Comments on this AV...

VirusKeeper: advanced antivirus and antispyware tool

Today, most computers are connected to the internet, which exposes them to threats likeviruses, worms, Trojan horses, spyware and Internet Explorer attacks.

Many antivirus programs are available, but most of them are scanners that can only detect known viruses. This clumsy method is ineffective at stopping new viruses and needs constant updating. Access to updates also generally requires an annual fee. That's why viruses like Blaster, Sasser and Bagle infected million of computers in a few days though most of them were "protected" by antivirus scanners.

In addition, antivirus scanners do not detect spyware and do not protect Internet Explorer. Internet Explorer is more and more the target of programs and web sites that install extra toolbars and buttons, and display advertising pop ups that slow down the computer.

VirusKeeper protects the computer against viruses AND spyware. VirusKeeper uses a powerful real-time threat detection engine. It monitors all aspects of your system : running processes, system files, the registry and the I/O ports. VirusKeeper acts as a shield against viruses, spyware and other malicious software. VirusKeeper also protects Internet Explorer from programs and web sites that try to change your default pages or try to install toolbars or spy components.

VirusKeeper uses a behavior analysis method, rather than the basic scanner employed by other antivirus programs. VirusKeeper analyzes the activity of all programs running in memory and flags any suspicious processes. You can use VirusKeeper and another antivirus scanner at the same time for the highest level of security.

Does anyone has used this av?

Home page: http://www.viruskeeper.com/us/

 

I've never heard of it before. If I judged an AV by its website, I wouldn't think much of it...chartreuse green on blue...yuck! plus very hard to read the chartreuse titles.

It sounds like a behavior analyzer. I question that it works well with KAV...might conflict with ProActive Defense.

I don't know the company that owns it either. I will be interested to read other comments.

 

I installed the program a few hours ago, as I write this. I heard about the program through an ad that appeared with a security test program I downloaded which is called "PC Security Test 2006" and the "Test" was reported in Richard Gizmo's Support Alert Newsletter -- the most recent edition -- and, as I trust "Gizmo," I assume that the Security Test was legit and, by proximity, I assume the same of Viruskeeper.

The program installed on my computer smoothly enough and it seems stable. In reference to the concern raised as to the program's compatibility with Kaspersky, I myself have KIS 6.0 on my system and, at the moment, at least, there do not appear to be any incompatibilities between the two programs. Once the program is first installed, it scans the system, ostensibly thoroughly. It also checks each program as a potential danger, i.e., if it does not recognize the program, you are questioned whether you want to keep it. In my case, Viruskeeper did not recognize any of my software. And, accordingly, I seriously doubt the efficacy of that particular feature.

Other features (in the pro version at least) suggest that Viruskeeper is also a utilities app. The program's "ProcessWatch II" lists all drivers, running processes, browsers and services. I realize that, except for the list of drivers, all these other lists can be found by accessing Windows own tools such as TaskManager and various admin tools, although all this information is not to be found succinctly in one place. And much more detailed lists of running processes can be generated from a Belarc Report (which is free) or through a WinPatrol Pro Report (which is not).

Many of the features provided are, clearly enough, fluff. The question is whether Viruskeeper can possibly pick up on malware that other antivirus programs cannot or cannot do so as readily. That I do not know. The program is designed to do a separate scan for viruses and spyware. And, for viruses, there are separate signature and behavior scans. For signature scans, I would expect there to be continuous updates. I shall see if that is the case.

For the moment, at any rate, it appears that the program does no harm: no blue screens, no slowdowns in operation, no incompatibilities. Whether the program does any good, I will leave it to testers much more capable than I.

The Company is apparently based in Germany. Does it have any connection with the Avira AntiVir people? I don't know.

More on stability issues upcoming as I see how the program gets along with the good executes on my machine and, as to the program's usefulness, I will report on what it detects, if anything.

 

it seem not to use def files. instead it is a behaviour scanner

 

Thanks for the info. And yes it seems that is more like a behavior detection software than an AV...

 

stick to what you know, especially for security.

wouldnt even bother installing this, even for a trial.

 

C.S.J. has a point, but, for me, at least, the comment, "stick to what you know," (as far as installation of securities apps) begs the question, because I must depend essentially on what I read about various products from others and what I can ascertain through my own use of a product. There has been nothing in Wilders, or, for that matters, essentially anywhere else on the Web, concerning VirusKeeper, so it may very well be one of so many other "ho hum" products out there. Or, it might just be a diamond in the rough. From my own investigation, I still stand by my original statement that, on my machine, at least, it is stable and appears compatible with KIS 6.0; therefore, on my machine, at least, it does no harm. Whether it does any good -- namely, whether it is a decent complement to AVs such as Kaspersky and NOD32 -- I don't as yet know. The information I can provide here is, hopefully, useful to dah145 and other readers who may wish to preview the product.

I did purchase VirusKeeper Pro 2007 the other day and I did receive my license within one day. According to the instructions, you must uninstall the trial version first. A link is provided for the licensed version. As the instructions set forth, you have to uninstall the trial version through Windows' Add/Remove program as the app does not have its own uninstaller.

The uninstall for me went very smoothly and the systray and start menu icons were removed cleanly. I did a specific scan for VirusKeeper registry keys with JV16 Power Tools and found only 12 keys left over and 8 of those were from the MUI Cache. Four others were start menu keys and I deleted them. The program is 25 megabytes in size which some users may see as overly large and thus consuming too many resources. Two "purported" users at CNET give the product high marks, but those reviews, I know, are always suspect and as there were only two reviews, and as I have no idea as to the integrity of the sources, one cannot place much stock in them. Another reviewer at another source claimed that the product (the 2006 version of VirusKeeper) causes huges spikes in CPU usage and advises to stay clear of the product until the developers reprogram VirusKeeper to better manage the spikes. The idea is that you want to keep the program running in realtime so as to maximize the benefit of the behavior detector although the realtime mode can be deactivated easily enough, so CPU spikes are not something a user would wish to contend with for very long if this is going to freeze or merely slow down various operations on one's computer. That would be much too inconvenient to warrant maintaining VirusKeeper as a resident app.

I will be installing the purchased program shortly and will check for CPU spikes in particular. But, since I have a dual processor Intel Xeon processor which is quite fast and can deal quite handily with multiple running programs, including CPU surges, I do not know if my machine is atypical of what others users might expect from running VirusKeeper 2007 pro as resident.

I have trialed many security apps through the last several months, taking most of my cues from the excellent advice I obtain in these threads at Wilders forums. I am most concerned about power consumption and stability, assuming that the program otherwise has security features that warrant its inclusion in my system in the first place. So, while I trial quite a few exotic, esoteric products out there, I don't do so willy nilly. I will watch to see how VirusKeeper gets along with Kaspersky in the long run, as well as with PG, DefenseWall, RegDefend and RegRun, as well as with a few others I presently have on my machine. I believe that the need for good antivirus products is, to date, not a security area that can be or has been adequately addressed by the best current HIPS products such as PG, SSM, Online Armor, AntiHook, ProSecurity and Viguard. So, I am always looking for new antivirus products to complement my mainstay, Kaspersky; for, while Kaspersky is certainly one of the best, it is not perfect and, as antivirus products generally do not get along well with each other, unlike most antispyware products, VirusKeeper might have its nitch as it appears to be one antivirus product that does get along with other more traditional signature based antivirus apps and therefore might be worth having in one's securities' arsenal if, indeed, it can detect nefarious viral executes that happen to escape the watchful eye of Kaspersky or NOD32.

 

Thanks for that LONG reply, well, the reason I posted about this AV is because it seemed like an interesting software and I wanted comments on how it was and then maybe I would try it, so thanks again for posting.

 

There are issues to consider.

On download.com is a free proggie available, regrettably i can't remember the name of it

That proggie is scanning your PC for security weakness (virus, adware and firewall issues) and after the scan, it tell you that you are not well protected/vulnerable and is redirecting you straight on to the website of VirusKeeper.

 

Yep, I have seen that, it is called PC security test or something...

 

Is correct, you are pointing to the same proggie i am talking about

But i still can't remember the exact name

 

Here is the link to the site: http://www.pc-st.com/us/

 

100% good find!

Thanks

 

I came across the site through Richard Gizmo's "Support Alert Premium SE Edition Newsletter" as I indicated in my first posting on this thread. So, I believe it is safe. The site itself passes scrutiny with the McAfee SiteAdvisor app and also with Firetrust's SiteHound app so there are no spyware downloads concomitant with installation of the security test. I found the test useful and interesting. After the test is run, the user is, in fact, given an opportunity to click on a link that brings him or her to the VirusKeeper site. The user is not automatically directed to the site. The ad is, concededly, a good ploy but, in and of itself, this does not necessarily mean that VirusKeeper isn't a legit product and there is nothing to suggest that the installation of the product will suddenly generate great results on the security test. Actually, my computer did quite well on the test with the securities products I already have installed. I was not induced to install VirusKeeper through scare tactics and I don't believe that it is the intention of the designer of the security test to do that anyway. I simply felt that VirusKeeper might well be a useful addition to the securities tools already at my disposal, nothing more and nothing less. I certainly have no personal, vested interest in the Company.