What kind of malware does Norton Antivirus protect me against?

I can't seem to find the answer anywhere, so I'll just go ahead and ask it here. I'm curious about what kind of malware am I covered against by using Norton Antivirus and the antivirus only.

 

Thanks.

Welcome jsromero,

 

I will see if I can answer this.


  • Norton AntiVirus 2012 was engineered around the Intelligent Threat Protection concept: its core technology, theNorton Protection System, uses multiple layers of security that work together to proactively block attacks and remove threats - something that traditional virus detection methods cannot achieve. In addition, all downloads, files and applications are checked before you can use them on your computer. Security holes in your operating system and browser are guarded so no infections can get to you that way. Your emails and Instant Messages are always scanned to detect potential threats.

Norton AntiVirus 2012 protects you against today's "rapid-fire" attacks, for which "signatures" don't yet exist. This is done with Norton Insight Network, which uses Symantec's global security network to extract information about the very latest threats and prevent them from getting to your computer. Also, the SONAR 4 technology uses online intelligence and proactive monitoring to detect and block new threats. Finally, Norton Pulse Updates allow frequent, small updates of Norton AntiVirus 2012's threat database, meaning it is as current as can be in terms of latest threat detection.


  • You are protected against viruses but also spyware, which means you don't need to buy a separate antispyware program. That equates to more protection for the same price and less headaches to try and make different pieces of software work together.

 


1. The Norton™ Protection System provides multiple layers of protection that work together so they neutralize threats before they even reach you:

  • SONAR 4 (Symantec™ Online Network for Advanced Response), Symantec's malware detection technology based on application behavior;
  • IPS (Enhanced Intrusion Protection System): a dedicated protection engine for multimedia attacks;
  • Browser exploits protection for Internet Explorer and Firefox: vulnerabilities in browsers can't be used to install spyware or cause crashes, for instance;
  • Antibot protection: so hackers can't take control of your PC;
  • Norton™ Recovery Tool can repair systems that have been deeply infected and help rebooting them.

2. Virus detection via signatures: this is the "traditional" method of detecting threats on your computer and works well for the ones that have already been identified in terms of software code patterns. Norton AntiVirus 2012 compares a particular's application code to known malicious software and if there's a match, the application is promptly removed. This method of detecting threats complements the Norton Protection System, which focuses more on "rapid-fire" attacks, for which signatures have not been defined yet.

Thanks to these two technologies, Norton AntiVirus 2012 is able to prevent threats from reaching your computer and remove any existing threats already present. The protection offered is fully automatic, from threat detection and removal to product updates. And last but not least, Norton AntiVirus 2012 protects your computer at all times in an unobtrusive manner; because of its small footprint, it uses very little of your system's resources. And it is also smart as to how it runs scans and other power-intensive tasks, so you are never bothered while working on a presentation, watching movies or playing games.

Cheers,  Dave.