VoodooShield/Cyberlock

I am having an issue with VS using 10 to 15 per cent CPU constantly, way to much for an app of this kind. I do not like to do this but I even excluded VS from all my security apps and still same CPU usage. I have removed VS for now and may try again if/when a new beta is released...

 

Trialing the Beta. No problems thus far with the rest of my security. Ran in "Train Me" mode opened/closed installed programs and did a couple of reboots. One suggestion to add the ability to check for updates from the tray icon. Not experiencing high CPU (around 3%) and using about 12 MB of RAM.

 

I don't need launch apps...I would like to block all apps which I try to run. Nothing more...and VS has problem with this at this time...I think so.

 

puff-m-d, thank you for letting us know. We had that issue with the previous version, are you running 0.88? If not, please download VS again, it will fix the problem. Please let us know if this does not lower the usage to less than 1%. The CPU utilization for most computers is less than 1%, and we hope this will be true for EVERYONE on the next beta release, which will hopefully be very soon, we are trying to get it out asap!

G1111, yes there will be an update / autoupdate feature in the next release, or the one after. Thank you!

 

ichito, sorry, we are trying to understand what you are wanting.

You said "I would like to block all apps which I try to run. Nothing more." You want VS to block all apps that you try to run? So do you want VS to block EVERYTHING except the programs that are currently running? We could do that, but it is a lot more user friendly for VS to store a cumulative whitelist of the programs you always want to allow. That way, you only have to train VS once for any given program.

Please explain further, we just might be misunderstanding what you are saying. If you could provide an example, that might be helpful. Thank you!

 

Thus far VoodooShield working as advertised. I went to US Time website using Mozilla Firefox and that was initially blocked. Also tried opening a program I had not trained while Mozilla Firefox was running and that was also blocked until trained. I like VoodooShield's unobtrusiveness. Not a lot pops like a classical HIPS. Good for a beginner. Sort of set and forget.

I would like to see a log though of what was blocked. Also, getting "nag" screen at reboot or when coming out of sleep mode. I assume this will go away when beta testing over.

Running very smoothly with my other security software.

 

G111, Thank you for the feedback! Yes, we wanted VS to be as simple as possible, we will probably add some more advanced features like a log and a way to edit the whitelist snapshot.

Keep in mind, you do not have to right click and choose TRAIN ME. VS also learns when it is in OFF Mode. So if VS is blocking something, you can left click to turn it OFF, then start your new program. It will auto reactivate, or you can manually reactivate it.

And yes, we are going to remove the nag screen, we had no idea it would be that annoying! Thanks again!

 

Hahaha...OK...I try to explain what I wanted to say and I'm sorry if my English isn't enough clear.
I expected that VS can block everything waht is "unknown" for VS..."everything unknown" means in this situation all apps except loaded with system. So...after installing VS, disabling "Train Me" and activating protection (blue icon) I tried to launch some apps from my machine. What I noticed - you can read in my posts above.
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edit:
latest version from your site and 10 min ago still the same

additonaly not blocked MSPaint, Notepad...but correctly was blocked WordPad and other MSOffice apps - Word, Excel, PowerPoint.

I think that necessary is needed some window in which we can manage list of detected apps...10 minutes isn't enough time to run all apps as trusted for us. You should to do something that can be more "friendly and useful" for each users. Next thing - I have not checked but I think there is the lack of "self-protection" and by this way we can easy disable VS...Think about this
VS have some "potential power" and can be nice and easy security app and please don't give up We have an example of HIPS which was tested on Wilders - Patriot NG - after our critical comments nothing was changed and it have been perhaps simply abandoned by its author.
https://www.wilderssecurity.com/showthread.php?t=299078&highlight=patriot

 

ichito, I think we are starting to see what you are saying. Yes, VS has a list of Standard Processes that it does not block, they are mostly windows processes like defrag, notepad, wmp, IE, Outlook, etc. We were going to include processes like Word and Excel, but we did not want to confuse the user. Basically, we didn't want the user to wonder why VS did not block Word and Excel. We are trying to choose the list of Standard Processes carefully to not confuse the users.

Keep in mind, VS learns while it is OFF, that way, a lot of processes are automatically allowed without user intervention. This also makes it easy for the user to simply left click on VS to quickly train an additional program.

It looks like we are going to have to include a way for the user to edit the whitelist snapshot, so they can see what is not being blocked.

Yes, we are going to add self protection to VS once we have everything worked out. During the beta, we just wanted the user to be able to quickly terminate VS in case things went wrong.

When you said "10 minutes isn't enough time to run all apps as trusted for us," are you talking about TRAIN ME mode? It should be set to 30 minutes, but we can increase the time if necessary.

Thank you for all of your feedback, we appreciate it! We are by no means giving up, we are just getting started! Thanks again!

 

I didn't know about it...it's a pity that you don't have written about this earlier - I wouldn't be surprised BTW it's a good idea that VS already now has some white list which will be extended and that you think about some screen to manage own WL - by this way VS can be much easier to use.

I forgot about it

Thanks vice versa for your attention and explanations

 

So far no problems on my computer. Runs very smoothly with my other security software. VS is very simple and easy to use. In my case provides another layer of protection.

Couple of comments:

In tray icon when pulling up "register" password is showing. I guess that is okay if that will be the only function in VS that requires a password, but are you considering adding password protection for VS in the future or is this not necessary? It is not likely VS could be shutdown by malware, but could easily be turned off by a child wanting to play games and may turn VS off then go to an infected website.

Also, does VS protect against infection from portable media like CD or USB drive? I downloaded ClamWin anti-virus portable to my desktop then closed Firefox and copied to USB drive. I was able to run a ClamWin scan of my C: drive while VS was off from my USB drive. If this was malware my guess is it would have been able to infect my computer. Is there any thought about not allowing programs to run from portable media before they are "trained?"

 

I believe it should only train in training mode. Not when the browser or email is shut off. If it is there it should be working unless the user has put it in training mode. And the whitelist should be 100% user generated. That with some minor bug fixes I have contacted them about would make it a keeper for me. Nothing would make me happier than try to install a legit browser extension and have it blocked except in training mode.

 

Yes

 

ichito, yes, I know what you are saying, we just do not want to overwhelm people with too much information.

G1111, the password is now hidden, it will be included in the next release, which is coming in a day or two at the most. Yes, we are going to include password protection for corporate users and children, it should be in the next release. We have been trying to figure out the best method for dealing with USB drives and other external devices. If VS is ON, it will block viruses, even from USB drives. It probably will not be completely resolved in the next release, but it will be soon!

Sevens, here is the response from one of the developers, is this what you are suggesting? "I like it better…it sounds like what I was suggesting…left click to go to train me…with a little longer auto reactivate time…and to keep the interface simple, if a user left clicks again before the reactivate, then it goes to OFF and another left click would go to ON."


Thank you everyone for your help and input!

 

Thanks VS for response. Is 0.88 latest Beta version? That is what I am using.

 

You are welcome G1111, thank you for your feedback! Yes, 0.88 is the latest. We are doing everything possible to get the next version out, hopefully in a couple of days.

 

So what exactly is the procedure to register this for testing?.I cant seem to register at all.I dont really want to mess with regional settings as you never know if it will mess other programs up.Im based in UK,and cant register at all at the moment

 

Thank you for all of your suggestions! On the next release, VS will be ON unless the user left clicks, which will put it into TRAIN ME Mode. VS will auto reactivate, or the user can manually reactivate. After install, there will be an extended TRAIN ME mode, and will prompt the user after 30 minutes to take it out of TRAIN ME Mode. There will also be a "Train VoodooShield when in OFF Mode" option in the Settings screen, in case people do want VS to train when it is OFF. We will also add a whitelist editor soon, but it probably will not be for a couple of weeks. Does this sound like what your are suggesting? Please let us know!

 

Hi ellison64, it looks like you are registering correctly, we have a bug that is preventing people outside of the US from registering. The next release will be out in a couple of days and should fix this problem. Thank you!

 

Any news for me, VoodooShield ??

 

Ashanta, Hi, yes, the next release should resolve your issue. We are working on it all weekend, and hope to have it finished by Monday. Thank you!

 

Sounds good, looking forward to next Beta.

 

Well, i really like the simplicity of it, but why should i pay for something when there are other free alternatives to it (Defense+)?

Don't get me wrong, i like the program and i would use it daily, but only if it was free.
And i also disagree with the training mode on after you leave your browser or email client.

I think you totally need to make something new out of it.
Also, if you don't have signatures to download, why don't you make a lifetime license?!

Well... good luck.

 

Same situation for me. Also UK based. Looking forward to giving it a spin.

 

Hello,

I agree. I like VS for the extra line of defense it provides, but this functionality IMHO does not justify having to pay for this software. It would, however, be an excellent freeware choice. I would love to keep using this program, but I cannot, in my situation, justify paying for it.