NWA-PCUG Newsletter Article, June 2009
New Free Security Utilities – Do You Speak Klingon?
By Ira Wilsker, APCUG Director;
Columnist, The Examiner, Beaumont, TX; Radio & TV Show Host

Iwilsker@apcug.net
(click to email author)

WEBSITES:
http://www.sophos.com/beta/threatdetection/index.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Klingon
http://www.sophos.com/products/free-tools/sophos-threat-detection-test.html
http://www.bitdefender.com/site/Products/showSolutions/6/

Do you speak Klingon, the language of the intergalactic warriors of Star Trek fame? If so, the newly released (beta) product of Sophos’ new on-demand malware scanner may be just for you. If you are among the Earthlings who have some command of the English language, then the English version of Sophos Klingon Anti-Virus may be more practical than the Klingon language version. Those of us so ethnocentric that we choose to speak English may be at a slight disadvantage, as Wikipedia states, “According to Guinness World Records, Klingon is the most popular fictional language by number of speakers.”

Klingon Anti-Virus (beta) is one of the latest anti-malware products released by the UK’s Sophos, a successful security company with over 100 million registered users. Klingon Anti-Virus is not a stand alone security product that provides continuous protection, but instead is an on-demand scanner that detects and removes viruses, spyware, adware, zero-day threats, and other varieties of malware. According to Sophos, “The software can be run without deactivating your current anti-virus software.” This software is expressly intended to detect any malware that may have slipped through the protection provided by any installed security software on the computer. It should not interfere with any other security software already installed on the computer, and is not memory resident (loaded) except when explicitly loaded by the user.

Klingon Anti-Virus will run on any 32 or 64 bit version of Windows 2000, XP, Server 2003, or Vista, and has minimal hardware requirements. While Klingon AV will not interfere with existing antivirus installations, it should not be installed on any system currently protected by the full version of Sophos Anti-Virus. As a beta (pre-release) version, the current download offers full functionality and updates for 30 days. Installation of Klingon AV requires the entry of a specific username and password, both of which are included in the “release notes”, which is adjacent to the download link (Username for the English version: TERRAN01, Password: BTANKITM).

Klingon AV is really an incarnation Sophos Threat Detection Test, which is the product name displayed when the English version of Klingon AV is installed. If the Threat Detection Kit is downloaded directly (not the Klingon AV), the user must register online (free) prior to the download. The Threat Detection Test uses the same scan engine as the commercial Sophos Anti-Virus product, and has been tested and certified as effective by the major antivirus testing organizations, including the ICSA Labs, West Coast Labs, and Virus Bulletin. Sophos’ Klingon Anti-Virus and Threat Detection Test are effective and useful tools to periodically check to verify the integrity of the installed security software, and to determine if any malware has penetrated the existing mode of protection. The Threat Detection Test directly checks performance of Symantec, McAfee, TrendMicro, CA, Kaspersky and F-Secure security products, without interfering with them. If the user can read Klingon, then that version may be the better one to download, but if English is more appropriate, then download the English language version of Klingon Anti-Virus. Confirming that the installed antivirus software is functioning properly can provide some peace of mind.

Three other free security utilities have been made available by BitDefender, a European purveyor of excellent quality cyber protection products. One utility that I use regularly is the browser (Internet Explorer) based BitDefender Online Scanner, which runs a very fast but thorough scan of the computer for malware. BitDefender Online Scanner runs on demand from the browser, separate from the installed antivirus software, and scans for viruses and spyware that may have penetrated the existing security software. The online scan does not interfere or interact with the existing security products. The Online Scanner will scan the system memory, files and hard drive boot sectors, and then automatically clean any malware that is found. I have used this product several times on several computers, and found it to be the fastest scan that I have ever used, and was capable of detecting what the installed security software missed. My only issue with the product is that it only runs only on Internet Explorer, and not on Firefox or other browsers. BitDefender Online Scanner is a very worthwhile product to have available on all PCs as a check and verification that the system is clean of malware.

Many of us routinely chat online. While most of our online chats are of a personal and casual nature, there is sometimes a need to discuss sensitive or proprietary information in a chat session. Because we never know if some unauthorized person is listening in on our chats, it may be necessary to encrypt our online chats, such that interception of the content is nearly impossible. BitDefender has released its free BitDefender Chat Encryption utility that allows users to communicate securely if Yahoo! Messenger 8 (or later) or Windows Live Messenger 8.5 (or later) is utilized. With these instant messaging clients, BitDefender Chat Encryption offers effective privacy by integrating a simple but automatic encryption and decryption process. In order to function, both parties must have BitDefender Chat Encryption installed. This software runs on XP with SP2 installed (32 bit), and 32 bit versions of Vista. If secure online chats and instant messages (IM) are desired, then this product may be for you.

One of the common methods of identity theft is phishing, where the user is tricked into entering personal and financial information on a spoofed website. While the latest versions of Internet Explorer (IE) and Firefox offer some protection against phishing and spoofed websites, another layer of protection may be desirable. BitDefender Anti-Phishing Free Edition is a toolbar that works well on both IE and Firefox. According to BitDefender, “BitDefender Anti-Phishing Free Edition provides browser-based protection from phishing attempts by blocking the malicious web pages used to steal credit card data and other personal identification information.” This toolbar incorporates real-time filtering of web pages, and detects attempted fraud. If a suspicious site is detected, the user is notified of the potential threat, and given the choice to continue to the questionable website or to block it. The toolbar will also detect links that may be sent through Yahoo! Messenger or Windows Live (MSN) Messenger. If the user does not already have a layered anti-phishing defense, this toolbar from BitDefender will provide substantial protection from phishing websites.

Whether in Klingon, or from BitDefender, it may be a good idea to have another verification of cyber defenses using the appropriate products mentioned above. You can never be too safe.

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