

Antivirus Software Just Isn't Enough

There's no excuse for not using an antispyware program these days. Having one of these programs can help with spyware infestations. Whereas antiviral programs have a definitions database which focuses primarily on malicious programs, antispyware programs concentrate on ad-based trojans and malware. Makers of antispyware are able to focus more in depth on the latest adware-based attacks. Antivirus makers don't have that luxury and need to focus on more broad targets and may run a step or two behind catching the latest spyware threat.

How Can Someone Get Private Information From My Computer?

From the "Ask Booster" column in the June 17, 2005 issue of Booster's Auction News, a free ezine for online auction sellers and enthusiasts.

Dear Booster,

How can someone get private information from my computer?

Thank you,

Evan S.

Minnesota U.S.A.

Dear Evan,

Hackers can get your private information from your computer in a number of ways. Here are the top ways they do it:

* Computer viruses, spyware and adware from e-mails you've received and/or websites you've visited.

* Hacker programs that find unprotected IP addresses are subject to attack. An IP address is a series of several numbers (ex. 65.129.37.84) that identifies your location on the internet. It's like your "internet" telephone number.

* Entering your financial information (i.e., credit card info) into a website that does not offer secure order processing. Your internet browser should show you that you've entered a secure site.

* Having your financial information "intercepted" by a hacker while shopping online at a legitimate website. This is called "pharming" and is becoming a more worrisome threat.

* You downloaded software from that contained a malicious program.

* You fall victim to a "phishing" or "spoof" scam, whereby you GIVE your personal information away.

* Phishing and spoof e-mails appear as if they are coming from a legitimate website. The e-mail generally alarms the recipient with a message such as "your account has been suspended" or telling you that you need to "verify your account." Most eBay and PayPal users have received at least one (if not several more) spoof e-mails appearing to come from either eBay or PayPal.

eBay has information showing you how to spot spoof. I highly recommend your take a few moments and visit http://pages.ebay.com/education/spooftutorial/index.html for this brief tutorial.

* Another growing threat is called "malware" which is a spyware. Malware is a malicious software which logs your keystrokes and forwards the information to a hacker. This type of software can come through viruses and is often included in downloaded applications.

Kaspersky secures another top spot in real-world anti-virus test

Kaspersky Internet Security 2013 has been named the industry’s best home security solution by Dennis Technology Labs.

Kaspersky Lab’s solution took the top spot in Dennis’ home test for anti-virus protection from April to June 2013.  The test aimed to compare the effectiveness of anti-malware products provided by well-known security companies.

Other products included AVG Anti-Virus Free 2013, Avast! Free Antivirus 8, BitDefender Internet Security 2013, ESET Smart Security 6, McAfee Internet Security 2013, Microsoft Security Essentials, Norton Internet Security 2013, and Trend Micro Internet Security 2013.

The products were exposed to Internet threats that were live during the test period, Dennis said, adding that exposure was carried out in a “realistic” way. The solutions were then given a score out of 400 points.

China Chopper Trojan Tricks Antivirus Engines

A tiny Web shell is easily sneaking past antivirus engines to infect Web servers and, despite its small footprint, researchers at FireEye say it gives attackers a wealth of tools to remotely gain access to systems or set up a more robust attack platform.

Called China Chopper, the remote access Trojan was first identified by malware experts in November and is believed to have been used by financially motivated cybercriminals and targeted attacks as part of cyberespionage activities. The tiny Trojan is only 4 KB, enabling it to slip past antivirus software, according to a team of researchers at Milpitas, Calif.-based security vendor FireEye, which released an analysis of the threat Wednesday. The researchers said the Trojan is compact, flexible and stealthy.

Source: http://www.crn.com/news/security/240159674/china-chopper-trojan-tricks-antivirus-engines.htm

Antivirus Firms: Whitelisting Malware For Law Enforcement Against Policy

Malware designed to help law enforcement conduct surveillance against suspected criminals is not getting a pass by antivirus vendors, according to several leading antivirus firms, which told CRN the companies have strict policies against taking such measures on behalf of investigators or other officials at government agencies.

Whitelisting malware to help law enforcement avoid detection is strictly against policy, the antivirus vendors said. The message from antivirus firms comes just days after child pornography websites cloaked by the anonymizing service Tor were brought down and Eric Marques in Ireland was arrested for allegedly peddling child pornography on sites globally. The sites, hosted by Freedom Hosting, were infected with malware to uncover the identities of people visiting them.

Source: http://www.crn.com/news/security/240159502/antivirus-firms-whitelisting-malware-for-law-enforcement-against-policy.htm#social

5 Free antivirus apps to keep your Android smartphone malware-free

Recently, while on a conference call, Google CEO Larry Page revealed that over 1.5 million Android devices are being activated each day. While those numbers are really huge and impressive, there is another, unimpressive side to this too. 

A recent Kaspersky Lab report found that 99.9 percent of all the new malware detected in the first quarter of 2013 has been designed to prey on Android phones. In total, 22,750 new modifications of malicious programs targeting mobile devices were detected this past quarter. The vulnerability of this popular platform is exactly why Android users must invest in some research and pick a good anti-virus application for their devices. 

The Google Play store is full of such options. Below is a list of 5 popular anti-virus apps:

TrustGo Antivirus & Mobile Security app by TrustGo Inc.

A free application, the TrustGo Antivirus & Mobile Security app protects Android devices from prevailing dangers like malware and virus, along with other dangers including personal privacy, identity and data theft. It detects and removes all malware-ridden apps and viruses

Read Full Story: http://tech2.in.com/features/apps/5-free-antivirus-apps-to-keep-your-android-smartphone-malwarefree/910118

Simple Steps to Secure Your Computer

Since you're reading this article, you're already connected to the Internet. You've probably already thought about security on your computer or network. Every day seems to bring new threats and it can seem pretty daunting, but the key thing is to have a common sense approach and to take a few basic precautions.

There are some simple things you can do to protect your computer. The best bit is that many of them are free and just a matter of common sense. Others will involve a little expense, but I promise it won't be much and it'll be worth every penny.

BACKUPS

Securing your information starts here. You'll need some or all of the security tools listed below, but even then you can't guarantee 100% that you won't have a problem. Hardware failures do occur so backup your data. I've never lost data through a virus, but I have lost it through disk crashes. Learn from my mistakes and back up your data.

One easy way to back up your important files is to burn them onto CD or DVD.

Norton Antivirus - Why is it So Good at Protecting Your Computer?

One of the most trusted brands when it comes to antivirus is Norton. Not only is it one of the most effective brands that is out there but it is one most well known as well. People who are not computer experts know the Norton brand. There are not a lot of antivirus solutions out there that you can say that about. But the brand is not known just because of its name alone. There is a reason why people respect the software when they see it. In this article we will take a look at why Norton is so good and why you should use it on your computer.

The features that the software comes with

While it may be easy for people to believe that all antivirus software is the same, the truth is that it is not. All of the top software have different features that make them stand out from the others. Some of the features may include faster run time while some of the other software may have more built in capabilities. It is up to you to decide what you need in your antivirus software. Some people may need as many features that they can get while others only need the bare essentials. The Norton line of antivirus software has a lot of features that you are sure to love, lets go over a few of them.

Remove Trojan Virus Easily

If you want to remove trojan virus infections completely from your computer system you are not going to have much luck if you don't make use of some form of a paid or free trojan remover application. Every day many hundreds of people search the web for guides which can show them how to remove trojan virus related infections from their systems and regardless of how much you read, the end conclusion is that you are going to need a trojan remover tool.These infections are like viruses, worms and malware in the sense that each one is a form of the other and they can only be eliminated with specialized tools.

Choose the Best Anti-Spyware

To ensure safe computing works subscribe a best anti-spyware. The recently available spyware provides automatic updates, which are present as default which makes your computer safe. The attackers of computer like Trojans, dialers and worm can be removed using the spyware.

If the security and privacy of the data in your PC is at risk then you should surely subscribe an anti-spyware. Some of the spywares that can be used with trust are Aluria Spyware Eliminator, AVG, CA, Lavasoft Ad-aware SE, Microsoft's GIANT, McAfee, NoAdware, PC Tools Spy ware Doctor, Spybot Search & Destroy, Spyware Nuker, Webroot's Spy Sweeper and XoftSpy. Many such software assure you complete protection but choose the best one which will give the real-time protection. Some of them just claim free service but they may actually require the fully licensed version. Therefore be careful while choosing the best anti-spyware for your highly confidential data in your PC.

The Top 3 Rated Free Antivirus Software

There are many people who wouldn't consider downloading free antivirus software. And that's because they're cynical about antivirus vendors who develop these free programs; and believe they use them as marketing gimmicks to hook people into purchasing full antivirus software. Whether these claims are true or not, free antivirus software plays an important part in the security software realm.

On the other hand, there are many free antivirus and antispyware programs that are developed by cybercrooks. And these rogueware (rogue security software) programs are designed to fleece unsuspecting users. They masquerade as genuine security software programs and on the surface appear to scan your PC and find malware. But the reality is they are Trojan and malware threats and carry with them spy software that steals your personal information for all kinds of nefarious activities.

To outmanoeuvre these malware threats and protect your PC from all kinds of cyber threats, you need to be acquainted with the top rated free antivirus software programs. There are many good ones to choose from, but we've found 3 that have the best features and tools.

So here is our list of the top 3 rated free antivirus programs:

AVG

AVG Antivirus is one of the most downloaded free antivirus programs. It has a track record of providing excellent protection from all kinds of malware threats. And its full version is one of the top 10 antivirus programs.

Unlike some of its competitors, AVG Antivirus is a complete version and not some watered-down version. This is one of the reasons it's so popular and is protecting millions of computers around the world. It offers a detailed interface with all the features and tools in one place and yet is simple enough for easy use and configuring.

One thing you'll be aware of when you download it is AVGs constant reminder to pay for the professional program. But it does this without getting in the way of the program's goal of protecting you from viruses.

Avira

Avira like many other top antivirus software programs has a variety of security products for its different customer types. And then it has the free version which allows you to use it indefinitely and to test its features.

There's nothing to stop you from upgrading to the full antivirus program though, which provides even more protection. But the free version is no light-weight and has been rated by experts as one of the best free programs. It has a simple interface that includes easy-to-understand tabs, events and reports, all in one place.

Avast

Avast is a solid protection program. And like its other security brothers, it keeps your PC free of malware threats like Trojans, viruses and spyware. It doesn't annoy you with constant reminders to upgrade to the full paid version and you can update it each year with the latest version. Avast also cleans your PC of broken files and temporary files that slow it down.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6702293

Bitdefender Total Security 2013 Review

Bitdefender Total Security 2013 is BitDefender's new top of the line security product that leaves little to be desired in terms of functionality that it provides. It combines all the offerings of the company's Antivirus Plus and Internet Security products with additional features that only it offers.

If you are already a Bitdefender customer you are probably wondering what the company is offering in terms of new features or improvements in their 2013 lineup. We are going to look at that in detail later on in the article. Before that, lets take a look at the installation of the program first.

Installation

You download a small setup program from the Bitdefender website that downloads the remaining data from the web during installation. The installation is straightforward and no problem even for inexperienced users. If you want, you can customize the location on the local drive, enter proxy settings, or disable program modules that you are not interested in. If you are only using webmail, you may for instance want to disable the anti-spam module.

The program runs on autopilot by default which makes life really easier as you are not bombarded with dozens of security prompts and alerts right away. If you want though, you can disable autopilot to manage every issue and prompt manually.

The main program interface displays the four important areas antivirus, antispam, privacy and firewall by default, with Tune-up, Safebox, Update, Safego and File Encryption available either with a click on the right arrow or the slider that is displayed below the listing.

You can rearrange the display with a click on the all modules button in the interface. Here you can modify it so that the four program modules that you are most interested in are displayed without scrolling.

Most modules display an on and off switch on the screen which you can use to either turn them on or off completely, or to turn of some of their automatic functionality. Here it is for instance possible to turn of the automatic scanning of files or the firewall.

Often used features, like scanning or updating, are available directly from that interface as well. Lastly, the settings are also only a click away from the main interface.

At the top, you see the general state of security of the system, events that require your attention, the autopilot switch, and a link to program settings overview

The Best-Rated Antivirus Programs

Computers have become such an indispensable and valuable part of our everyday experiences that we cannot seem to live without them. From logging into our social media accounts to conducting our business transactions, computers make such tasks possible. With this rapid pace of growth, however, comes the ever-increasing threat that malicious software such as viruses poses to unwary computer users. They have reached levels of sophistication unheard of before, so much that more efforts are spent to counter them. Fortunately for us, there are software manufacturers who are always working on giving us antivirus programs of better quality and service, and have consistently ranked on the top of the best antivirus reviews. Presented below is a short list of the top-ranked antivirus software available today.

The Vipre Antivirus is a relative newcomer in the antivirus category and it has not garnered the general following that is being enjoyed by the other more established antivirus programs. Nevertheless, it has proven to be as capable of eliminating virus infections. It handles itself well as it goes through the three general tasks of antivirus protection, namely, deterrence, discovery, and removal. It will not cause your computer to bog down. However, it may take you some effort to install it in your computer but once you have completed the process, just reboot your PC and you're good to go.

The BitDefender Antivirus Pro, meanwhile, features remote network administration and interception of pre-determined user information. It is easy to use and offers you beginner, medium-level, and professional-grade utilities in its antivirus arsenal. It runs discreetly as you work with your computer and it leaves PC processes untouched. These features have enabled BitDefender to be included in the best antivirus reviews for last year.

The McAfee Antivirus is well-known as one of the first antivirus programs to be offered commercially. Throughout the years, the company that makes it has strived to offer the best that can be found in antivirus software. It is so fast that when it detects viruses, it works to intercept them to within a millionth part of a second. It is 8 times quicker than its previous incarnation and it gives you more security from dangerous Internet sites than other comparable antivirus software. Despite it being a little sluggish compared to other competing antivirus programs, it is still included in the best antivirus reviews.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/7122797