Issue 4.17
There is a new protection program out there that is getting a lot of attention – much of it not good. The program and company in question is ScanGuard. It promises a lot and uses a number of dubious website tricks to sell you on installing it. For this reason, it has encouraged a lot of people to download and install it. Many computer professionals are urging caution and some are just saying “run far away from this”.
There are a number of red flags that apply not only to this program, but to any download that you might be considering. To be fair, there is no indication that it is a virus in and of itself, but there are numerous indications that the company involved may be phishing (asking for your information for negative purposes such as getting your passwords, user names, etc.) and may not actually protect you in a good way.
The first red flag is that it advertises that it is free for a limited time, but once you have installed it, you find that you must pay $50 per year to use it. That is an indication that you can’t really trust the company. Other security programs such as AVG and Avast have commercial programs that they want you to buy and try to encourage that, but they actually provide a free version that stays free unless you decide you want to buy the “pro” version. They keep asking and that is their right, but their software actually works – even the free versions.
The second red flag is that this is a new company which is not bad in and of itself. However, the fact that they do not publish who owns the company or any contact information where you can actually reach them indicates they don’t want to be found. Subsidiary to this is the fact that their domain name is available to buy at auction which is very strange if they were in it for the long haul.
The third red flag is that their program lists many basic files required to run your computer correctly as “suspect” files to show you that they can find bad files. Independent testing companies indicate this is common with scams. They have tested a number of computers with well-known and effective anti-virus and anti-malware programs and found no problem, then run this software which finds a bunch of problems that are not actually problems.
The fourth red flag is that, as part of their article you are referred to top ten lists of best anti-virus software programs that list them as one of the top two. These lists are not from reputable reviewers that have established reputations and those reputable sites do not even list this program. It is likely that the top ten lists linked to are actually created by the sellers of this program. It is a way to create false credibility and get you to trust them and download their software.
There are other concerns, but that will suffice. These same red flags are good to note in considering other software or products as they are becoming a blueprint for scams. We don’t know what their endgame is. It might be innocuous and just about getting money for a questionable program. It could be as serious as identity theft, accessing your other accounts for other sites or getting into your bank account. We don’t know. I recommend steering away from this and similarly advertised software (or other products) – and always remember to have a backup of anything important.
Shaun McCausland has worked in the computer industry for over 34 years, 27 years of it locally with Bits ‘N’ Bytes and Musicomp and currently works as a computer consultant. If you have questions you can reach him at 435-668-7118 or shaun@musicomp.net.