Microsoft Safety Scanner

Think you got a virus? Microsoft to the rescue!

A few weeks ago, with little fanfare, Microsoft released a new downloadable on-demand security scanner to help techies deal with malware outbreaks

The tool, called Microsoft SafetyScanner, is a 70+MB, self-contained security scanner package that you download and run.

On running the tool (and being told that this tool is not a replacement for a proper anti-malware solution) you're given three options:

• Quick scan - Likely spots that malware might be lurking
• Full scan - Whole system ... just in case
• Customized scan - Scan a specific folder

And that's it.

I had to throw a little something in the scanner's way (just the simple EICAR test file):

Some drawbacks:

• There are not updates provided for the tool - you have to redownload the package
• The download is only valid for 10 days, after which you have to redownload the package
• The progress bar seems to mean nothing

Handy if you want a quick anti-malware scanner.