For the record, there is a legitimate security suite out there called 360. However, it’s an all-encompassing security program, and not just an antivirus program, as Antivirus 360 claims to be. The real 360 also isn’t waiting on the Internet to pounce on you as you’re browsing, as this program is. It’s from a legitimate company, and as so, it waits for you to download it.
When it comes down to it, this so-called antivirus program actually has nothing to do with viruses. It’s a special blend of spyware, a sales page, and a junk program altogether called a corrupt security tool. The goal is to make you think that you caught some malware infection somewhere, and it’s coming “to the rescue†for more money than you need to spend. Real security tools don’t do that. They respect your privacy.
How is it that you can get infected with these things? They primarily lurk on infected websites and corrupt downloads. The websites are primarily adult-oriented, such as pornography, online casinos, and online pharmacy pages. However, it’s not unheard of to have other kinds of infected sites, and every one of these bugs will have a home page. You can get infected here, or an infection from elsewhere can redirect you here.
Additionally, these infected sites may be clonesâ€"identical to websites that actually provide these services. Though what some of the real sites may offer is questionably legitimate, at least it’s not a corrupt security software infection. Just keep in mind that there are a million ways to rip someone off.
The downloads are typically found on peer to peer file sharing communities, and mostly in pirated media or software downloads. Again, it’s a toss up whether you get an infection or not in this case. However, it is best overall to avoid downloading pirated material, since Internet piracy is illegal, aside from risks of infection.
All in all, there’s no surefire way to know beforehand whether something is infected without a fully up to date anti-spyware program. Your only assurance of safety is what your anti-spyware provides you. Make sure it’s 100% protection.
Wherever you get it, a corrupt security tool infection goes more or less the same way. First, you click an infected button, and that downloads the first wave of spyware components. You get a pop up that says your computer is infected.
It will then show you a mock scan showing a massive infection. Here’s a little bit of deception. It’s showing you that your temporary files are infected, but the program itself is the infection. Temporary files are not infected files, hardly ever.
Conveniently, it will redirect you to the home page, if you’re not already there. Then it will say that it can clean your infection if you pay out the arm for their bogus removal tool. Your temporary files can be deleted by Windows for no charge. It’s obviously not going to remove itself, so there’s the scam.
If you think you can salvage the anti-spyware tool, don’t bother. Save your money and get something that actually works.
Carl runs a site devoted to helping you rid your computer from all sorts of spyware and malware at http://www.spyzooka.com/
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Antivirus 360 Isn't What You May Think it is
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