Kaspersky Security Scan is a free security tool for Windows systems from famous Russian Security Firm Kaspersky Labs.
This free tool lets you know the Security status of your Windows system or find-out the efficiency of the security suite installed on your PC.
Using a regularly updated Security software doesn’t mean that your Windows system is 100% protected from malware’s or viruses, not all antivirus software’s are capable of detecting new spyware and Trojans.
It’s better to regularly run on-demand software’s from other Security firms to check whether your existing Security suite missed anything or your PC is infected with malicious software.
One such tool is Kaspersky Security Scan (KSS), a free security audit tool that uses Kaspersky’s commercial antivirus engine for detecting threats that your existing security software has missed.
The application uses the most up-to-date anti-virus databases, plus information from the “cloud” yo check your PC’s security status.
Installing KSS is very easy & simple, download the online installer from Kaspersky website and run it, it will download latest anti-virus databases, the installation size will be around 55 MB.
This security app is compatible with all antivirus software’s, this means that you can install this app alongside an existing antivirus or security suite.
Kaspersky Security Scan has an intuitive interface, you can access all function on the single screen itself and you will find fancy graphics once you hit the ‘Scan’ button.
The app offers two types of scan: Quick & Full scan. The Quick scan method will scan only system memory and start-up objects, whereas Full scan option will scan your entire computer, including all hard-disk partitions and removable drives.
We recommend ‘Full Scan’ method, but it will take much time and the progress bar will show the only percentage of scanning done, it will not display any time estimate on how long the scan will take to complete.
After scanning is finished, scan results will appear in the main window or hit the ‘Reports’ button. If threats or other security problems are found during a scan, they will be marked in red color in the summary page and clicking on the ‘Details’ button will launch your default system browser with a local webpage displaying more information.
This local webpage with headline ‘Detailed report’ displays issues on your system in 4 categories: 1. System protection, 2. Malware, 3.Vulnerabilities, and 4.Other issues.
Kaspersky Security Scan uses several technologies to detect threats to your system. The application detects malicious objects by comparing them with samples stored in databases.
You must have an Internet connection to receive database updates from Kaspersky Lab servers onto your computer. Kaspersky Security Scan has a feature called Heuristic analyzer that detects threats whose definitions have not yet been added to the databases.
Additionally, the application makes use of Kaspersky Security Network, a special service that allows Kaspersky Security Scan to react faster to new types of threats.
User participation in Kaspersky Security Network enables Kaspersky Lab to gather real-time information about the types and sources of new threats and develop methods to neutralize them.
When you use KSS, certain statistics collected while the application scans your computer are sent to Kaspersky Lab automatically.
One Should note that Kaspersky Security Scan will only detect malicious objects and infected files on your system, but the application will not fix or resolve the issues.
If the application detects certain problems and indicates that your computer could be at risk, then we recommend you get an anti-virus software product that will provide the best protection.
The Good :
- Gives a second opinion on your PC’s Security State
- Useful for those who want work on an unprotected system
- Cloud-based product and treads lightly on your system
The Bad :
- Just acts as a tool to detect vulnerabilities and malware, provides no solution to fix the issues
- Adware targeted to sell applications from Kaspersky Lab.
Conclusion:
KSS is a free tool, that provides a second opinion on your computer’s security state, but it doesn’t fix detected threats and suggests to go for Kaspersky Products.
However, I recommend you just run this tool, get results and resolve the issues2 with free security software.
Download Kaspersky Security Scan from developer page.