How an Antivirus Program Works

Asked By 7060 points N/A Posted on -
qa-featured

How an Antivirus Program Works? Are there free programs we can install for free? Will it be as effective if its purchased?

SHARE
Best Answer by kivinsis2012
Best Answer
Best Answer
Answered By 0 points N/A #82986

How an Antivirus Program Works

qa-featured

Antivirus software is used to scan files so we can identify and remove the viruses or other malicious threats found on our computer especially those malwares. It defines 2 techniques to do the task which are:

1. Virus dictionary method

2. Suspicious actions method

On the first technique, when an antivirus inspect a file, it denotes to a list of known viruses that have been specified by the author of the antivirus software. If the found virus matches on the file specified on the dictionary, it will then quarantine it so it will become unavailable to other programs and it will be impossible to broaden the virus, or repair the file by taking the virus out from it, or just delete the file. The virus dictionary method compels a periodic downloads on the internet of a up-to-date virus dictionary entries so it will become effective after some time.

The dictionary antivirus programs usually inspect the files when an operating system establish, open and close them and when the files are sent through emails. This way, viruses are easily detected after receiving the message. Antivirus software can also be scheduled to scan your files on the computer's hard disk daily.

The second technique observes the behavior of the computer programs. If a program tries to write any data to a .exe file. When there is any suspicious behavior found and the user already noticed it and asked what to do with it, it will give protection on those new well-known viruses that are not yet listed on the antivirus dictionaries. Antivirus software are commonly structured by most companies and individuals who are selling it for the computer owners with a fee. But there are also free version which you can download without needing to purchase it for a trial purposes. It is still recommended to purchase the antivirus software complete package for a more ample protection and to use the features of it.

 

Answered By 5 points N/A #82988

How an Antivirus Program Works

qa-featured

An anti-virus program is a program that is used to scan files and identify viruses or malware.

Most common anti-virus software does this by:

1. Checking files for viruses that are known, using what is known as a virus dictionary, and

2. Identifying suspicious behavior from any computer program that may indicates a threat.

In the virus dictionary approach, the anti-virus software examines a file and then refers to the dictionary of known viruses created by the author of the anti-virus software. If a part of a code in the file being examined matches any of the viruses defined in the virus dictionary, then the anti-virus software will either delete, quarantine or attempt to repair the file.

The suspicious behavior approach does not seek to identify known viruses. What it does is observes the behavior of all programs and if a program tries to write data to another program and this is deemed suspicious, then the user is alerted and asked what to do. Whilst this approach provides protection against new viruses, it may give false positive alerts and users after some time may become desensitized, thus leaving him/her more susceptible to viruses.

There are anti-virus software that you can install for free and generally some of these can be as effective as if you purchased it. This site can help you with making decisions as it relates to choosing anti-virus software. Antivirus Programs Reviews

Related Questions