Protect USB Flash Drives & Other Portable Media From Viruses With USB Security Utilities

If you use a USB flash drive or a portable hard drive, you are likely to have come across viruses that spread via such media. I’ve had many experiences with these pests - no matter how good your anti virus software is, some of these just manage to penetrate all shields to bite you in the ass. And when one of them does, all your portable media are at risk of getting infected– it could be your flash drive, portable hard drive, your phone’s memory card, your digital camera’s memory stick, etc. If you are annoyed by viruses that spread via USB based removable media, here’s a security solution you can try. USB Security Utilities is a free set of tools that can safeguard your portable storage media from viruses, trojans and other malware (and it can be used with your resident anti virus scanner as well).

USB Security Utilities uses several layers of protection to ensure maximum security for your media. First and foremost it uses good old virus signature based scans to look for most common viruses that spread via USB devices – these scans have to be run manually – this software does not have a memory resident scanning module. Additionally, it scans for techniques commonly used by most viruses such as an exploited autorun.inf file or executables placed inside every folder and subfolder of the drive. USU can also protect your data by immunizing the portable device using it’s ‘Vaccine’ tool (this will prevent suspicious files from being copied to your USB).

All of this functionality is integrated into a single, easy to use interface. Note that the program may switch to Spanish on first launch – to change interface language to English, switch to the rightmost tab and hit the ‘English’ button. Also, I noticed that it does not place a desktop or a start menu shortcut – you have to run the exe from the install location to run in.

Download

You can download USB Security Utilities from the official download page. The tool is free and does not include any form of adware.

[Click Here] to download the latest version of USU. The page is in Spanish, but the download link should easily be identifiable.

IpfilterX – IP Address Blocklist For uTorrent, eMule and PeerGuardian

If you are a file sharer who is worried about security, you probably already use an IPFilter in the hope of blocking prying eyes from seeing your sharing habits. While not 100% effective, IP blocklists can prevent anti p2p companies, government IP ranges, law firms, military organizations and even p2p spammers from getting into your peer list. Perhaps the most popular IP block list that’s around is the one provided by Bluetack internet security solutions. However, there have been complaints of this list getting bloated and inefficient as of late. If you want to try out a new filter check out IpfilterX – it’s claimed to be efficient and carry a lot less bloat. It’s currently supports uTorrent, eMule and PeerGuardian.

Description for IPfilterX (found on their homepage) specifically speak of less bloat and ‘not needing to block 1 billion ranges to stay protected’ (which I'm sure is a crack at bluetack’s lists):

IpfilterX blocks Anti-P2P companies and the organizations that support them, Corporations, Military Ranges, Government Agencies, Law Firms, P2P spammers and many more. There's no need to block more than 1 billion of IPs to be protected, overloading further to a certain value will result in banning innocent IP ranges which means legitimate P2P sources, this paranoid setting will hog your machine. You won't run into risks using IpfilterX and won't run into more risks than using an overbloated ipfilter.

What they are trying to say is that blocking more ranges does not always mean better security. As of 15 January 2010 there were over 6600 different IP ranges in IpfilterX blocklist.

Download

As mentioned above, there are multiple versions of IpfilterX available for different types of p2p software. Currently you can use it with uTorrent, eMule mods and even use it as a block list for PeerGuardian.

[Click Here] to visit IPfilterX official download page to download the latest available version

The file you need to download varies depending on which software you intend to use the block list with. uIpfilterX is for uTorrent, PeerGuardX is for PeerGuardian and ipFilterX(B) is for eMule mods.

Note: An IP filter is not an all in one magical solution that will shield you completely. While it can be effective in some cases, do not get into a false sense of security thinking it’s the ultimate solution to all your problems :)

Secure & Encrypt Your USB Flash Drives With BitLocker For Windows 7

USB flash drives have become a hugely popular way of carrying data around. Unfortunately, they are pretty easy to misplace and it could bite you in the ass if a drive with sensitive data was lost or stolen. Some flash drives come with software to password protect the drive but most don’t. With Windows' 7’s ‘BitLocker to Go’ feature, it’s now become very easy to encrypt and secure your flash drives with the click of a button. The feature is not perfect as there are some compatibility issues with older OS such as XP but all in all, it’s a pretty handy feature to have.

The process is fairly straightforward and simple. On a Windows 7 system with BitLocker, all you need to do is to right click your flash drive on My Computer (Or is it just ‘Computer’ now) and hit ‘Turn on BitLocker’. A series of dialog boxes that pop up will guide you through the process which includes setting up a password. Once you encrypt a drive using BitLocker, you will be prompted for the password to unlock the drive every time you plug it in.

BitLocker To Go would work pretty well between Windows 7 systems but if you plug an encrypted drive into a Windows XP/Vista system, things could become quite painful. On these Operating Systems, the drive would work on a read-only mode; you’ll be able to copy files off it but you won’t be able to write to the disk even if you do provide the password and unlock the drive. Additionally, you won’t be able to launch files by double clicking them – they will first need to be copied to the hard disk and then run.

But as long as you use the flash drive between Windows 7 machines, none of the above annoyances will bother you. If you are planning to use your pen drives on machines running XP/Vista, ‘BitLocker To Go’ may not be an ideal solution. But if you primarily work with Windows 7 based PCs, it could prove to be a pretty decent encryption tool which will enhance your data security.

Remove and uninstall all Norton products with Norton Removal Tool

If I was told to choose between Norton AntiVirus and an actual virus, I’d rather have the virus infect my PC. Norton Antivirus used to be a decent security product several years back but now it’s just another piece of bloatware that slows your PC down just like most malware infections out there (it does have good detection capabilities though). Same goes for Norton Systemworks, Norton Utilities, etc – resource consumption of all of these products have increased with each new release, with no notable new features being added. For those looking forward to get rid of Norton products from their systems for good, there is a removal tool which will make things a lot easier.

Uninstallers that come with Norton products will remove the installations just fine in most cases. However these might fail when it comes to removing partially installed copies and damaged/corrupted Norton installations. Such cases can be very annoying with you being prompted to restart the computer repeatedly, setup of new versions not being able to proceed, etc. This is where the Norton Removal Tool comes in. It can completely remove damaged copies or partial installs of not only Norton AntiVirus but of SystemWorks, Norton 360, etc as well.

[Click Here] to visit the download page for Norton Removal Tool on Symantect web

Symantec is usually good at creating removal tools for most in-the-wild viruses. Think of this as another such utility – only this time the threat that needs removing would be the Norton app itself :)

SuperAntiSpyware 4.27.1000 Direct Download

Here is the latest version of one of the best Anti-SpyWare products on the market today. You might not have heard about this software before but SuperAntiSpyware (SAS)’s ability to detect and remove malware that slip through popular Anti Virus software such as Norton, McAfee and even NOD32 deserves a lot of credit. As I have mentioned several times through this blog, to get the best out of SAS you need to combine it with an standalone Anti Virus software such as Kaspersky AntiVirus. Let KAV do the real time scanning and if you notice anything odd with your machine, load SAS and run a manual scan. It’ll probably solve your malware issues in a single click.

Another great reason to use SAS is that it’s free. You don’t have to bother with expiring keys, getting blacklisted or having to search for cracks. Of course there is a pro version of the app but the free edition has everything a home user needs, including even unlimited definition updates.

Developer Description

SUPERAntiSpyware Free Edition is 100% Free and will detect and remove thousands of Spyware, Adware, Malware, Trojans, KeyLoggers, Dialers, Hi-Jackers, and Worms. SUPERAntiSpyware features many unique and powerful technologies and removes spyware threats that other applications fail to remove.

Download

[Click Here] to download latest version of SuperAntiSpyware from official server (Direct download – link auto updated with latest build)

Kaspersky Anti Virus 2010 Final Direct Download (v9.0.0.459)

Kaspersky Labs released 2010 versions (v9.0) of their Anti Virus (KAV) and Internet Security (KIS) products just a few days ago. Since I’ve never used KIS, I’d rather not comment about the product here. KAV on the other hand has been watching my back for the past year or so and has done an excellent job at defending my computer against all sorts of malware on and off the net. Kaspersky Anti Virus 2010 comes with major new features such as an IM Anti-Virus, a revamped user interface, privacy cleaner and lots of enhancements to existing features. And if you were a pirate who used to activate Kaspersky using .KEY files found on warez sites, you’ll be in for a little shock as well.

I’m not really sure but it seems the developers managed to seriously optimize the memory resident scanner module of KAV (avp.exe). It used to take around 24MB of physical memory with KAV 8.0 (version 2009) and now it takes only around 12MB most of the time ( sometimes the memory consumptions goes as low as 5MB ). Anyways I might be wrong as this claim is not based on any long term observations - I’ve only used this app for around 15 mins by the time this post is being written.

What about pirates?

It is no secret that Kaspersky, being one of the most popular security product in the world, is heavily pirated (after the trial period expires the application continues to function – however new definition updates are not received). There are no cracks or cracked versions of the product itself but pirated serial keys can be found almost anywhere on the net. Hell, there are even automated key finders as well as sites with daily updated keys. Up until now, the primary method pirates used to activate this product is to open the license section of the app, choose ‘activate using the .key file option’ and then point to the pirated key file downloaded from the internet.

Here is a shocker – version 2010 does not have the ‘Activate Using Key File’ option. When you launch the License Manager in KAV 2010, you will either be asked to ‘purchase new license’ or ‘activate new license' – both of which will NOT prompt for a key file. So is this truly the end for ‘key file pirates’? Not really. If you disconnect from the internet, delete the trial license and then try to use the ‘activate trial license’ option again the program will try to connect to internet and fail. Upon failure, it’ll give the good old ‘activate using key file’ option where pirates can use even a KAV 8 key to illegally activate the application.

Download

We’ve provided direct download links below for the TRIAL version of Kaspersky Anti Virus 2010 Final build – no E-mail registration is required.

[Click Here] to download Kaspersky Anti Virus 2010 version 9.0.0.459 Final from official server

If you are one of our readers from Sri Lanka, you can actually purchase a genuine version of KIS with a one year subscription for as low as LKR 1800 (that’s around $16). You don’t even have to go to the dealer to make the purchase as it’s available in most IT related shops in the country. This way there would be no messing about with blacklisted keys for at least an year :) (Thanks to ‘leyland’ for the info)

Note: Do not post links to key files, key finders or anything of that sort here. This post is purely for informational purposes.

ThreatFire 4.5.0.14 – Prevent zero day malware infections

ThreatFire is an anti malware product developed by PC-Tools, the same folks behind the excellent registry optimizer ‘Registry Mechanic’. What’s interesting about ThreatFire is that it focuses largely on the prevention of new, undiscovered, zero day malware infections. Unlike traditional Anti Virus software ThreatFire does not use a ‘virus signature database’ based approach towards the elimination of security threats. Instead, it uses behavioral monitoring that can detect previously unknown viruses and other pests without the need for updated definition files.

 

Note that ThreatFire should not be considered as an all in one security solution for virus/malware prevention. I suggest you combine it with a dedicated Anti Virus software such as Kaspersky to get killer results.

Features

• Comprehensive protection against viruses, worms, trojans, spyware, rootkits, keyloggers & buffer overflows
• Real-time behavior-based malware detection
• Immediately shut down destructive processes and quarantine malware
• Automatic updates (when opted in to ThreatFire Community)
• ThreatFire reporting and protection statistics
• Malware quarantine & removal
• Rootkit scanner - ability to schedule and customize
• Advanced custom rules settings, fully configurable
• System Activity Monitor - view instructive data about all running processes
• Informative alerts provide guidance on how to proceed; most threats automatically quarantined
• Free online support
• Personal and individual use allowed

Download

Basic version of this software is free of charge. It has almost all major features of the pro version and is great for day to day use.

[Click Here] to download latest version of ThreatFire 4 free version from official server (Direct Download)

Kaspersky Anti Virus 2010 and Internet Security 2010 beta builds released

When it comes to PC security software, Kaspersky Lab’s products usually kick ass both in terms of usability and effectiveness. Heads up if you are interested in new Kaspersky product releases – new beta builds of both Kaspersky Anti Virus 2010 and Kaspersky Internet Security 2010 have been released. These new builds however are still in early beta testing stages and are nowhere near the final release. In case you are willing to install and try these new versions out, we have included direct download links at the end of this article since they are still not available via the official web site.

I have not yet had the time to test KAV 2010 or KIS 2010 betas extensively. Some of the differences over v2009 that were noticeable included a new revamped user interface as well as improvements in manual scanning time. More information about v2010 beta releases can be found on KIS/KAV2010 beta testing thread on Kaspersky Labs forums.

Download

Kaspersky 2010 series beta products are still not available for download via the official web site (I could not find them there). We have however included direct download links for both KIS and KAV 2010 products below.

[Click Here] to download Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2010 V9.0.0.313 Beta

[Click Here] to download Kaspersky Internet Security 2010 V9.0.0.313 Beta

Note that these builds are still in beta and you might run into undiscovered bugs or glitches while using them. Proceed at your own risk.

Pirates crack ESET NOD32 4.0 and Smart Security 4.0 series security products

There is no doubt that security products from ESET such as NOD32 Anti Virus and ESET Smart Security are extremely popular nowadays. ESET recently released version 4 series security software to the market which contained loads of new features and enhancements over the previous v3 series. ESET v4 products have been relatively safe from piracy as most of the hacks and cracks for v3 ceased to work with new product versions. Pirates are slowly overcoming this problem – working cracks and workarounds are slowly appearing for ESET NOD32 4.0 and ESET Smart Security 4.0.

Initial cracks for NOD32 4.0 were limited to extended/unlimited trial workarounds. When applied, the crack extends the 30 day trial period of the product usually indefinitely (or say 10 years). With this method pirates are able to enjoy full benefits of the software including automatic updates over the web, even though the product is technically a trial. A well known unlimited trial for NOD32 and ESS v4.0 seem to be Mara-fix 1.0 and Mara-fix 1.1.

Apart from the trial workarounds, I have seen another new crack for NOD32 and ESS being swapped on file sharing networks and warez forums lately (cracked by SHAHED and uploaded by MAMBO04). This is a little more advanced than a simple unlimited trial hack – it’s actually a pre cracked version of the full software. With this release there is not much the user needs to do – the MSI installer package is modified to make the software pre-cracked.

With version 3.0 ESET gave pirates quite a hard time by blocking pirated copies from their update servers, blacklisting 3rd party update servers and blacklisting widely circulated serials, usernames and passwords. With new cracks emerging for version 4.0 of NOD32 and ESET Smart Security, it will be interesting to see ESET’s response this time around.

Note: Do not post download or torrent links to cracks, key generators, serials or other hacks here. This is merely a news site – not a warez blog.

ESET NOD32 Anti-Virus 4.0.314 Final Released

Although I don’t use it anymore, there was a time when NOD32 was used as my primary security software. My overall experience with this product is good – it caught most of the viruses and other baddies that came its way and most importantly, it never was a resource hog like many other modern AV software. ESET have silently released the first final build of  NOD32 v4.0, the next major upgrade in NOD32 AV product series.

 

It looks like ESET have made improvements to the scan engine (SSL scanning, etc), enhanced the e-mail scanning (added support for more mail clients) and most importantly included a new feature called the ‘Removable Media Security’. This is aimed at stopping viruses that spread via removable drives such as USB flash drives (i really hate these type of autorun worms and Trojans) and should be welcome news for many readers who are plagued by such viruses. 

It’s only been a about a day since the release of the final build and I have not managed to find any cracks for this software yet. Expect many someone to crack NOD32 v4.0 entirely or release update workarounds, unlimited trial hacks, 3rd party update server hacks, etc soon, given the product’s huge popularity even among pirates.

Download

Currently, a 30 day trial version can be downloaded directly from ESET’s official servers (and I bet that by the end of those 30 days, a working crack or some other workaround will be out). All are direct download links.

[Click Here] to download NOD32 Anti-Virus 4.0.314 for 32-bit Windows OS

[Click Here] to download NOD32 Anti-Virus 4.0.314 for 64-bit Windows OS

Ad-Aware 8.0.0.0 (2009 Anniversary Edition) Download

Ad-Aware is a decent security product which is particularly good at detecting spyware and adware components. Latest version of Ad-Aware, the Anniversary Edition, was recently released by Lavasoft and is now available for download. The new version includes a faster scanning engine, improved heurists detection, SmartSet, Ad-Watch Live! along with many other enhancements.

I’ve been using Ad-Aware for quite a while now but it’s never been my primary security software. I usually leave Kaspersky Anti-Virus to do the background scanning while Ad-Aware and SuperAntiSpyware scans are run about once a week (or if I smell anything fishy). This has become much easier with Ad-Aware 8.0.0.0 - In previous versions a background system service had to be enabled at startup for the proper functioning of Ad-Aware (regardless of whether ad-watch was enabled or disabled). But in this version you can set this service startup type to ‘manual’ instead of automatic and still use the application without issues. 

There are several different versions of Ad-Aware titled Free, Plus, Pro and Enterprise. The free version has everything you need except heurists to catch spyware and adware - you need not bother with cracks or serials for Ad-Aware Plus or Pro in most cases.

Features

• Detect, Remove AND Clean
• New!Ad-Watch Live! Basic integrated real-time protection
• Rootkit Removal System
• New!Radically improved resource efficiency
• New!Lavasoft SmartSet
• New!Customizable Profile Scans
• New!External Drive Scanning
• New!Pin-Point Scanning
• New!Full integration with Windows Security Center
• Easy to download, install & use

Download

Ad Aware free can be downloaded directly from official download page or from one of the mirrors.

[Click Here] to download Ad Aware Anniversary Edition from Softpedia

[Click Here] to download Ad Aware Anniversary Edition from official download page 

For people who are having trouble trying to get Ad-Aware to start after installation or those who are experiencing startup error messages, check this thread for a solution.

P.S. - If anyone was wondering, it’s called the Anniversary Edition because Lavasoft is celebrating their 10th year running in security software development.

Kaspersky Anti-Virus 8.0.0.1015 Beta for Windows 7 – Direct Download

Kaspersky have released a new build of their popular security software Kaspersky Anti Virus 2009 (version 8.0 build 1015). This is a beta build (according to Kaspersky Labs a ‘technical prototype’) which is specifically designed to run on the recently released Windows 7. I’ve just installed this version on my Windows 7 installation and the results so far are good – installed without errors, no crashes and no noticeable performance drop after memory resident scanner was enabled.

As opposed to previous builds of KAV 2009 such as 8.0.0.454 and 8.0.0.506, build 8.0.0.1015 comes complete with a firewall and an anti spam filter. Earlier, these features were only available in the Kaspersky Internet Security (KIS) suite.

The prototype includes not only an antivirus component but an effective and fully functional firewall and anti-spam filter. At the heart of the new technical prototype is Kaspersky Lab’s new antivirus engine which is even more effective at detecting malicious programs than its predecessor. The new engine dramatically increases system scanning speed thanks to improved processing of objects and optimized use of system resources, particularly on dual- and quad-core processor platforms. The unique product architecture ensures high productivity and one of the lowest uses of system resources in the industry.

Note that this program is still in beta. You may run into undiscovered bugs, glitches or compatibility issues – proceed at your own risk.

Download

We have included the direct download link so that you may get the setup file directly from Kaspersky FTP server.

[Click Here] to download Kaspersky Anti Virus 8.0.0.1015 Beta

Related Articles

• Get offline updates for Kaspersky Anti Virus and Internet Security 2009 (v8.0) with Kaspersky Updater 3.1.0.7
• How to update Kaspersky, Mcafee, Norton and other anti-virus software offline
• NodLogin, NodEnabler & Kaspersky Key Finder : What are they and how do they work?

Trojan Remover 6.7.5 Final - Remove Trojans and Worms from your system

Trojan remover is an application which can help you get rid of Trojan horse programs and Internet Worms that are hard to detect and difficult to remove. Apart from Trojans and worms, this software also has the ability to remove any rootkits present on the system.  Version 6.7.5 of Trojan Remover is now available for download. This version features improved heuristics scanning over the previous build (v6.7.4).

This software was also discussed in our previous article located here.

Developer Description

Trojan Remover aids in the removal of Malware - Trojan Horses, Worms, Adware, Spyware - when standard anti-virus software ither fails to detect them or fails to effectively eliminate them. Standard antivirus programs are good at detecting this Malware, but not always good at effectively removing it.

Features:

• You can scan the whole drive, or any directories on the drive, by selecting Scan a Drive/Directory from the main Trojan Remover menu.
• You can scan individual files and directories from within Windows Explorer. (right click>scan)
• Trojan Remover incorporates an integral Updater allowing for quick and easy Database updates. You can use the Windows Task
• Scheduler to schedule automatic updates.

Changelog (Version 6.7.5 build 2558)

• Improved heuristic detection routines.
• Added new heuristic rootkit agent detection routine.
• Improved removal techniques for TDSS rootkit.
• Improved heuristic detection for Trojan.VirtuMonde.
• Added routine to reset Windows Update Service when it has been disabled by Trojan.VirtuMonde.
• Added routine to remove older Trojan Remover Uninstall entries.

Read comments for more information.

Get offline updates for Kaspersky Anti Virus and Internet Security 2009 (v8.0) with Kaspersky Updater 3.1.0.7

If you can remember, we previously posted an article about how and where to obtain offline virus definition updates for popular Anti Virus software. A method to manually update Kaspersky products was included in that article but here is as easier, shorter way of obtaining offline definition updates for KIS and KAV version 2009 (8.0) and other products.

Kaspersky Updater is a software designed by Kaspersky Labs itself. Until recently it was a command line only tool and was not that user friendly. However as of version 3.1.0.7 a GUI component has been added and things have become much more easier. Here is how you can manually update Kaspersky Internet Security and Kaspersky Anti Virus (and other products) using Kaspersky Updater: (Note – this tutorial is based on KIS 2009 and KAV 2009. Some steps may change slightly for other Kaspersky products)

1. Download Kaspersky Updater base files from this link.
2. Download Kaspersky Updater GUI component from this link.
3. Extract both zip files to the same folder. Run KasperskyUpdater.exe
4. Tick the Kaspersky product and version you need updates downloaded for and start updating. Wait till it finishes.
5. Now open the application’s (KIS, KAV or whatever Kaspersky app you downloaded updates for) main window 
6. Click the Settings button 
7. In the left part of the window select Update. In the right part of the window click the Settings button 
8. On the Source tab clear (un-tick) the box Kaspersky Lab’s update servers
9. Click the Add link. Browse the folder where you extracted Kaspersky Updater files in step 3. There should be a sub folder named Updates. Select this folder.
10. Click OK to close each window. Run the update process. Kaspersky will now update with the downloaded virus definition files.

If you want to update another computer which does not have an internet connection, simply copy the updates folder to that computer and configure Kaspersky (Do steps 5-10 and give the location of copied Updates folder accordingly) as stated above.

How to update Kaspersky, Mcafee, Norton and other anti-virus software offline

It’s a well known fact that you need to have your Anti Virus software up to date in order to be protected from latest viruses and other malware. Most security software vendors tend to provide updates over the internet. But what if you have a computer that is not connected to the internet or is having limited internet connectivity (low bandwidth, data cap, etc)? This article describes how you can update your Anti Virus software manually using offline definition updates.

Although most Anti Virus software have a built in automatic updates feature, vendors tend to release standalone update installers usually through their official website. Once you download one of these offline installers, you can use it to update virus definition files even on Anti Virus software installed on computers without internet access (Ex- Download offline installer from work computer which has internet access and then use the installer to update home computer which is not connected to the internet). Below is a list of locations where you can find and download offline definition update installers for several popular Anti Virus software.

1. Kaspersky Internet Security and Kaspersky Anti Virus

Offline updates for Kaspersky version 5, 6 and version 7 products can be downloaded from this page. If you are using the new Kaspersky Anti Virus 2009 or Kaspersky Internet Security 2009 products, there is a separate procedure you need to follow. A complete tutorial on how to update Kaspersky 2009 (version 8.0) products offline can be found here.

2. AVG
 
These offline definition updates are for the free version of AVG. AVG 7.5 offline updates can be downloaded from this page while AVG 8.0 definition updates can be found here.

3. Mcafee
 
Note that not all of Mcafee’s Anti Virus products support offline updating. I’m not sure if products such as Mcafee Total Protection 2009 can be updated offline. However, updating some versions such as VirusScan Enterprise 8.5i/8.7i is possible. You can download the latest virus definition .DAT files from this page.
Note: DAT files are definition updates, SUPERDAT files are definition + scan engine updates

4. BitDefender
 
Although many people don’t know, BitDefender releases offline updates for almost all of its security products including BitDefender Internet Security 2009. All of these updates can be downloaded from this page.

5. Symantec/Norton security products
 
Most Norton Anti Virus products and Symantec Anti Virus products including corporate versions can be updated offline. Visit this page and choose your product under ‘Download Definitions by Product’ option.

6. Trend Micro
 
Trend Micro offers pattern files to update a number of security products offline including Trend Micro Internet Security. Latest pattern files and installers can be obtained form this page.

7. Sophos
 
Sophos definition files are called Virus Identity Files (IDE) - self extracting zip files with latest IDE files are released regularly. You can download them from here. Note that Sophos products older than 3 months cannot be updated offline.

8. F-Secure
 
F-Secure regularly releases a file named latest.zip which includes the newest virus definition files. You can download and use this file to update your F-Secure security product manually. The most current version of latest.zip and a tutorial on how to manually update can be found on this page. 

9. Avast
 
Only 4.X versions of Avast! can be updated offline. You can download the iAVS utility which will update your Avast! product automatically. Latest iAVS can be freely downloaded from this page. 

10. Avira
 
A number of Avira products such as Avira Antivir Windows Professional, Avira AntiVir Premium and Avira Premium Security Suite can be updated offline using the VDF update. You can download latest offline definition files for Avira from here.

If your favorite anti virus software is not listed above, please let us know via a comment. We will try to find an offline updates source for it and update the article if we manage to find one.

SUPERAntiSpyware Professional v4.23.1006 Final

A new build of SUPERAntiSpyware just got released. As I mentioned in a previous article, SUPERAntiSpyware is definitely one of the best anti spyware applications that I have come across. It can remove rare and hard-to-disinfect malware including those that made it past your antivirus software. For best results, combine it with a decent antivirus software such as Kaspersky Anti Virus.

 

Developer Description

SUPERAntiSpyware is the most thorough scanner on the market. Our Multi-Dimensional Scanning and Process Interrogation Technology will detect spyware other products miss. Easily remove pests such as WinFixer, SpyAxe, SpyFalcon, and thousands more. SUPERAntiSpyware will detect and remove thousands of Spyware, Adware, Malware, Trojans, KeyLoggers, Dialers, Hi-Jackers, and Worms. SUPERAntiSpyware features many unique and powerful technologies and removes spyware threats that other applications fail to remove.

How to manually update SuperAntiSpyware definition files

Actually it’s pretty easy. Visit this page and download the installer. Save the file to your desktop and double-click it to run the installer. Once the installation is complete, you must exit and restart SUPERAntiSpyware for the new definitions to be active.

Changelog v4.23.1006

• Numerous technology additions to the scanning engine
• Direct Registry Access (DRA) Techology
• Enhanced DDA (Direct Disk Access) to handle malware that blocks volume access and physical device access
• Enhanced detection of rootkits and hidden services

Read comments for more information.

AVG Internet Security 8.0 + Updates for 10 Years

AVG Internet Security 8.0 is an integrated set of security products developed by AVG Technologies (formerly Grisoft). It provides all around protection for your PC with an Anti-Virus scanner, Anti Spyware/Anti-Rootkit software, Antispam application, a software firewall, and an online security component (webshield). I personally have not used this product but judging by online reviews and forum posts, there are quite a lot of AVG fans. Version 8.0 is the latest version of AVG Internet Security. Check it out.

  

Developer Description

Anti-Virus, Anti-Spyware, Anti-Spam, Web Protection & Firewall; Comprehensive protection for Windows against all online threats from the world's most trusted security company. Use the Internet with confidence in your home or small office.

Main Features

• Easy to download, install and use
• Protection against all Internet threats
• Real-time security while you surf and chat online
• Top-quality protection that does not slow your system down
• Free support and service around the clock and across the globe
• Compatible with Windows Vista and Windows XP

NodLogin, NodEnabler & Kaspersky Key Finder : What are they and how do they work?

There is no doubt that ESET’s NOD32/Smart Security and Kaspersky Lab’s Kaspersky Anti Virus (KAV)/Kaspersky Internet Security (KIS) are some of the most popular security products currently available on the market. Due to their high popularity, these products are among the list of most pirated security products. In addition to usual workarounds and trial extensions, ‘fans’ have made utilities that crawl the web and automatically retrieve valid usernames and keys for these products. The aim of this post is to shed some light on several such utilities that are currently around (and seem to be the most popular); NodEnabler, NodLogin and Kaspersky Key Finder.

Tools for ESET NOD32 and ESET Smart Security (ESS)

Licensing mechanism of ESET’s security products, namely NOD32 and ESET Smart Security (ESS), is based purely on usernames and passwords (there is no product activation or validation required). The only major difference between trial version and commercial versions of NOD32 and ESS is that you cannot update the trial versions once the 30 day tryout period is over. There have been many hacks and cracks (including 3rd party update servers) to extend the trial period of NOD32 and ESS but ESET has made life difficult for pirates by blocking extended trials and blacklisting 3rd party servers at regular intervals. This is where NodEnabler and NodLogin come in. Instead of merely trying to extend the trial period, these software automatically download daily updated commercial licenses (usernames and passwords that is) from various web sources.

NodEnabler

NodEnabler works with most version 3 (v3) products of ESET Smart Security and NOD32 Anti Virus. What NodEnabler does is that it acquires usernames and passwords for ESET products from the web and inserts them to the program automatically through the system registry. User interaction is not required for the most part; even when a key is expired or blacklisted, NodEnabler would search for a new one and install it automatically. It’s primary source of commercial licenses seem to be www.nod321.com, a Chinese site with daily updated NOD32 and ESS keys which has been around for some time. This means that as long as the site is up, NodEnabler will continue to work fine. If the site goes down, the program will be useless.
Latest version (as of 28/11/2008) – NodEnabler 2.81

NodLogin

NodLogin is another tool similar to NodEnabler; it downloads ESET Smart Security and NOD32 Anti Virus commercial keys from web sources and injects them to the product through the system registry. Unlike NodEnabler, Nodlogin can autodetect the ESET product version installed on your system. This program too has a weakness; it depends on a single, central server to download commercial keys. If this server (which happens to be run by the developer of NodLogin) goes down, so will the effectiveness of NodLogin.
Latest version (as of 28/11/2008) – NodLogin 9.7

Tools for Kaspersky Anti Virus (KAV) and Kaspersky Internet Security (KIS)

Kaspersky security products too need either a working trial (non expired) or a commercial license for definition updates to be downloaded. Products can be activated online using the activation key obtained during purchase or they can be activated using a .key file. The second method (.key file) is the one most commonly exploited by software pirates.

Kaspersky Key Finder 

Kaspersky Key Finder is a utility that downloads .key files for Kaspersky Internet Security (KIS) and Kaspersky Anti Virus (KAV) from a web based database of daily updated keys. It’s able to find and download keys for Kaspersky Internet Security and Kaspersky Anti Virus v6, v7 and v8 products. Kaspersky KeyFinder shares the same weakness of NodLogin and NodEnable; it relies on a set of web based servers that contain daily updated keys. These central servers were located on Freewebs (free web hosting provider) and they have all recently been taken down by the host, citing abuse. As of 28/11/2008, the servers remain offline and Kaspersky Keyfinder returns “unable to access database” error.
Latest version (as of 28/11/2008) – Kaspersky KeyFinder 1.5.2d

Other Notes

Most of these tools are detected by Anti virus software as viruses and malware (HackTool, Generic Malware, etc). If you download from their original sources (sorry, download links will not be provided here), these tools do not actually contain any viruses or malware; most of the detections are false positives. Anyway, if you download from untrusted 3rd party sites, there is no guarantee of the files being clean.

Related Articles

• How to get offline definition updates for popular antivirus software

Kaspersky Internet Security 2009 v8.0.0.506 + Goodies

About 3 months ago, we featured Kaspersky Anti-Virus v8.0.0.454 and Kaspersky Internet Security v8.0.0.454 on FILEnetworks Blog. Just recently Kaspersky have released a new build (8.0.0.506) of the security suite with several enhancements to detection technology and a number of other bugfixes. As always, upgrading to the latest version is recommended. I’ve been using this app for the last 3 months (after parting ways with ESET’s NOD32) and so far it hasn’t let me down. Kaspersky has killed every single piece of malware that has come my way. If you have noticed, some security products such as AVG have a lot of false positives specially when it comes to clean key generators and cracks. I’ve experienced a lot less number of false positives with Kaspersky.

Anyway if you have noticed, the title of this post says KIS 2009 v8.0.0.506 + Goodies. In addition to the KIS 2009 installer, it has some nice tools such as KeyViewer, KeyFinder and also a list of sites where you can find keys for Kaspersky products. If you have a machine that does not have an internet connection and rely on offline updates, you’d have to stick with v7.0 (To know where to get offline updates for other Anti Virus software, read this article). Version 2009 (8.0) of Kaspersky security apps do not support offline updating (yet).

Developer Description

Kaspersky Internet Security 2009 – the all-in-one security solution that offers a worry-free computing environment for you and your family. Kaspersky Internet Security 2009 has everything you need for a safe and secure Internet experience.

Essential Protection

• Protects from all types of malware and spyware
• Scans files, email messages and Internet traffic
• Protects instant messengers (ICQ, MSN)
• Updates automatically

Extended Protection

• Two-way personal firewall
• Safe Wi-Fi and VPN connections. New!
• Intrusion prevention system

Preventive Protection

• Intelligent application management and control. New!
• Proactive protection from unknown threats
• Scans OS and applications for vulnerabilities. New!
• Disables links to malware sites. New!

Identity Theft Protection

• Disables links to phishing websites
• Virtual keyboard for safe entry of logins and passwords. New!
• Prevents theft of data via secure connections (HTTPS / SSL). New!
• Blocks unauthorized dial-up connections

Content Filtering

• Parental control
• Antispam protection

Download ZoneAlarm Firewall Pro + 1 Year subscription for free from Checkpoint Software

It’s not a hack, it’s not a crack, it’s a totally legitimate giveaway! Checkpoint software are giving away ZoneAlarm Firewall Pro + 1 year subscription completely free of charge to ALL users. Why? Because they are celebrating the 15th birthday of their first Firewall launch. This offer will only last for one day (11/18/08 to 11/19/08). To download your free copy of ZoneAlarm Firewall for free, follow the steps below:

1. Visit the Checkpoint software ZoneAlarm Pro promotion page via this link.

2. Click on the download button. You may get the following message (if the demand is too high)

Due to overwhelming demand, you will receive a confirming email within 48 hours that includes a download link for your free copy of ZoneAlarm Pro and a unique license key to activate the software.

3. Enter your Name and valid E-mail. You will receive a download link to ZoneAlarm Pro as well as a license key for one year subscription to your E-mail.

Keep in mind that ZoneAlarm fire wall usually costs around $40 if you are purchasing it from a store. So if you were looking forward to get your hands on one of the best Firewall products currently on the market (for free) go ahead and grab your free copy now. Don’t forget that you get one full year of security updates free of charge as well. The offer could end anytime so hurry.