Avast Antivirus Biography

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avast!

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avast!

Avast! Free Antivirus
Developer(s)	AVAST Software a.s. (formerly ALWIL Software a.s.)
Stable release	2014.9.0.2013 / 22 January 2014; 36 days ago^[1]
Operating system	Windows 2000/XP/Vista/7/Windows 8 (32/64-bit), Linux, Macintosh, Palm OS, Windows Server Edition, Android
Type	Antivirus software
License	Freemium
Website	www.avast.com

Avast! (styled avast!) is an antivirus computer program available to Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X and Linux users, with a user interface available in 41 languages. The name Avast is an acronym of "Anti-Virus – Advanced Set".^[2]
Its developer, AVAST Software a.s. (formerly known as ALWIL Software a.s.), has headquarters in Prague, Czech Republic, with offices in Linz, Austria; Friedrichshafen, Germany; and Redwood City, California.^[3]
The software has received a number of awards from Virus Bulletin for 100% detection of "in-the-wild" viruses,^[4] and also won the Secure Computing Readers' Trust Award.^[5] The central scanning engine has been certified by ICSA Labs^[6] and West Coast Labs' Checkmark process.^[7]
In June 2012, Avast! had 17.4% of the worldwide antivirus vendor market share.^[8]

Features

A pop-up from Avast! indicating that the program's antivirus database has been updated.

A pop-up from Avast! indicating that the EICAR test file had been blocked.

Antivirus kernel based on certified antivirus engine.
Resident protection comprising individual modules or "shields", each of which can be individually configured or disabled:
- File System Shield — Real-time protection against viruses and other malware threats. Scans files as they run on your computer to keep viruses from being able to execute.
- Mail Shield — Scans messages and attachments in E-mail/Microsoft Outlook/Exchange for viruses.
- Web Shield — HTTP protection (local transparent proxy). Version 4.8 also allows the blocking of URLs. Scans URLs and incoming data for viruses, and aborts connections to the site if one is found.
- P2P Shield — Scans P2P files from file share programs.
- IM Shield — Instant Messaging protection. (Scanning of files transferred through instant messaging applications)
- Script Shield — Scans webpages for malicious scripts, and disables them from infecting your computer, though they can still be used (for example, a clickable button.)
- Network Shield — Basic protection against well-known network worms. Acts as an Intrusion Detection System.
- Behavior Shield — Reports suspicious behavior by analyzing the behavior of programs
Anti-spyware capabilities
Anti-rootkit capabilities (Powered by GMER).^[9]
Self-Protection — Prevents malware from terminating avast! processes and damaging avast! files.
Automatic incremental updates — Updates of both the program and the virus database which is used to identify potential threats — Avast! updates its virus definitions on a regular basis (sometimes multiple updates daily) and this process is automated by default.
Audible alarms — Vocal warnings and notices such as "Threat has been detected!" and "Virus database has been updated."
Boot-time scan — Users can schedule a boot-time scan to remove infections that load during Windows startup.
Virus Chest — Quarantine; folder where infected files can be stored. The virus chest also stores vital system files to protect them from damage by malware. Users can also add their own files to the virus chest. Once in the chest, a file cannot be executed; double-clicking the file will instead display information about the file.
SafeZone — SafeZone is a special web browser in avast! Pro Antivirus 6.x and avast! Internet Security 6.x based on Chromium web browser. It allows users to browse the web in a private, secure environment, invisible to the rest of the users' system.
WebRep browser plugin — WebRep is a community-based website reputation ratings tool implemented in version 6.0 of Avast! Antivirus.^[10]
Avast! antivirus monitor— Avast! antivirus monitor is a sidebar gadget for Windows 7 and Windows Vista. It comes with Avast! Antivirus 6 and 7.
Consumer Alert - Gives the user information if their credit may have been tampered with (US Customers Only)
AVAST cloud — Avast! 7 introduces streaming updates from the cloud in addition to daily virus database updates. Throughout the day, AVAST streams updates to users, giving them faster warnings about new malware. This supplements regular virus updates, keeping users informed and protected regardless of their internet connection.
FileRep - The FileRep feature enables faster threat identification by sorting new, potentially dangerous files from known safe files. Sourced from the CommunityIQ sensor network, the data helps avast! decide when questionable files should be placed in the AutoSandbox.
Remote Assistance — An avast! user can connect to the computer of a second avast! user, allowing the "helper-friend" to help with any computer issues.

Customization

Version 5 and higher versions of Avast! Antivirus allows its users to customize the voiceover played by the program whenever an event happens (such as the detection of malware, or whenever the program's database is updated).^[11] Official voiceovers are available in Hungarian, Belarusian, Brazilian Portuguese, Catalan, Chinese, English, French, German, Korean, Polish, Russian, Spanish, Turkish and Ukrainian. Avast allows its users to submit voiceovers in different languages. Themed voiceovers are also available; these include "Aussie", "Californian", "Canadian", "Pirate Talk" and "Santa Claus".^[12]
Version 4 allowed users to customize its graphical user interface with different skins from the Avast! website.

Registration

The free version of Avast! Antivirus is intended for personal, non-commercial use. After installation, the program can be used in trial mode for thirty days.^[13] This limit can be eliminated by registering using a form in Avast's website.^[13] The program must then be re-registered every year.^[14]
However, a user who has version 4.8 and upgrades to the latest version is given an automatic 14-month license.