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control
The Dirty Dozen: Most Common Fake Anti Virus Scams
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Tuesday, May 3, 2011 at 12:31pm by
Archive
We all have friends and family who’ve fallen for this – they click on a bad link, and a fake anti-virus program pops up. It tells them their computer is under attack, but if they just click “ok” on the window that’s popped up, it will protect them.
Cybercriminals prey on consumers’ fears that their computer will become infected by creating malware in the form of fake security products with extremely generic names like ‘AntiVirus Scan’ or by exploiting real brand names.
These fake antivirus programs are getting harder to tell apart from legitimate software, especially with all the “free” anti-virus programs out there. The promise of free anti-virus protection is tempting for consumers, but when they download free AV, how do they know it’s legit? So, the unsuspecting consumer signs up for “protection” and really ends up downloading malware.
McAfee has also seen a surge in fake system tool programs. They are very much like fake anti-virus programs because lead the victim to believe there are things wrong with their machine that are simply untrue. They are commonly distributed with poisoned links and search terms.
McAfee® Virus Removal Service sees this a lot. As such, the team has put together a list of what we call the “Dirty Dozen” – the most common fake anti-virus and fake system tool programs that are removed from consumers’ computers.
If you see one of these programs, beware, and do NOT download it:
Fake anti-virus tools:
- AntiVirus Scan
- Anti Vira AV
- Smart Internet Protection 2011AVG AntiVirus
- Palladium Pro
- Windows Security & Control
Fake system tool programs:
- System Tool
- Fast Disk
- Good Memory
- Disk Optimizer
- Windows System Optimizer
- Windows Utility Tool
What’s the best way to protect yourself from these fake programs? Stick with protection from a well-know, reputable security or system tool vendor.
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Tags: anti-virus program pops up, exploiting real brand names, fake anti virus, Fake Anti Virus Scams, fake system tool programs