Antivirus Software

Antivirus Software

Antivirus software is a set of programs that can prevent, detect, remove, and search for different viruses or other malware software like worms, trojan, adware, etc. Basically, the computer devices use this software but, it also works on networks and IT systems. Furthermore, it is not sufficient to just install this software rather, we also have to update them from time to time.

Moreover, it is a type of utility software. Utility Software or system utilities is a type of system software that helps in the proper and smooth functioning of a computer system. Moreover, they assist the operating system to manage, organize, maintain, and optimize the functioning of a computer system.

Functions of an Antivirus Software

Antivirus software keeps running as a background process. Furthermore, it keeps scanning the device or and servers for any malware threat. It performs the functions as follows:

• Scans the specific files and directories for malware patterns which can indicate any malware.
• Allows the users to schedule scans according to them. Moreover, it then performs the scan at the scheduled time.
• Users can also scan the system anytime they want.
• If it detects any malicious software it removes it from the system. Furthermore, some software does this itself in the background. On the other hand, some software asks permission or inform the user before removing them.
• Thus, it makes sure that the system is always safe for work.

The Need for Antivirus Software

We need antivirus software to protect us from different malware and viruses. Let us study different malware.

• Malware: It stands for ‘malicious software’. It is a category that includes software like viruses, trojan horse, spyware, etc. Furthermore, this software performs unwanted activities and changes in your system. Moreover, they can delete files, slow down, or even crash your system.
• Spyware: It is software that hides in the operating system and makes unwanted changes. It can even spy on your online activities.
• Ransomware: It is malicious software that displays messages regarding the deposition of money. Moreover, this software tries to charge money from the user by creating alerts about continuing system use.
• Viruses: These are unwanted software that enters the system and make unwanted changes without the permission of the user.
• Worms: They are a type of virus that creates multiple copies of itself.
• Trojan Horse: It is also a type of virus that pretends to be a harmless file but, it is actually a virus that spreads on the system when the user downloads it.
• Adware: These are advertisement supporting software that displays numerous unwanted advertisements. Moreover, it can also make changes to the browser.
• Spam: These are unwanted emails.

Working of Antivirus Software

If a virus enters a system it affects the working by making changes in the files and directories. Moreover, it can also slow down the working of the system and also delete important files. Whenever the antivirus detects any malware syntax or any such activities, it tries to remove these files. Moreover, it alerts the user about the virus too. The several ways of detecting the viruses are as follows:

Signature-Based or Virus Dictionary Detection

In antivirus software, there are certain files, dictionaries, or databases present. These databases have known virus signatures. Furthermore, there is almost 100,000 today which the security professionals have found. So, using these signatures antivirus easily detect these past viruses.

Although, signature-based detection is the best way to detect past viruses without any false information. But, it is not able to detect new viruses. Or in other words, it can detect new viruses if the definition file of the virus is present in the antivirus software.

Heuristic-Based Detection

This is one of the most common techniques of virus detection. In this technique, the antivirus uses an algorithm. Furthermore, this algorithm compares the signature of some known viruses to the suspected threat. Besides, detecting past viruses it can also detect new viruses. Moreover, it can also detect past viruses that have been modified or disguised.

Furthermore, this detection can sometimes produce false-positive results. This means that it can show the system as infected even if it is not.

Behavior-Based Detection

If a virus becomes successful in hiding from the above detection techniques. In that case, an antivirus checks the behavior of the programs. If it detects any strange or unwanted activities it warns the user. There can be several such activities such as:

• Remote connections to computers.
• Deleting or modifying files themselves. Moreover, if changes in files are occurring in a large number.
• or changing various other settings of the system.

It is a good technique to detect viruses that try to steal information from the computer system.

Sandbox Detection

In this technique, if there is any suspicious program, it is run in an artificial virtual environment. Furthermore, this environment is created by the antivirus to trick the malware software. It is not the real system environment. Then, the software runs in this environment and its activities are recorded. If in case, the antivirus finds any harm or unwanted activity it warns the user. Otherwise, it allows the software to run in the real environment.

This method is heavy and slow. Therefore, it is not used in normal antivirus software. But, the antivirus for corporate and network systems uses this technique.

Data Mining

It is a recent technique in the field of viruses and malware detection. Moreover, it works on viruses that are new and more recent. In this technique, data mining and machine learning algorithms are used to detect viruses in files.

Types of Scan

Besides, the detection techniques the scanning also plays an important role. There are several ways of scanning the system for threats. They are as follows:

• On-demand Scan: As the name suggests, this scan occurs when the user itself wants to scan the system for malware. Or in the other case, if the user schedules the scan to occur at a specified time. It searches the content of disks, directories, files, boot sectors, and system components.
• Real-Time Protection: This is a type of automatic protection that keeps running in the background. Due to this, the antivirus catches the malware before it does any damage. Hence, we can also call them a background guard. It scans the system when any new program or device is freshly loaded in the memory. For example, inserting a new USB.
• Smart Scans: In this, the software scans for files that are more suspicious of catching the malware. Therefore, this method saves time and resources.

Advantages of Antivirus Software

The advantages of antivirus software are as follows:

• It detects, blocks, and removes viruses and malware from the system.
• It warns about dangerous websites, attachments, links, advertisements, etc.
• Prevents identity threats.
• Blocks phishing.
• Keeps the online activities and accounts protected.
• Protects the system from getting slow or corrupted.
• Protects the data and files from deleting.
• Therefore, helps to run the computer system smoothly.

Examples of Antivirus Software

There are several antiviruses available these days. They are as follows:

• Microsoft Defender
• Norton 360
• Bitdefender Antivirus
• Malwarebytes
• McAfee Total Protection
• ESET NOD32 Antivirus etc.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q1. What is antivirus software?

A1. Antivirus software is a set of programs that can prevent, detect, remove, and search for different viruses or other malware software like worms, trojan, adware, etc. Basically, the computer devices use this software but, it also works on networks and IT systems. Furthermore, it is not sufficient to just install this software rather, we also have to update them from time to time.

Q2. What are the different types of threats?

A2. Several threats are:

• Malware
• Spyware
• Ransomware
• Worms
• Trojan Horse
• Adware
• Spam

Q3. Name different detection techniques in antivirus software.

A3. Different detection techniques are:

• Signature-Based Detection
• Heuristic-Based Detection
• Behavior-Based Detection
• Sandbox Detection
• Data Mining

Q4. Name different scanning techniques in antivirus software.

A4. Different scanning techniques are:

• On-Demand Scan
• Real-Time Protection
• Smart Scans