Antivirus & antispyware must be the samewareEvery network client must have antivirus software. We've been told so for years. Network admission and integrity control are poised to enforce it today in enterrprise networks and hopefully soon for public Internet access as well. Concern over spyware is increasing so rapidly that I fully expect that antispyware, too, will be a prerequisite for network logon. If we instrument poorly, network admission will end up like the queues at customs and immigration services: long, slow, tedious, and frustrating. More... |
What is a Blended Threat?
In every Hollywood action movie, the action hero is a formidable adversary: adept in martial arts, an expert with explosives, a brilliant hit-and-run tactician, adept with every weapon imaginable. The action hero is an irresistible force. Imagine if Chuck, Arnold, Jean-Claude, and the rest were drawn to The Dark Side. Now imagine that they are executable code on your computer. It's not your imagination; it's a blended threat. Blended threat is a popular term for a multi-pronged attack against networked computers. More... |
419 scams still arrive by postal mailYou may be familiar with 419 (alias Nigerian) scam emails. Fake lottery notifications, investment opportunities or advanced fee frauds are all examples of 419 scams, named after the Nigerian criminal code used to prosecute apprehended fraudsters. You may be surprised to learn that 419 scams still arrive by postal mail. More... |
419 scams: the more you know419 scams all pose a common proposition. Someone you don't know promises you a large sum of money. All you need to do is temporarily handle a small processing or facilitation fee in advance to release so that it will be possible to deliver a much larger sum to you shortly. But there is no large sum of money waiting for you, no matter what you may be told. More... |
Viruses spread by email, removable media, network file shares and malicious web pages. If you do not have continuously running and routinely updated antivirus software installed, you are part of the problem.
Use the resources on this page to find answers and remedies for your virus woes, but please consider buying or downloading antivirus software to protect yourself, your family, and your company from viruses, worms, scripts, and other forms of malicious code.
The Anti-spyware and Anti-phishing pages at this site may also prove helpful.
Antivirus Encyclopedia, Trojan and Hoax Lists
Truly Free Antivirus Software
These are free for personal use copies, fully functional, with virus definition updates.
AVG Antivirus Free Edition
Avast! 4 Home Free Edition
AntiVir Personal Edition Classic from H+BEDV
F-Secure Antivirus Free Edition (MS-DOS)
ClamXav, a free virus checker for Mac OS X that uses the ClamAV open source antivirus engine as a back end.
Safe Scripting Freeware
These protect against unintentional execution of potentially malicious scripts (e.g., .VBS or.JS) often delivered in email.
AnalogX Script Defender
Robin Keir's ScripTrap
AntiDote (non-resident application)
NoScript
Free Virus Removal Tools and Cleaners
These are collections of programs, each designed to remove a specific virus or malware from your computer. Use these if you suspect or know your computer is infected with a specific virus.
Nod32
Symantec Removal Tools
Bitdefender Removal Tools
McAfee Avert Tools
F-Secure Free Virus Removal Tools
Panda Software Repair Utilities
Kaspersky Labs Free Virus Removal Tools
Bullguard Virus Removal Tools
Free Online Virus Scanners
These are program downloads files (e.g., ActiveX control, DPF) that perform a one-time scan and clean of your computer. They do not provide continuous antivirus protection. Some companies ask for your country of origin to help track infections. I have run each of these on Windows XP Pro using Internet Explorer and an IE-derivative browser (DeepNet Explorer) with no difficulties.
Reliable Antivirus
HouseCall (Trend Micro)
AVERT WebImmune
Panda ActiveScan (email address required)
Bitdefender Scan Online
Kaspersky (single file scan)
Symantec Online Security Check
eTrust Antivirus Web Scanner (CA)
Shareware Antivirus Software
I do not list or recommend antivirus shareware for two reasons: (a) shareware may be supported through unsolicited advertising, I won't list what I haven't tested and I can't be sure (harsh!) and (b)there's no reason to try shareware when commercial home and personal use antivirus software is priced competitively, and I can recommend several "personal use only" antivirus products that I've tried and have proven useful.
Report or Submit Virus Samples
These links explain how to submit a file you suspect is infected to an antivirus vendor for examination.
CA eTrust: Submitting Virus Samples
McAfee Support
AntiVirus HelpGuide
F-Secure Support Pages
Virus Test Files
These are benign virus files that you can use to test whether your antivirus program is working.
EICAR standard test files
Rapid7's R7-0004.tgz zip file
If you want to print this page and distribute it to your employees for reference later, save it (with attribution and copyright claim) as a word or PDF file and then convert it from PDF to word.
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