Category: Security

Usually you upload suspicious files to the VirusTotal site and see if it is malicious in nature. The VirusTotal site not only checks an uploaded file for malware but it also analyzes its various aspects like the file type, the compiler type, resources embedded, PE sections and more. If you want to analyze the suspicious files right on your desktop then you can use the freeware tool called PeStudio which can give you detailed information about PE (portable executable) files similar to VirusTotal.

When you connect to a website, your computer first resolves its IP address using the DNS query. Then your browser connects to it and that website is opened in the browser. In order to prevent man-in-the-middle attacks or your ISP eavesdropping on you, we usually use the HTTPS protocol to encrypt any data being downloaded or uploaded to a website. But what about the DNS queries? Your ISP would still know which website you tried to open. This is where DNSCrypt software comes in.

Sometimes, when you try to move, delete or rename a file or folder, Windows refuses to do so and shows a message that the file(or folder) is in use by another program. This is because the handle to that file (or folder) is opened by a program intentionally or by mistake. Some malicious programs do this intentionally so that you cannot remove their files. In any case, you can use the freeware EMCO Unlock IT to detect and remove any locked resources, files or folders.

Malware writers are always looking forward to new ways of targeting their victims. New types of malware are being released into the wild everyday on the internet. If you are lucky and smart, then you would have installed an antivirus product to fend off such malware attacks. But if you get infected through some unfortunate event, then you should use a specialized software. SUPER AntiSpyware is such a free software.

If you accidentally delete files from your hard disk or memory card, then there is still hope to recover the deleted files back. When a file is deleted, it just removes the file entry from the filesystem without removing the content of that file. This makes it possible for you to recover the deleted files using appropriate tools. If you have deleted an important file, then you can recover it back. 7-Data Recovery Suite is a collection of tools that can help you recover your deleted files.

The crooks on the internet are now working in a well organized manner in order to steal your financial information (credit card numbers, bank accounts, login passwords etc.) and turn your computer into a zombie (part of botnet). It would be great relief if you are warned about malicious or phishing sites before you visit them. The avast! Online Security plugin warns you of phishing sites, gives you ratings of sites as good or bad site and automatically corrects mistyped URLs.

Everyday we are seeing newer forms of malware that are harder to detect. If these malware infect your system, then they may not only corrupt your files, they can also steal your personal and financial information too. If you suspect that your computer is infected with any sort of malware, then you can scan it with the free Norman Malware Cleaner. It is a free Windows tool that can help you remove various types of malware from an infected Windows computer.

OSHI Unhooker is an freeware tool to detect and remove the hooks in your system. A hook is a computer programming technique to replace the memory contents of a program function to execute your own commands or functions. For example, you can hook the save function of Notepad so that when someone tries to save in Notepad, your own program runs instead of saving the file. This technique is also used by malware to hook programs in Windows and run malicious tasks.