New security tools appear online every day; can you tell if they are useful programs or fraudulent applications? Advertising techniques used by rogue programs might be even more convincing than advertisements of real security tools. How can you recognize a scam?
1. It is installed without your permission.
If a program is installed without your consent, it indicates either a computer parasite or bad attitude of the creators of the program. Regular software can t magically appear on a machine without your permission. However, not every program is fraudulent and malicious if it is installed without user s agreement. Software already installed on a computer may offer new additional tools and they may even install those new products automatically. These actions are usually defined in settings of the program and in the license agreement.
2. Its reputation online is terrible.
Doing a little research online is always worth the time spent. If the program is reputable, you will find reviews on at least several different websites. And if the program is not genuine, most of the results you find will advice how to delete the software. Unfortunately, some of the rogue programs are advertised on fraudulent websites in order to trick people into buying the fake security tools.
3. The official website is poorly built and lacks basic information.
Running a website doesn t cost much and it s not as difficult as it may seem to be. This is the reason why there are plenty of fraudulent web sources; however, creating a functional website takes much efforts and time and money. Scammers rarely bother to spend time and money for websites that get closed and banned in a week; this can help you to recognize a fraud.
If the official website of software is full of logic mistakes and spelling mistakes, it shouldn t be trusted. Lack of contact details and basic information about a company is also a symptom of a phishy deal.
Learn more: How to recognize a rogue website?
Learn more: Signs of browser hijacker infection.
4. The payment website is suspicious.
There are plenty of websites dedicated to payment but the most majority of them are not reputable. If you decide to purchase a license of new software, make sure you know what kind of payment system is used. If you have never heard about certain payment system before, it s better to back off. If you pay for something via fraudulent website, you lose the money, your online banking account and it may even lead to identity theft. If the payment system is reputable, you can trust the software too since reputable companies don t cooperate with scammers.
If the payment page is secured, the address bar should be yellow on the most popular web browsers. There should also be a closed padlock icon next to the address of the website.
5. Performance of the program is poor.
If the program doesn t do a thing, why should you pay for it? The majority of fake security applications slow down a computer considerably because they use lots of system resources but they don t perform any actions. If the program is only capable of loading pop-ups it s most likely not a security tool.
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