Must-Have Features in Anti-virus Software

Anti-virus software is more than just an application you download and install on your computer and then forget about. Most anti-virus software has many handy features that can make your life easier and your computer safer. Here is a look at some of the most common features of anti-virus software and an overview of why it is so important to your internet security.

Scanning Features

Scanning files for virus infections is what anti-virus scan protection is all about. Did you know that many anti-virus software packages scan files at different times? When a file is scanned can make a difference in your computer's safety. Here are some common types of virus scans:

• On-Access Scanning – This type of virus scanner checks your files repeatedly. When you download files to your computer, is the scanner checks them for viruses. Every time you use the file subsequently, the virus scanner verifies it again. This feature is handy because viruses often move from an infected file and latch onto the files that are already on your computer.
• Heuristic Scanning – Heuristic scanning is designed to catch newly recognized viruses. When a new virus has been identified, your anti-virus software automatically scans your computer to see if it has been infected.
• Scheduled Scanning – This is a good feature if you hate how your computer slows down when a scan is being preformed. You can schedule scans to operate when you aren't at the computer.
• On-Demand Scanning – This is exactly what it sounds. With on-demand scanning, you tell the software when to scan your computer. On-demand scanning is a reassuring feature if you feel that your computer is acting strange. You can simply perform a scan to see if there is anything to worry about.

Added Protection

While virus scanning is important, there are other ways in which anti-virus software protects your computer.

• Email Scans – Infected emails are a popular way to spread viruses. Anti-virus software that includes email protection will automatically scan emails in your POP3 accounts and webmail accounts such as AOL, MSN, Hotmail, Gmail and Yahoo Mail for malicious items.
• Instant-Messaging Protection – Just like emails, instant messages can introduce viruses to your system. Instant-messaging protection blocks these intrusions from latching onto your computer files.
• Script Blocking – This type of protection targets VBS and Java scripts that your computer uses to run certain applications or to access certain websites. Script blocking detects when a script is acting suspiciously and alerts you to the problem, while blocking the script from performing its intended action.
• Auto-Clean – An auto-clean feature automatically gets rid of any viruses or malicious items that it finds on your computer. Some anti-virus software quarantines these items and waits for you to manually delete them. The auto-clean feature keeps you from worrying about manual cleanup.

Updates

For the best protection, you want software that can download updates to its virus-signatures database automatically. When choosing protection for your computer, make sure that the software has an auto-update feature.

As you can see, there are many features to anti-virus protection. Before choosing anti-virus software, make sure that it has as many of the above features as possible.

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