PCMAN – Within the IT world, the terms “Anti-Malware” and “Anti-Virus” are commonly used—but what are the differences between those terms? How is ‘Malware’ different with ‘Virus’?
An Anti-Malware is a type of software designed to prevent, detect and remediate malicious programming on individual computing devices and IT systems. Anti-Malware protects infections caused by many types of malware, including viruses, worms, Trojan horses, rootkits, spyware, keyloggers, ransomware and adware. ‘Viruses’ are a specific type of malware designed to replicate and spread, where ‘Malware’ is the broader term to describe all sorts of unwanted or malicious code.
Even though the terms ‘Malware’ and ‘Virus’ are often used as synonyms, there are antimalware vendors who like to differentiate the two terms to promote the capabilities of their own products and downplay the more traditional label ‘anti-virus’. Vendors also use the term ‘Malware’ to move away from the term ‘Viruses’ that made headline a few years ago, which made security companies focused their marketing on the term.
Which One For Which?
Perhaps there are some confusion while determining which tools to use for which viruses when one wants to be efficient in achieving the best result. Below are some of the anti-malware softwares, discussed respectively for their best usage.
- Avast! Free Antivirus
Users have determined that Avast is one of the most favoured anti-malware tools available in the market. It protects the user from “classic” threats such as viruses, worms and Trojans, as well as adware, bots and other exploits. - McAfee
With this app, users claimed for it to have protected their system from more than just viruses, which included Trojans, worms, spyware, rootkits, and keyloggers. The protection that this software offers depends on the size of the specific McAfee product the user is currently using. As it gets more expensive, the user will get more benefits on various features such as Social Media protection, theft identification, cloud-based backup services, and more. - Norton
Based on users testimony, Norton security tools are able to scan all forms of malware including viruses, and encouraged users to think of Malware in broader terms. It helped users to classify Malware into infectious malware, web threats, concealment malware, and mobile malware. Norton products offer a basic level of protection up to the extra security package.
Malwarebytes Anti-Malware
This software has aims to detect as much malware as possible, but focusing on zero-day, zero-hour malware. Zero-hour malware can be any type of malware that traditional antivirus products have a hard time detecting—which makes Malwarebytes Anti-Malware extra points in providing additional security measure for the users. In a simpler term, Malwarebytes will try to stay on the forefront and protect users from new exploits, Trojans, backdoors, adware, and spyware—but leaving common viruses and older threats to a more traditional on-access security tool.
