Since quite some time, Symantec’s Norton set of applications have been known to computer users — particularly the anti virus application. Over the past few years, Symantec has been bundling more and more applications into a single suite for Internet security. Recently I got my hands on a review copy of Norton 360 v6.0 and tested it on my system for a period. Lets’s see how it does.

UI

Norton 360 packs a simplistic UI. The application’s start page is divided into 4 sections; each highlighting the various areas of protection it offers — PC Security ( Virus/Malware  Prevention/Firewall), Identity ( Phishing Protection/Password Management), Backup ( file backup) and PC tuneup( general maintenance). Norton 360 also has a separate section for scheduling tasks and looking at the system performance. The start page also has an activity map of cyber-crime activity across the world.

PC Security

Norton is quite well known for their anti-virus lineup. The PC security section handles tasks related to anti-virus, anti-malware, anti-spyware, intrusion prevention, incoming/outgoing email scanning and firewall.

The PC Security tab allows you to check on previous scan results, run scans on demand & check for updates to definitions. Clicking on “Run Scan” brings up the option to start an anti-virus scan. Like most anti-virus programs, there’s an option of running a quick scan which checks the most essential files, a full scan which performs a through scan and does a backup and a custom scan/task which allows you to customize what to scan and what to backup.

The scan Facebook wall is a nice feature; it goes through your Facebook Wall and checks that the posted links are safe. With additional permissions, you can configure Norton Safe Web to automatically scan links and auto-post them to your if it’s not malicious — a nice way to keep your Facebook account clean.

Identity

The identity section manages the features in ensuring your online identity is not compromised. Features included in this section are

• Norton Safe Web
• Antiphishing
• Identity safe

Norton Safe Web installs an add-on to your browser & uses Norton Safe Web service and looks up the site’s ratings and review, much like Web of Trust. Identify safe is Norton’s solution for a password manager, much like LastPass. In addition to passwords, Identity Safe also allows you to save Notes and Credit Card details — all behind a master password that you’ll need to enter to open the safe.

If you login to a site that you haven’t visited before, Norton will offer to save your credentials, which can be autofilled in when you next visit the site. This is a nice and recommended way of password management since you’ll have to remember only the master password to unlock the safe — the others will be autofilled. You can also configure Identity Safe passwords to be transferred to your Norton account so that you can access it from any computer which has internet access.

For all the nice things about Identity safe, I’m pretty disappointed because of a lack of Generate New Password option. A password manager without the capability to generate passwords is just flawed.

Windows 8 is still several months away from being released; however, major software firms are already hard at work to ensure that their applications support the latest and greatest from Microsoft’s stables right out of the gate.

Earlier this month, Symantec kicked off the public beta testing phase of Norton 2013 series of products (Norton 360 2013, Norton Internet Security 2013, and Norton AntiVirus 2013). The biggest draw of Norton 2013 seems to be complete Windows 8 compatibility. In fact, Symantec has even tweaked Norton’s interface to make it better suited to Windows 8′s design aesthetics.

Official changelog for Norton 2013 is yet to be published. The only new feature that is readily apparent is bandwidth monitoring, which can restrict the download of non-critical updates over expensive networks. However, there are quite a few other minor tweaks that Download Crew has managed to spot. Norton Insight is now integrated with the Firewall, and the Insight File Reputation database is updated more quickly. SONAR (Symantec Online Network for Advanced Response), which is Norton’s heuristics engine, now works even in safe mode. And finally, Norton now automatically downloads and installs Norton Power Eraser tool if any infection is detected.

Head over to the official public beta forum to download Norton 2013. However, keep in mind that using non-release build of security products is not recommended.

Microsoft has released a new version of Microsoft Security Essentials, the free anti-virus/anti-malware program for Windows PCs. The MSE 4.0 release is available via the Microsoft Download Center and the MSE Web site and also made available to existing customers automatically through the Microsoft Update service.

Interestingly, this version has been in beta since late 2011, and the last released version was 2.1. There is no indication of the need to skip v3 and the jump to v4; the latest build being 4.0.1526.0. The participants in the beta program who are subscribed to automatic updates will be upgraded to the final release of the latest version of Microsoft Security Essentials after they agree to a new license agreement. You can also do a manual upgrade from v2.1 or the beta release without uninstalling the previously installed version.

Microsoft Security Essentials provides real-time protection for your home or small business PCs (up to 10)  that guards against viruses, spyware, and other malicious software. MSE is designed to be simple to install and easy to use. It runs quietly in the background without annoying notifications or interruptions. It is available as a free download from Microsoft for genuine Windows users, in both x86 and x64 editions.

Respected antimalware product testing lab Av-Comparatives has just published the results of their latest file detection shootout. The on-demand file detection tests used as many as 291388 malware samples on twenty different antivirus applications. The only big name missing from the tests is Symantec who didn’t want to be included in the on-demand comparatives.

The top performers in the tests were G-Data and Avira. To anyone who follows antivirus shootouts from the likes of Av-Test or Av-Comparatives, this shouldn’t come as a surprise. Both G-Data and Avira have been dominating the on-demand tests for the past several years. G-Data isn’t very popular in the US, but its dual engine antivirus product (BitDefender and Avast) has consistently been a top performer as far as detection is concerned. G-Data and Avira managed to identify 99.7% and 99.4% of the virus samples respectively.

Although G-Data and Avira have always been among the very best when it comes to detection rates, they are known to falter when it comes to removing malware. This makes them great choices for a brand new system, but not something you can rely on to heal infected systems. In such cases, you might want to look at the Kaspersky, which came in third with a 99.3% detection rate. It’s pleasing to see Kaspersky in the top 3, as the Russian firm had been slipping over the past few years.

The worst performer in the tests was Microsoft Security Essentials, which managed to detect only 93.1% of the threats. Sophos, F-Secure, Panda, BitDefender, BullGuard, McAfee, Fortinet, eScan, Webroot, and Avast managed to detect more than 98% of the threats. However, Webroot also had an astoundingly high number of false positives.
Head over to av-comparatives.org for the full report.

Total detection rates (clustered in groups):
1. G DATA 99.7%
2. AVIRA 99.4%
3. Kaspersky 99.3%
4. Sophos 98.9%
5. F-Secure, Panda, Bitdefender,
BullGuard, McAfee 98.6%
6. Fortinet, eScan 98.5%
7. Webroot 98.2%
8. Avast 98.0%
9. ESET 97.6%

10. PC Tools 97.2%
11. GFI 97.0%
12. AVG 96.4%
13. Trend Micro 95.6%

14. AhnLab 94.0%
15. Microsoft 93.1%

Of late, scammers have grown smarter when it comes to conning people on the Internet. Several scammers have begun to use Word documents as attachments while sending out scam emails. However, they haven’t stopped there and are now using Antivirus companies to scam PayPal users.

A flurry of emails are being sent out by scammers with subject lines like “Receipt for your payment to AVG” or “Receipt for your payment to Symantec” or “Receipt for your payment to Norton“accompanied by a PayPal receipt which looks very genuine (see image below).

The email in question looks very genuine and the scammer asks you to confirm the payment and also includes a “Cancel Transaction” link. This would definitely make many people click on the link because they might not have made the purchase in the first place. Clicking on the link will take the users to a website which is similar to that of PayPal.

The website in question will ask you for your username and password. However, DO NOT enter it. For testing purposes, I entered a fake username and password and it allowed me to access my false account. It then went on to tell me that my account is limited and that I need to enter my credit card, social security, banking and billing information.

This scam looks to be pretty widespread because not only is it farming your PayPal username and password but it is also stealing your credit card information, social security and banking information.

There are several ways in which you can protect yourself from such scammers like turning on the Anti-phishing feature in Gmail to know when emails from PayPal are genuine. You should also always have a good Antivirus and Anti-spyware or Anti-malware running on your system. You can find tons of free Antivirus software which you can download and use immediately. You can also read our earlier guide to Protect Yourself from Internet Threats.

AVG has launched a new product called AVG Premium Security, which boasts of an unique Identity Alert component. Over the past few months we have witnessed numerous large scale data thefts of varying severity. Although the Sony PSN hacking incident grabbed the limelight, there were numerous other small, but perhaps more damaging, incidents. A helpful netizen even created a service that can automatically alert you if your online identity is compromised.

AVG’s Identity Alert component also performs a similar function, but probably more thoroughly. AVG claims that it scours the web, including chatrooms, forums, and criminal webpages to check if your identity has been compromised by monitoring your e-mail address and debit and credit card numbers.

When you combine the shocking security lapses we have seen out of very high profile and respected brands such as Sony, Epsilon and Citigroup in the past few months with the liability shift toward consumers, it is clear that identity theft protection tools are no longer a nice to have,said J.R Smith, CEO, AVG Technologies. Banks and corporations are at an important tipping point, showing strong indications that they will no longer simply cover losses,- expecting the online users to share equal responsibility in taking appropriate security measures that ultimately protect each other from malicious attacks.

Besides the Identity Alert component, AVG Premium Security includes AVG Internet Security and AVG Quick Tune. Internet Security features anti-virus, anti-spyware, AVG Protective Cloud Technology, and the AVG Community Protection Network. Quick Tune is basically a stripped down version of AVG PC Tuneup. It offers disk defragmenter, junk file removal, registry cleaner, and broken shortcut remover.

With its new offering, AVG is hoping to compete with Kaspersky Pure, Norton 360 and other similar products. The Identity Alert module helps AVG differentiate itself from its competitors, and the suite itself is competitively priced at $69.99. However, it might also be an overkill for most users. In my humble opinion, as long as you take the basic precautions like not reusing passwords, a simple firewall and antivirus is likely to suffice.

Kaspersky Lab has released the 2012 editions of its reputed anti-malware products – Kaspersky Antivirus and Kaspersky Internet Security. Kaspersky Antivirus is the base offering which offers file antivirus, web antivirus, cloud scanning and proactive defense. Kaspersky Internet Security offers a more complete protection and has several additional features like firewall, sandboxing, and parental control.

To be honest the biggest change in the new version is the new user interface, which is nothing short of stunning. There isn’t a lot of new stuff, mostly because Kaspersky products are already packed to the brim with features. However, there are several improvements.

The focus of this release is on offering hybrid protection that harnesses the power of the cloud along with the local database and heuristics based security technologies to reduce the average protection delivery time. Kaspersky’s cloud protection relies on the Kaspersky Security Network (KSN), which has been a part of Kaspersky’s offerings for quite some time now. However, in the latest editions of its products, Kaspersky has done a better job at highlighting the cloud integration. KSN currently has more than 30 million voluntary members from 213 countries, and is capable of tackling advanced threats like zero-day exploits, phishing and spam. It also includes a File Advisor and a URL Advisor, which provides ratings on the trustworthiness of files and websites respectively.

The proactive defense module has also been improved. System Watcher module should be more efficient than before at analyzing activities performed by various processes and detecting malicious intent. Kaspersky is also promising better performance and improved compatibility with its latest release.

As I mentioned earlier, the changelog is pretty short and mostly unimpressive. However, Kaspersky is continuing its tradition of offering free upgrades to existing license holders. Just key in your existing activation code into the trial version, and your license will be automatically upgraded. You can download the free 30 day trial versions of Kaspersky Antivirus and Kapsersky Internet Security from here.

Remember the Mac Defender malware which disguised itself as an anti-virus, and tricked users into paying for removing viruses from the Macs? The virus has been on the loose for quite some time now and has managed to infect quite a number of Macs out there.

Here are the steps to remove the Mac Defender malware from your Mac -:

Step 1 – Open up Activity Monitor, and select the option to view ‘All process’ from the drop down list.

Step 2 – Find the ‘MacDefender’ process from the list of running processes, and then click on the ‘Quit Process’ option and finally select the ‘Force Quit’ option.

Step 3 – Now, head over to the Applications folder in your Mac and find the ‘MacDefender’ folder. Right click on the folder, and select the ‘Move To Trash’ option. Empty the Trash folder of your Mac after this.

Step 4 – Fire up Safari on your Mac, and click on the ‘Safari’ option at the top of the screen and select the Reset Safari option.

There might be a possibility that users might not be able to delete the files related to Mac Defender. If so, reboot your Mac into Safe Mode and repeat all the steps stated above.

Alternatively, Mac users can also download and install anti-virus software like Sophos etc. However, some of these anti-viruses might make your Mac unstable or give kernel panics. So I would recommend readers to follow the steps stated above.

Over the past couple of years or so, I have used Microsoft Security Essentials as my only virus and malware protection tool. The Free Antivirus tool from Microsoft is definitely worth installing on your PC.

If you are someone who does not like to install Antivirus on your PC or just want to check whether your current Antivirus is really working well, a new tool from Microsoft will come in handy.

Microsoft Safety Scanner is a free security software from Microsoft which provides users with on-demand scanning while allowing users to remove viruses, spywares, Trojans and another malicious software from their PC. Safety Scanner works along with your current Antivirus software, so you don’t have to uninstall your current AV protection to use it.

One of the bad things about Microsoft Safety Scanner is that it expires every 10 days. Users will have to download a new version to scan your system every ten days which could be annoying considering that it is around 70MB in size. A simple definition update should be added so that users don’t have to download new versions every 10 days.

Users must also note that unlike traditional Antivirus systems the Safety Scanner does not provide continuous protection and should not be used as a replacement for traditional Antivirus software. Microsoft Security Scanner should only be used to additionally scan your PC. If you intend to replace your current Antivirus you might check out our Free Antivirus section to find a suitable alternative.

Additionally, you may also want to read the following articles related to Online Security:

• Tips to Keep Your Computer Safe and Secure
• Protect Yourself from Internet Threats [Detailed Instructions]
• Things To Do Before Throwing Away Your Old PC

Download Microsoft Safety Scanner

Although I normally recommend Avira Antivir and Microsoft Security Essentials to anyone looking for a free antivirus, Avast is another option worth considering. In fact, it is one of the most popular free antivirus utilities available in the market, and with good reason. Avast performed quite well in all of Av-comparative’s on-demand and performance tests carried out over the past year.

A couple of days back, Avast Software released the first beta of Avast 6. The biggest draws of the new version are:

• AutoSandbox: Avast Pro already features a sandboxing option that enables users to surf the web and run applications in an isolated environment that can’t affect the rest of the system. In the new version, Avast has gone a step further and added auto-sandboxing, which can automatically run suspicious programs in a sandbox.
• WebRep: WebRep’ is a browser toolbar, which is largely similar to WOT (Web of Trust). It is plugin for Internet Explorer and Firefox that displays the reputation score of the website you are currently browsing based on the feedback collected from the community as well as the expertise of Avast’s researchers.

Avast 6 also adds a SafeZone’ to the premium version, which offers a special virtualized area for sensitive transactions. Script Shield’ and Site Blocking’, which were previously available only in the Pro version, are now included even in Avast Free.

Head over to the forums to download the beta version. However, don’t forget to uninstall any previous version or other antivirus products before installing it. Also keep in mind that unexpected stability and performance issues might be present, since this is the first public beta build.

via DownloadSquad