Microsoft Safety Scanner and forum users.

[ipman]

Okay so two part question.

1. Does anyone still use MSS? I used to rely on Window Defender, but got Norton Security as part of broadband package, so been using that.

I run Malwarebytes AdwCleaner and MSS occasioanlly. It takes about 7 hours on my PC and showed 11 infected files, but when it finishes it says, 'no infected files found'. I thought it was supposed to show those files?

2. Also when I spoke to my son recently, he said he reads forums, particularly gaming ones, but never posts.

I can understand why people may not want to post on some forums, even Steam users can be judgemental, but I'm just wondering what would encourage more people to post? Or are many just happy reading, I don't know.

I mean I'm always meeting new people in the real world, but forums are great, especially if you have shared interests. You get to talk to people from all over the world, with a wide range of views.

 

[Frindis]

@ipman Perhaps the 11 infected files are in quarantine and that is why you can't see them. I use AVAST and Malwarebytes myself. Nowadays the alerts are almost always false positives, so I am curious if any of those 11 infected files really are infected at all.

I think a lot just like the browse forums. I do the same with most of the YouTube videos I watch, and rarely comment if I watch a Twitch stream. Some people might just need some time to get comfortable, to find the right home for them, especially those who just started to frequent.

 

[ipman]

I seem to remember it says something like, at the end of the scan you will be shown infected files. It doesn't seem to give any options though. Maybe like you say they are just 'false positives'.

I just get the impression that many are reading forums. Maybe they've seen some of the reactions on Steam or elsewhere, and that makes them wary, I don't know.

I often get the impression on Steam forums that if you aren't; a hard core, long time player within a limited age range group and even specific gender, then you maybe will feel it's not for you. Just curious as always

 

[Alm]

Norton always had the reputation of being so much of a resource hog that it wasn't worth installing. I don't know what it's like these days.

With regards to posting, I think many people are just shy of conversing. I know I have mental health issues and worry how I come across. That and there's so much to consume online that you really don't have to partake any more.

 

[ipman]

Norton always had the reputation of being so much of a resource hog that it wasn't worth installing. I don't know what it's like these days.

With regards to posting, I think many people are just shy of conversing. I know I have mental health issues and worry how I come across. That and there's so much to consume online that you really don't have to partake any more.

Yes you hear all sorts about different virus scanners. I think even MSS was supposed to be infected at one time.

Norton also gets a bad rap. It seems to be using about 30 MB , whereas Razer about 65MB just in background when not in use. It's just tempting to use it as it's free(broadband 40 mbps download, 10 Mbps upload + unlimited calls for £15 a month, bargain).

I wouldn't worry Alm, I'm sure we're all on some sort of spectrum and you seem pretty balanced. I'm just always trying out new perspectives, without really explaining

 

[Brian Boru]

Never heard of Microsoft Safety Scanner, I assume it's a result of their annual renaming of all products and services, ideally to a new name confusingly like the name of another slightly related product.

ETA, quick search shows it's only for devs—that's why I wouldn't have heard of it. Seems to be like the consumer Malicious Software Removal Tool.

Norton Security

Good to hear that's viable again, used to be a terrible resource hog—I was a longtime Norton Utilities user, but they got progressively worse after Symantec bought the brand.

I use MalwareBytes Pro since we've paid for it, but I'd be quite happy with Windows Defender on its own—all the experts say it's now one of the best anti-malware apps.

But of course, the only viable security approach long-term is to plan for how you'll recover after your data disappears.

11 infected files, but when it finishes it says, 'no infected files found'.

There may be a setting re whether to display the infected, or to move them automatically to Quarantine. I always disable the auto-move, but it's probably better left on for novice users.

I think even MSS was supposed to be infected at one time.

Very unlikely, I can't believe that would've been missed by the tech press.

people may not want to post on some forums

I ran my own forum for ~a decade and discovered that for many people, forum software is an impenetrable alien landscape. Forum operators and seasoned users are almost always unaware of this big gap in the user experience.

forums are great

They serve a niche purpose, ideally suited to longer discussion in an organized way which is relatively easy to search thru for years and decades afterwards. Only a small section of social media users want this and can navigate it.

forums … can be judgemental

Nahhh—you ever been to a family gathering?
But I'm not blaming you for saying that, you have every right, it doesn't make you a bad person—honest!

People can fade in and out of forums too. CivFanatics is the best forum—on any topic—I've found on the web. I have a few hundred posts there from late 00s, and maybe a dozen since. CFC are still great, but like @Alm says, there's so much more to consume online these days—eg YouTube, FB didn't exist as players back then.

 

[ipman]

Microsoft Safety Scanner is freely available to anyone. But I think Frindis was right, they were false positives, because I do remember when it found infected files in the past, it did display them after scan with options.

I think there's still a place for specialist forums, but I can think of numerous reasons why many people would be wary of using them, as I said about Steam forums(pseudo machismo let's call it).

Or it could be that they are just happy to read, IDK.

The Ubisoft forums were quite good for a while until they messed with the format. Players were praising the parts of the games they liked, asking the Dev teams about problems and coming up with ideas for the future.

So they also worked on the level of useful feedback to the Dev team for future development based on actual player experiences.

 

[Colif]

I run Malwarebytes AdwCleaner and MSS occasioanlly. It takes about 7 hours on my PC

7 hours? How old is this PC?

Norton AV had a built in crypto miner for a while in 2022... thats enough to stop me choosing them... there are other reasons.

2... how to get people to post on forums... mystery of the century. I only post on a new forum if I can't find the answer elsewhere or to correct something. The correction can be a game or a GPU... I was on reddit for 11 years and never posted. At first it was to avoid looking like an idiot, towards end it was to avoid adding to the mess.

 

[ipman]

7 hours? How old is this PC?

Isn't the question. How many drives and files does it have to scan?

So I found the answer, it reports 'small fragments that have matched signatures' during the scan, then at 95% performs MAPS request to Microsoft cloud servers, and discounts 'false positives, fragments or inactive malware'.

I don't think it's a matter of 'how to get people to post on forums'. I think many gamers like to talk about their experiences playing, the games they enjoy, what they'd like to see in future. And yes some people have specific PC related or gaming questions.

It's more about changing the environment on forums, so everyone feels welcome whatever their age/gender, and isn't made to feel stupid for a novice question.

I think like I said, there's often this 'pseudo macho' atmosphere on forums like Steam, where people get over competitive, think having an expensive rig makes them superior, or just because they've spent all their free time gaming that their gaming alter ego is them.