Scan for viruses - Virus scan software

The first step in virus protection is to ascertain whether a virus actually exists on your system. Unless there are obvious security warnings produced by the virus itself, it is unlikely that you will be explicitly aware of any infections your computer may have. Most viruses are coded in a way that means they will attempt to conceal themselves as much as possible. After all, the sooner they are found the less damage they are able to inflict. To the casual computer user, any small, gradual changes made by a virus are likely to go unnoticed. However, the software we offer is specifically instructed to look for the signs of a virus' existence.

Each example of virus scan software uses what is known as a 'pattern file'. These pattern files are the sets of data that the software uses to establish what it is looking for in a system. The identification of a virus involves establishing how it manifests itself in a computer, and what it actually does. The software then checks its pattern file to see if any of a number of changes are being made. For example, the virus E-Cleton infects DOS executable files and the c:\COMMAND.COM file. The virus scan software would then check to see if any abnormal changes had been made to these files, and if it had, then there would be a positive diagnosis of the existence of a virus.

Most virus scan software runs in real time, meaning that it checks the system as changes are made. The software usually makes itself known through an icon in the system tray, and this indicates that each file opened or moved, or manipulated in any way, is being checked for viruses.

Virus scan software titles: