Win32 Virus Removal

When your computer acts up, slows down, or otherwise behaves weirdly, the reason may well be a virus or other malware. Maybe your antivirus is out of date, or perhaps you never got around to installing protection. In the long run you should install a product with real-time antivirus protection, something that will keep bad things from happening. Right now, though, you want that virus out. Norman Malware Cleaner 2.1 (free, direct) is designed specifically for that cleanup task.

Because Norman doesn't require installation and runs in Safe Mode, it can function even when belligerent malware prevents installation of a more full-featured solution. Its cleanup could be more thorough, true, but it's free and it may well clean up the problem system enough to allow installation of a full-scale prevention-and-cleanup antivirus.

Smooth Start
Installing an antivirus product on twelve malware-infested test systems often takes me a full workday. It can take even longer if I have to work with tech support to get past problems caused by malware that fights back. Not this time, though. I had Norman up and ready to run on all twelve systems in less than an hour.

Malware on two of the systems did try to defend itself from being cleaned up. One rogue security program even claimed Norman itself was a virus and terminated it. Switching to Safe Mode allowed me to run a full scan on both systems.

Lab Results Not Great
Most of the major labs include Norman in their tests, though it hasn't been getting the best scores lately. ICSA Labs certifies Norman's technology for virus detection and removal. The latest on-demand test from AV-Comparatives.org rated it STANDARD, the lowest passing score.

AV-Test.org rates antivirus products in three areas: protection, repair, and usability. A product can earn up to six points in each area, with a total of 11 points required for certification. Norman didn't achieve certification in any of the three tests under Windows 7, Windows Vista, and Windows XP.

Virus Bulletin has been testing Norman's products since 1988. Out of the latest ten tests, Norman only received VB100 certification six times. The chart that follows summarizes the latest lab tests. For an explanation of how I interpret these tests, see How We Interpret Antivirus Lab Tests.

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