How to Protect Yourself Against Scareware

Scareware, also known as Rogue Security Software, is a class of programs that pretend to be anti-malware solutions. In fact, they do not really detect, remove, or protect against malware. Instead, they report dozens or hundreds of infections which actually don't exist. Once they've dug into a system, they prove extremely annoying until the users either pay the "upgrade" or "registration" fees or find a way to remove them. The FBI has estimated losses to victims in excess of $150 million.

Sources of Scareware Infection

Infection often occurs when users visit a compromised web site and click in pop-up windows offering a free security scan or free security software downloads. These messages often use scare tactics claiming that the user's computer is already infected. Accepting the offered link to the free removal software just installs a more insidious infection. Spam emails and even "drive-by" infections are also possible.

Preventing Scareware Infection

The adage "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" is truer nowhere else than it is in the world of computer malware. Naturally, keeping security software up to date is the first essential step. Learning to recognize (and thereby, avoid) the scams is also important. Messages that pop up claiming to have detected infections or vulnerabilities while the user is visiting a site unrelated to software security is highly suspect. Any security message that appears to have no relationship to explicitly installed anti-malware products is also not to be trusted. In either of these scenarios, users should kill the process from the Task Manager rather than trusting any cancel buttons or even the red 'X' on the window.

A characteristic of websites offering the free scans or free anti-malware are generally slick and professional in appearance. They feature fake endorsements and high industry ratings which are visually indistinguishable from the genuine articles. The domains and brand names change rapidly, so trying to maintain a "black list" is not very feasible. It is much easier to maintain a list of legitimate, free anti-malware sites, and avoid unfamiliar sites.

Scareware Removal

Because scareware distributors continually change the branding, filenames, and other characteristics of the malware, there is no single tool or method for removing the malware. Manual removal generally requires complicated steps involving registry entries, hidden files, and invisible processes. This type of removal may be beyond the capabilities of the casual user, but general instructions for scareware removal can be helpful. General purpose anti-malware software can remove many of these infections. Sometimes however, an Internet search for the name the rogue software is using will turn up specific, step-by-step removal instructions.

Victims of scareware can file a report on the Internet Crime Complaint Center, a Federal collaborative law-enforcement and information sharing site.

REFERENCES

Rogue Security Software

The Ultimate Guide to Scareware Removal

Be On The Alert for Scareware and Pop-upshttp://malwarebytes.org