Anti-Virus Versus Anti-Malware Software

Antivirus software is a frequent component of computers. When examining the definition of antivirus software, it is essentially a program that keeps unwarranted viruses out of a computer. There has been a tremendous amount of growth over the last 15 years with antivirus software as many businesses have migrated to using the Internet and with a rise in the number of individuals seeking to do other users harm through viruses. At its simplest definition, anti-malware is a particular type of application that can be utilized on a computer to remove malware, which includes a host of malicious programming ranging from keyloggers to rootkits to spyware. Malware is a type of computer contaminant in most contexts, and when generally looked at within the IT sphere is more or less defined by every other intrusive program irrespective of computer viruses.

Computer viruses come in many different variations in an effort to destroy the health of the computer. Typical examples of computer viruses are those that make computers run extremely slowly and those that damage certain key components associated with a computer's system files. While the thought is that computers have antivirus software, a common reason for issues in computers is due to either expired or no antivirus software (Rouse, 2005; Xue, 2005). That is not to say that antivirus software is foolproof, as even if a computer is operating with antivirus software loaded that is up to date, that software is still vulnerable to attacks (Rad et.al, 2011). 

Consumers by and large look at antivirus software as the policeman of the computer protecting it from harm. With many to choose from within the marketplace, it is essential to understand how antivirus software operates. Almost all antiviral software utilizes various technologies to detect if there an issue. These software products contain specific security metrics in what is known as a signature database of all known viruses and as a result of the technology continually monitor the computer (Castelli, 2001; Zeltser, 2011). Many consumers often see antivirus software and antimalware software as the same but they are in fact quite different. Given the connotation associated with antimalware programs, it can be said that they are more definitive in what they seek out on computers than antivirus software (Borello et.al, n.d.; Morales et.al, 2010; Morales et.al, 2012). Antimalware programs such as Malwarebytes perform additional scanning for other types of computer-oriented issues that often accompany computer usage. Does that mean that antimalware is more effective than antivirus software?

It can be said that the answer to that question lies in what consumer you speak to and what IT professional recommends. Companies such as Avira and McAfee offer both types of software for consumers to use and each has its own merits as to their effectiveness (Alme and Eardly, 2010; “Avira,” 2013). These companies “perform evaluation methods” (L’evesque, 2012) and other types of scanning mechanisms such as anomaly based detection, filtering and specification based techniques to ascertain the problems associated with computers (Bhatnagar et.al, 2012; Overton, 2005; Rastogi et.al, 2013).  Simply put antimalware programs tend to have more signature databases and technologies to remove malicious attacks to the computer systems based on journal articles and other types of mediums. Antimalware has even been used to thwart cyber-warfare. While antivirus software programs contain methods for detecting viruses, most of them only serve that particular purpose. 

There are reasons to have both antivirus software and antimalware programs running on a computer, however. Despite the differences and similarities between them, running two at the same time offers more protection for one’s computer or for IT networks. Each has its own ways of dealing with issues and problems that often arise while businesses and consumers are on the Internet. The debate over antivirus and antimalware then is a rather unnecessary one to have given the effectiveness of both types of programs within most contexts and the fact that most companies such as the aforementioned ones offer each respective program. 

References

Alme, C., & Eardly, D. (2010). McAfee® Anti-Malware Engines: Values and Technologies [Report]. Retrieved from McAfee website: http://www.mcafee.com/us/resources/reports/rp-anti-malware-engines.pdf

Avira. (2013). Retrieved July 11, 2013, from Avira Operations GmbH & Co. website: http://www.avira.com/en/for-business?utm_source=Avira%2BUS&utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=Avira_US_homepagev2

Bhatnagar, R., Ansari, M. K., Bhatnagar, S., & Barik, H. (2012, November). An Expert Anti-Malware Detection System. International Journal of Soft Computing and Engineering (IJSCE), 2(5), 144-147.

Borello, J., Filiol, E., & Me, L. (n.d.). Are current antivirus programs able to detect complex metamorphic malware? An empirical evaluation. [Article]. Retrieved from Supelec website: http://www.supelec-rennes.fr/rennes/si/equipe/lme/PUBLI/BFM09.pdf

Castelli, J. (2001, December 12). Choosing your anti-virus software (Sans Security Essentials GSEC practical assignment Version 1.3). Retrieved from SANS Institute website: http://www.sans.org/reading_room/whitepapers/commerical/choosing-anti-virus-software_784

L´evesque, F. L., Davis, C. R., Fernandez, J. M., Chiasson, S., & Somayaji, A. (2012).Methodology for a Field Study of Anti-Malware Software [Article]. Retrieved from ISE website: http://infosecon.net/usec12/papers/levesque-usec12.pdf

Morales, J. A., Xu, S., & Sandhu, R. (2010). Evaluating Detection and Treatment Effectiveness of Commercial Anti-malware Programs. IEEE, 31-38.

Morales, J. A., Xu, S., & Sandhu, R. (2012). Analyzing Malware Detection Efficiency with Multiple Anti-Malware Programs. ASE, 56-66.

Overton, M. (2005, April 30). Anti-Malware Tools: Intrusion Detection Systems. 2005 EICAR Conference, 1-22.

Rad, B. B., Masrom, M., & Ibrahim, S. (2011, January). Evolution of Computer Virus Concealment and Anti-Virus Techniques: A Short Survey. IJCSI International Journal of Computer Science Issues, 8(1), 113-121.

Rastogi, V., Chen, Y., & Jiang, X. (2013, March). Evaluating Android Anti-malware against Transformation Attacks [Technical Report]. Retrieved from Northwestern University website: http://list.cs.northwestern.edu/mobile/droidchameleon_nu_eecs_13_01.pdf

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Xue, F. (2005). Attacking Antivirus [Paper]. Retrieved from Nevis Networks, Inc. website: http://www.blackhat.com/presentations/bh-europe-08/Feng-Xue/Whitepaper/bh-eu-08-xue-WP.pdf

Zeltser, L. (2011, March). Understanding Anti-Virus Software. OUCH!, 1-3.