Norman Malware Cleaner 2.08.08 (2014.01.15)

Overview

Norman Malware Cleaner is a proactive security solution developed by Norman Inc that is able to efficiently remove the malicious software from an already infected system. From the start, the developers advise that their software utility is by no means designed for system protection. Consequentially, it should not be employed as such. On the other hand, Norman Malware Cleaner is a rather potent tool when it comes to resolving issues that has overwhelmed your existing antivirus and firewall protection. The Sandbox, DNA Matching and Exploit Detection Technology are the means brought into play by this utility in weeding out any trace of malicious software from your computer. 

Installation

Norman Malware Cleaner was created for the Windows 98 to Windows 7 range of operating systems, thus it is not an effective solution for Mac OS X and Linux users. The antivirus is pretty heavyweight considering that it was designed for portability, as the latest version takes around 123 MB from your drive. On the other hand, the major advantage is that it has no basic system requirements and users do not need to install any component.

However, as a word of advice from the manufacturers, in order to give Norman Malware Cleaner more edge over malicious software, it is recommended that you first reboot the computer and start your Windows OS in safe mode. The reason for this specification is that, although the antivirus utility is able to kill the processes it suspects to be infected while they are still loaded into memory, it is still easier and more accurate to scan them while they are turned off.

Interface

Norman Malware Cleaner does not have the most complex interface, but it is nevertheless intuitive and user-friendly. In essence, the window comprises of the superior area where the buttons for the essential functions regarding the scanning, found results, general settings, quarantine and information about the product are located, whilst in the lower left corner, you have the action buttons that allow you to start, pause and stop the search. The main section of the window displays the progress of the search, lists the results of the found or quarantined malicious software, and enables you to choose the settings based on the active tab you have chosen via the shortcut menu. As you can see, it is simple but thoroughly efficient and intuitive to users of all technical levels.

Pros

The highest regarded feature of Norman Malware Cleaner is its ability to stop the processes running, which the algorithm suspects to be infected, in their tracks. As a matter of fact, few free and even paid antivirus utilities can provide the same efficiency in the case of currently running processes. Moreover, Norman Malware Cleaner is able to revert the registry modifications performed by the malicious software on registries and hosts and ensure that they are no longer seen as exceptions by your firewall. In addition, this utility has proven to be quite powerful in removing root-kits, one of the most dangerous types of key-loggers. The coding and the database for signatures belonging to several kinds of viruses, trojans and worms is kept up to date by a specialized team. All these criteria and more deem Norman Malware Cleaner to be beyond the expectations users could have regarding a freeware antivirus tool. In fact, that is also the developer’s motto, and it is safe to say they are living up to it.

Cons

The only problem with Norman Malware Cleaner is that it does not provide actual real time protection against malicious software and, consequentially, you will need an alternative shielding software. On the other hand, you can also purchase effective solutions for this task from Norman. If you are satisfied with the effectiveness of Norman Malware Cleaner, why not give the other products of the developer a try. Using 2 products designed on the same basic principles and incorporating the same technology translates into a significantly reduced risk of incompatibility.

Alternatives

This line of products includes alternatives such as Spybot-Search & Destroy, Malwarebytes Anti-Malware and SuperAntiSpyware. However, the aforementioned utilities are significantly more specialized and include far less features than Norman Malware Cleaner.  

Conclusion

Norman Malware Cleaner is a powerful solution to employ once your antivirus protection system has failed. However, since the utility does not provide shielding capabilities, it should be used in conjunction with antivirus software that does.