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From: David H. Lipman on 21 Feb 2010 16:03 From: "Stan Brown" <the_stan_brown(a)fastmail.fm> | Sun, 21 Feb 2010 07:53:18 -0700 from Ken Blake, MVP | <kblake(a)this.is.an.invalid.domain>: >> On Sun, 21 Feb 2010 08:07:11 -0500, Stan Brown >> <the_stan_brown(a)fastmail.fm> wrote: >> > I've checked on the Web page but can't find a clear answer: >> > >> > Is this a virus *and* spyware scanner, or just a spyware scanner? >> > They say "malware" over and over, and to em that implies both, but >> > they never actually said what they mean as far as i could see. >> > >> > I raise the point because a friend claims that Malwarebytes Anti- >> > malware does spyware scanning only, not virus scanning >> Your friend is essentially right. Good a product as it is, they use >> the word "malware" improperly, to mean just spyware, not all malware, >> including viruses. | Thank you -- that's very clear. It doesn't exactly build confidence | that they misuse such a crucial word in the description of their | product! Actually it is NOT a misuse of the word. Read the whole thread. You will see that this discussion has mentioned the concept of some overlap. As I wrote, because it can't remove coide injected into binaries it can NOT be called an anti virus product while it does tearget non-file infecting viruses. The name Malwarebytes' Anti Malware is both appropraite and apropos. -- Dave http://www.claymania.com/removal-trojan-adware.html Multi-AV - http://www.pctipp.ch/downloads/dl/35905.asp
From: Twayne on 21 Feb 2010 20:38 In news:4B815322.46F6C696(a)Guy.com, Virus Guy <Virus(a)Guy.com> typed: > "David H. Lipman" wrote: > >>> Is this a virus *and* spyware scanner, or just a spyware scanner? > >> MBAM is not an anti virus application and is geared towards non-viral >> malware. It may block a virus but it will not remove a virus once >> the files are infected. > > I don't know why Dave is being evasive about this. > > I've used MBAM exactly once so far, and that was on a drive where the > user downloaded and ran one of those fake AV scanners because they > panicked during a web-surfing session. > > I removed the infected hard drive and attached it as a slave to a > good/trusted system and ran several AV scanners against the drive. > > MBAM did detect several files that were remnants of a zbot infection. > > So I'd have to say that MBAM does have *some* ability to ID files that > are viral / trojan in nature. > > Will MBAM function as a resident application or service and perform > real-time scanning of incoming files or data? I don't know. Probably > not. > > Will MBAM remove viral files (both running in memory and on the file > system) and undo all viral registry entries? I don't know. Probably > some-what. Not many apps that actually call themselves "Anti-Virus" > do a good job of that. > > Is MBAM a virus scanner as well as a spyware scanner? > > The answer is absolutely yes, but I don't really know how large it's > viral/trojan definition database is. > > Dave can answer that - I don't know why he's being evasive about it. Wow; Dave was a lot more correct than you are on this one. That is NOT an AV program, nor does it claim to be. I pity the person who depends on it as their source of AV protection, because that it is not. It seems to be an OK program too, but not as a major AV protector. HTH, Twayne -- -- Life is the only real counselor; wisdom unfiltered through personal experience does not become a part of the moral tissue.
From: David H. Lipman on 21 Feb 2010 20:43 From: "Twayne" <nobody(a)spamcop.net> | Wow; Dave was a lot more correct than you are on this one. That is NOT an AV | program, nor does it claim to be. I pity the person who depends on it as | their source of AV protection, because that it is not. It seems to be an OK | program too, but not as a major AV protector. | HTH, | Twayne Anybody on the MBAM Team will tell 'ya MBAM is an adjunct and not a anti virus application replacement. -- Dave http://www.claymania.com/removal-trojan-adware.html Multi-AV - http://www.pctipp.ch/downloads/dl/35905.asp
From: Jose on 21 Feb 2010 21:10 On Feb 21, 3:56 pm, Stan Brown <the_stan_br...(a)fastmail.fm> wrote: > Sun, 21 Feb 2010 07:53:18 -0700 from Ken Blake, MVP > <kbl...(a)this.is.an.invalid.domain>: > > > > > > > > > On Sun, 21 Feb 2010 08:07:11 -0500, Stan Brown > > <the_stan_br...(a)fastmail.fm> wrote: > > > > I've checked on the Web page but can't find a clear answer: > > > > Is this a virus *and* spyware scanner, or just a spyware scanner? > > > They say "malware" over and over, and to em that implies both, but > > > they never actually said what they mean as far as i could see. > > > > I raise the point because a friend claims that Malwarebytes Anti- > > > malware does spyware scanning only, not virus scanning > > > Your friend is essentially right. Good a product as it is, they use > > the word "malware" improperly, to mean just spyware, not all malware, > > including viruses. > > Thank you -- that's very clear. It doesn't exactly build confidence > that they misuse such a crucial word in the description of their > product! > > -- > Stan Brown, Oak Road Systems, Tompkins County, New York, USA > http://OakRoadSystems.com > Shikata ga nai... Why don't you ask in the MBAM forum? The MBAM experts are very helpful along with other "regular" folks. http://forums.malwarebytes.org/index.php? I just think of the free version as a good detection and removal tool - it does not prevent your system from getting infected, and it not supposed to prevent. Their home page says "When your computer becomes infected..."
From: Virus Guy on 21 Feb 2010 23:29
Full-Quoter Twayne wrote: > > Is MBAM a virus scanner as well as a spyware scanner? > > > > The answer is absolutely yes, but I don't really know how > > large it's viral/trojan definition database is. > > > > Dave can answer that - I don't know why he's being evasive > > about it. > > Wow; Dave was a lot more correct than you are on this one. Not really. What Dave did was spend a lot of time explaining the dictionary definition of a virus as it pertains to computers. I said that MBAM is a type of AV program, simply because I have seen it detect files that were viral/trojan in nature. I didn't say that MBAM was a good AV program, or that it does everything that an AV program is supposed to do, or that it can function as the sole or only AV program on a given system. For most people, there are two kinds of malware: a) programs or program-initiated system settings that cause them to be exposed to more advertizing than they'd like to be, or expect to be, or that cause their browser to bring up web-content that again exposes the user to advertizing during the course of normal browsing, or cause them to hit certain web pages for the purpose of driving up traffic. If the malware only does these things, and does not install or facilitate the installation of software that performs more invasive functions (remote control, key logging, external communication, etc) then it's ad-ware or nuisance-ware. b) programs, code-fragments, exploit code, etc, that do any or all of the following without the knowledge or permission of the computer's owner: - search the computer for information, files, data, gather information via key-logging, and communicate that information to an external host - install or act as back-door access for external command and control purposes - enrole the system into a botnet - act as a spam relay or zombie - act as DoS agent - act as a DNS server or file server for various purposes - encrypt user files for the purpose of extortion - probe the local lan or the wider wan for exploitable systems - spread copies of itself or cause other systems to acquire it by some means either directly or indirectly Malware that does any of the above is what most lay-people would classify as viral in nature. Whether a given example is strictly a virus, a trojan, or a worm is completely irrelavent to the end user, as all three types have a universal goal of extracting some benefit by residing and operating on the user's PC while incurring a cost to the user. |