Zap Those Pests
Latest software kills viruses and more.Paul Roberts
Paul Roberts writes for IDG News Service. IDG is the parent company of PC World.
Leading antivirus software makers Symantec and Network Associates have begun selling updates to their virus-zapping products, touting protection against spyware, adware (advertising software), worms, and more. Spyware and adware programs silently monitor a user's activity on the Internet, keeping track of information such as the Web sites a user visits.
Symantec's new Norton AntiVirus 2004 can detect a range of snooping programs that are not technically viruses but still pose a threat to Internet users' privacy. Meanwhile, Network Associates' new version of McAfee VirusScan also spots spyware and adware, allowing users to detect and remove the suspect software from systems running VirusScan.
Subtracting Adware and Spyware
Norton AntiVirus 2004 scans e-mail and instant message attachments, flagging known spyware programs before they are installed. The program also spots spyware and adware programs that have already been installed and reports those to the user.
Norton AntiVirus also flags legal adware programs such as the popular Gator software. Gator performs useful tasks for users, such as remembering and filling in user names, passwords, and other data for online forms. However, the program also tracks user behavior and buying habits for the company's customers and delivers targeted pop-up advertisements to desktops. Ultimately Norton AntiVirus will not automatically remove adware like Gator because it is often governed by a licensing agreement that the user acknowledged when the program was installed.
The focus on spyware comes after research identified the stealth programs as a leading concern among Norton AntiVirus users, even when those interviewed didn't know they had the programs installed.
"Even if users were not able to articulate 'I have spyware,' they were telling us about dialing programs that were calling out to a third party or having their [Web browser] hijacked or the home page rerouted to another site," says Kelly Martin, senior product manager for Norton Antivirus 2004.
On a Worm Hunt
Following periods of high-profile worm outbreaks, Network Associates' new WormStopper feature in the McAfee VirusScan product may come in handy. WormStopper spots wormlike activity such as high volumes of e-mail or repetitive e-mail content. While the new feature won't stop infections per se, it may slow the spread of mass-mailing worms like the recent Blaster and Sobig.F worms.
One security expert says that features to spot spyware and the like are long overdue in mainstream antivirus programs.
"It's about time," says Richard Smith, an independent security analyst based in Boston.
With the growing popularity of peer-to-peer file-sharing programs such as Kazaa and Morpheus, installations of the shadowy programs have escalated in recent years, Smith says. Those programs often bundle adware programs with the main file-sharing software, he says.
How Well Do They Work?
Of course, powerful features are only the beginning. The true measure of antivirus software is in its ability to fend off attacks on a daily basis. Earlier this year, PC World pitted a pile of antivirus software products against one another to find the best. Read "Pest Zappers" to see which ones came out on top.