a-squared, formerly knows as A2), has been developed by the high-skilled programmers by the EMSI Software company into an outstanding PC security program, which got the name "a-squared anti-malware".

To be able to stand up the heated competition on the market of anti-malware programs, a-squared went ahead of common marketing techniques. Instead of offering a DEMO-version of its only software (like other software manufacturers do), it provides every customer with a variety of tools, some of which are completely free. As we all know, demos are actually useless because they do not show any performance capabilities of the program. Usually a demo antispyware program only scans a limited number of files, and runs a limited number of scan sessions. The removal of the detected threats is never possible. Updates do not work. I'd say there's not a single reason to download and install a demo anti-malware software unless you want to see what graphics designers came up with.

I believe that's the reason why a-squared anti-malware is available in two editions: paid and free. Of course the paid version of a-squared anti-malware contains the very meat of its advanced technology topped with enhanced protection capabilities. Malware-IDS ensures the real-time protection against unknown types of malware. In essence, it means that a-squared will detect the suspicious and hazardous behavior of separate files of programs, blocking them before they can complete any harmful activity. All traditional anti-malware programs are based on malware definitions which are delivered via updates from manufacturer's servers. Such software can only detect a malware when its distinctive traits are present in the anti-malware database. Most little-known and "no-name" security software vendors rely on this method of malware recognition.

But it is a old day approach which is no longer effective. Hundreds of new spyware and trojans are created every day, and relying solely on definition-based approach means the software will fail to detect the unknown malware, thus not being able to prevent its harmful activity.

This is where a-squared anti-malware shows its strength. The Malware-IDS technology allows monitoring the system processes identifying the harmful ones. Whenever a-squared detect a probability of damaging the system, it stops the suspicious process, no matter whether it has descriptive patterns in the database or not. Hence the effective preventive mechanism of a-squared anti-malware that relies on updated malware definitions to a much lesser degree than most traditional PC security programs.

Of course a-squared anti-malware features automatic daily updates. This is still important because the necessary improvements to the program scanning engine are developed in response to new types of malware appearing on the Web.

However, to allow the potential customers to try out the software, a-squared offers a completely free anti-malware edition which is as effective in removing the parasites as the paid version. A-aquared free malware removal program uses same engine and detection mechanism as its premium brother, but allows no automatic updates and doesn't include the Background Guard, which essentially is the skeleton of Malware-IDS protection.

In addition to desktop anti-malware, a-squared offers a command-line scanner. It is a tool that works from command prompt and allows to remove infections and traces of dialers, keyloggers, spyware, adware, worms, Trojans, rootkits, etc. Because smart malware often corrupts Windows so that the users loses ability to install new programs (such as applications to remove infections), a-squared developed a command-line scanner to help those in need. A-squared works in Safe Mode, too, where removing nasty parasites is easier. A number of switches available make configuring the a-squared command-line scanner a pleasure. While it is aimed at IT experts rather then at home users, this tool is so simple to use that every novice will be able to clean out the infected system with no hassle. A-squared free command-line scanner is always available with latest updates already included in the archive.

A-squared also offers a HiJackFree tool which helps to remove malware manually. The notorious popularity of SmitFraud scams, rogue security software, made it clear that the majority of desktop security programs, even those manufactured by reputable software companies, badly miss the necessary detection algorithms to fight the new types of malware. This is where a-squared free HiJackFree is needed. It helps to review and manage currently running processes (Windows Task Manager shows just a tiny bit of what's actually going on in the system), open ports, involved files, etc. In many cases of infection HiJackFree from a-squared greatly facilitates the process of removing malware.

a-squared also offers a free anti-dialer, a little program that scans hard drives for instances of dialing modules, and removes them at once.

The command-line scanner and free anti-malware are also available in the form of self-executing packages suitable for portable devices (USB drives). These editions of a-squared free programs do not require installation and are great tools at removing many kinds of malware, even on those computers where Internet connection is disabled by infections.

To sum up, a-squared offers an array of programs and tools to fight different types of malware. It is an amazing addition to common antivirus protection because the latter usually lack the power of fighting such a broad range of malware.

Next: Free Anti Spyware Programs

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