Before we go too far I thought I’d go into a little detail about how you and I are protected from viruses and spyware using traditional signature/definition based methods. Over the past 20 years everyone has received a daily spyware and/or virus definition update that helps to protect users against the known malware on the Internet. Despite heroic attempts to fight the war against computer security threats, the bad guys are winning, especially as hackers learn ways to exploit the wait time between when threats are detected, and when they are fixed. As Yankee Group puts it, the old “signature-based malware systems are crumbling under the force of the sheer numbers marshaled by the enemy. ” Worse, “detection rates for the new malware variants are less than 70%, and anti-virus labs are between 30 and 60 days behind for run of the mill malware.” This is why 99% of consumer computers today have anti virus installed and yet 60% still get infected annually. And in the last year alone, nearly 10 million Americans became victims of identity theft, a crime that cost them approximately $5 billion total. It is the fastest growing crime in the United States, and it takes identity theft victims approximately 12 months to realize that they have been victimized.

Ok, back to the topic at hand.

Put simply a zero day threat is a piece of malicious code that is so new that there is no definition or signature for removal. A zero day attack is when that code is put onto the Internet to create havoc and more than likely try to steal personal consumer information. So the next question is how do we protect ourselves from these types of threats? For true zero day protection, a security solution needs to be able to discover malicious behaviors of files that may get onto your computer, without needing any signatures databases. Does a product like this exist? Absolutely!

I don't want this to turn into a huge sales pitch for my product (Protection Control Center with Attack Shield) but I’ll simply say that Attack Shield is the only purely behavioral based malware detection product on the market. By combining Attack Shield with traditional Proteciton Control Center (PCC), you achieve an unprecedented level of security. While PCC detects known attacks, Attack Shield prevents the unknown, zero day attacks that the anti virus/ anti spyware signatures on your system may not be able to find. With this combination, the vulnerability gap that once existed is now closed and your security level is raised.

We also provide a stand alone version of Attack Shield called Primary Response Safe Connect. This stand alone version is specifically designed to work with other security solutions such as Norton Internet Security and McAfee Protection Suites. By adding this additional layer of protection to your existing security, you enhance the protection provided by your AntiVirus with the ability to provide instant and constant protection against malware that your antivirus software cannot find. The combination of the two products provides you with stronger protection against newer, stealthier threats designed to avoid your antivirus software.

EarthLink has partnered with the leading zero-day protection security company (Sana Security) to bring you both Attack Shield and Primary Response Safe Connect. We believe in the product so strongly that we recommend it to everyone regardless of what other security products you may use.

If you want to try Protection Control Center with Attack Shield free for 30 days, click here.

If you have another security solution and want to add an extra layer of zero day protection, click here for a free 15 day trial.

You won’t be disappointed!

1^Yankee Group report entitled AntiVirus is Dead; Love Live AntiMalware, dated Dec. 18, 2006

THANK YOU for all of your feedback! We are actively working to address all of your feedback through updates to the features on the site over the next few weeks. I will continue to blog about launches of new or improved features as we roll them out. So check back often and keep the feedback coming in.

Be secure!

Tumara

If you have been searching for a specific security software download try the FREE & PREMIUM SOFTWARE page and let me know what you think.

If you are concerned that your PC is not secure, run the FREE SECURITY CHECK which will analyze your PC for security holes and guide you through the steps improve the security on your PC. Please send your feedback on this exciting new tool (screenshot below). Note: currently you must use an IE browser to run the FREE SECURITY CHECK.

If you are just getting up to speed on PC security problems and solutions check out SECURITY 101 or any of our security videos. And if you have a question or problem that we have not addressed just let me know.

Also, please check out the DOUGHBOY DISPATCH. My colleague, James Manning, is the Supervisor of Threat Research at EarthLink and his featured security articles and summary of important security headlines provides you with just all of the information you need to stay on top of the latest threat alerts and security news.

I look forward to getting your feedback on the ESC Beta and using it to make future improvements.

Be secure!

Tumara Jackson

This is Tumara Jackson [Product Manager] for the EarthLink Security Center.

Be Secure.