Riding The New Immunet Protect: Is It A Worthy Security Program?

You have probably heard of Immunet for the first time during last year. I last covered that Immunet Protect is a workable and innovative security software that uses cloud community protection, but it is not enough to make a majority of people stick to it, particularly as it has its own buggy problem, limited functionality and questionable effectiveness as all new programs faced.


Immunet recently arrived at its v2 release, where developers gave the security software a major overhaul in every area possible. It is still a freeware, but now there is a Plus version available for those who want Immunet's own in-house traditional antivirus engine. Which is good in a sense that users equipped with the Plus version are protected by Immunet when they are offline. For free users, they will enjoy the cloud community & heuristic-based engine, but no antivirus engine. Immunet is also capable of running alongside any antivirus program even with their own antivirus engine onboard.


I download & tested Immunet Protect to see if it is worth the use. Here are some of the goods about the software:


1. The New GUI Interface

For v2, Immunet uses a more user friendly interface, particularly the main GUI & the '?' description pop-ups. I love Immunet's effort of trying to educate the user on what particular function of the software does, as well as their effort of making navigation easier for users as they add more features to the product. It is also quite attractive in terms of GUI background and color blendings.


2. Enhanced Protection Features for free


The cloud community scanning feature (codename SPERO) is one of Immunet's core features and for v2, they enhanced its functionality. Although users will require to log in (or create an Immunet account if they log in for the first time) to use the feature, the benefits are rewarding. Users can now invite friends to join their cloud network as well as being provided with a visual map as to who is protecting the users through cloud community detection. Community stats are also updated in real-time more frequently than before. 

To compliment SPERO, Immunet formally introduces another scan engine codename ETHOS, a heuristic-based engine. Unlike SPERO, ETHOS runs regardless of whether the user is connected to a network or not. Of course, it works at best with network connection on, but now, users can rest assure that Immunet is protecting them to a certain degree when they are offline.


3. 24/7 Tech Support


Immunet Protect is being given so much tech support attention for a freeware; both free & Pro version users can enjoy full-time support service when they ran into a problem. Although i have no idea whether it works as advertised, it is definitely one good incentive to use the software.


There is also some area about the software that needs improvement:


1. Buggy GUI


Although i praise the beautiful & easy to navigate GUI previously, there's no deny that it is slightly buggy. Running the main GUI will result in a delay and a momentary white patch before the GUI loads completely. Similarly, other sub-GUI also has the same bug.


2. The Adware-like upgrade prompt 

Sometimes, when running the main GUI, you will notice an upgrade prompt popping out from the right side of the GUI. Although i am not objecting Immunet trying to get users to upgrade to the Plus version, i think there should be other better ways to do that; it makes me feel as though i'm using a security software that came bundled with malware or spyware or similar. It is also notoriously difficult to close the prompt, as the close button does not always show on the prompt.


3. Ask.com toolbar is bundled with the installation package

While this is not necessarily a bad thing, the problem comes with the user. Some users will get turn off by the Ask.com toolbar (considered an adware by some) that is installed. While there is an option for users to not install it during setup, how many amateur and novice users will take notice of that? As far as i'm concerned, the ask.com thingy has led to some negative PR on sites like download.com. I also had no idea why would Immunet affiliate themselves with something like that...




Immunet is up on my PC for nearly 4 days already and as far as i know, it is a pretty decent security software, having use minimal PC resources and even beating the likes of Panda Cloud Antivirus in terms of pure startup speed. With further bug fix and improvement, Immunet Protect rocks as a freeware security tool. Despite that, it will take Immunet a long time to build up a densely populated cloud community, which seriously degrades its effectiveness and for this reason, I don't think it is the right moment to recommend it to friends and families yet.


Download Immunet Protect HERE.


Visit the Official Website to learn more.

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Get FREE 3-Month License Key for Avira Premium Security Suite

 Been busying preparing for Chinese New Year, but then this is an offer i could not resist skipping through here. You see, under a few hours ago, Avira made another promotional offer, this time users can get a free valid three-months worth of Avira Premium Security Suite's license key. Avira Premium Security Suite is the best protection Avira could offer to users, so best to take your chances now!

And trust me, there are relatively few offers from antivirus vendors nowadays, and Avira is as kind as to offer us one! (Be reminded that Avira is a pretty decent antivirus!).

To get the free 3-month license key:


1. Visit the Avira Online License Page, where the promotion is held.


2. Fill out the online form. The information can be anything but the e-mail must be valid.


3. Press the 'Request Your License Key' button after you complete the form.


4. Avira will send a 3-month license key to your mail (remember to check your junk inbox).


5. Download Avira Premium Security Suite, install and apply the license key.


That's it! You are now protected by Avira Premium Security Suite for 3 months!


I do not know whether the license key can be applied on the new beta version of Avira or not (refer to my 'beta tests' page for information). If anyone has tried it out and working, please do inform us here. It will be much appreciated!

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Recent Beta Program Updates

I have been busy learning new stuffs in and out during my holidays, so i couldn't fulfill my promise as stated in my announcement area. Nevertheless, i felt it's time i pull myself away from all this learning and started posting something here.



Today i'll not be introducing software or promotions to you, but i'll instead, give you a brief update on some of the interesting beta programs i keep tabs on throughout my holiday periods:

1. Avast! Antivirus v5

This popular antivirus has just came out of beta on the 20th of January. The new v5 has a revamped interface design, more user-centric charts and options plus several new features and scan engine updates. It is incredibly light on PC resources as well. Not bad for a free antivirus, i must say!


2. Trend Titanium

Remember my previous post about Trend Micro Security Beta? Well, this is essentially a renamed version of the previous Trend Micro Security Beta program. Trend Titanium is released as renamed, recolored and optimized feature. Having said that, it still keeps its virtue of operating from the cloud, so it is extremely light on resources. The beta program is still going on at Trend Micro Beta Portal and will proceed all the way into March 2010.

3. Mozilla Firefox 3.6 Release Candidate (RC)

Firefox is pretty much the trendsetter in terms of add-on features and security standards for browsers, but in v3.6, due to release in the coming weeks, Firefox developers are more focused on performance and speed improvements. Personal testing revealed that v3.6 is indeed, more responsive and produces minimal crashes for a beta program, but then it's speed significantly trails behind those of Google Chromes and the latest Opera v10.5.


4. Adobe Flash Player 10.1 Beta

Although the current Adobe Flash Player 10 works just fine with no reported vulnerabilities, the fact is that it is still slow...incredibly slow on graphic rendering. Imagine Youtube's hi-def videos going sluggish on your PC, or the Flash games on Facebook maxing out your CPU cycle, making your PC as slow as a snail! The latest beta version of Adobe Flash Player 10.1 bring GPU acceleration technology to your PC, or in other words, Adobe Flash Player now utilizes your PC's graphic cards in order to render high-definition flash videos and games, therefore reduce CPU stress! Bad news is, there are only some processors in the market that supports this new tech...


5. BitComet 2010 Beta

 BitComet's high times are over; people nowadays would rather recommend uTorrent or Vuze to manage downloads, but then to hardcore fans, BitComet serves them just fine. The new BitComet emphasizes on GUI improvements and  bug fixes, plus some minor network tweaks to improve overall experience.

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Hitman Pro, the World's First Ever Multiple-Engine-Powered Cloud Virus Scanner

It's common knowledge that a system is best to have only one antivirus onboard...well, sort of, because there ARE some antivirus pairings that work well together, for example, Kaspersky with Microsoft Security Essentials. Problem is, sometimes malware still get pass your system undetected, even when you have two antivirus installed on your PC. You can always upload suspected files up to online scanning service such as VirusTotal.com, but then what if you don't know which file to suspect? Surely you can't upload everything one by one?

Hitman Pro, a cloud-based virus scanning software developed by SurfRight, has the closest answer to the problem above. Unlike Panda Cloud Antivirus or Immunet Protect, which are both independent cloud antivirus, Hitman Pro utilizes FIVE scanning engines as their in-the-cloud detection, where users can immediately scan their PC directly from the desktop. Like all cloud scanning technology, Hitman Pro is designed to be portable, light on system resources, requires minimum interaction and improved scanning time. Hitman Pro also works alongside any existing antivirus software without compatibility issues. The free version of Hitman Pro allows users to scan their PC for infection (with a free 30-day period removal), while the paid version allows users to scan for and remove infections from their PC.

The five scanning engines are publicly revealed as G DATA, Avira, ESET NOD32, Prevx CSI & A-Squared Antimalware, although one can argue that with this lineup, Hitman Pro is essentially utilizing 7 scanning engines, since GDATA uses the Bitdefender and Avast scanning engines, while A-Squared uses its own scanning engine together with Ikarus scanning engine. According to inside sources, Hitman Pro carefully chooses their scanning engines based on their distinctive advantages. G DATA and Avira is chosen for their proven high and accurate detection rate, while NOD32 is chosen for its famous ThreatSense heuristic scanning engine. Prevx is chosen for its HIPS detection and rootkit detection while A-Squared is chosen for its antispyware and common malware detection.

Hitman Pro scans fast and reliably, identifying the main key areas for scan based on collective intelligence from its five scanning engines. On its scan result page, it displays the amount of files scanned and the total time taken for scanning the files. It is also more configurable than Panda Cloud Antivirus, A-Squared MalAware and Immunet Protect in some areas, notably the option to scan the PC during every computer bootup.

The limitations of Hitman Pro, however, is that is is meant to be a scanning and removal tool instead of a monitoring tool. Therefore, it is recommended that users still have a real-time antivirus running on their desktop. If users decide to rely on Hitman Pro for detection, then they must frequently scan their PC for infections. Since the free version does not provide removal, Hitman Pro is also not a really good free virus scanner for novice users who does not have sufficient knowledge in manually removing malwares.

All in all, Hitman Pro is the best portable cloud virus scanner available for both novice and advanced users.
 
Hitman Pro is currently a v3.5 final release (Build 80), available in both 32-bit and 64-bit. Windows XP, Vista, 7 and all Server OS (2003 & 2008) are supported.

Download Hitman Pro v3.5 32-bit

Download Hitman Pro v3.5 64-bit

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