Zorton XP/Vista/Win 7/Win 8 Antivirus 2014

Posted: November 19, 2014

Threat Metric

The Threat Meter is a malware assessment that SpywareRemove.com's research team is able to give every identifiable malware threat. Our Threat Meter includes several criteria based off of specific malware threats to value their severity, reach and volume. The Threat Meter is able to give you a numerical breakdown of each threat's initial Threat Level, Detection Count, Volume Count, Trend Path and Percentage Impact. The overall ranking of each threat in the Threat Meter is a basic breakdown of how all threats are ranked within our own extensive malware database. The scoring for each specific malware threat can be easily compared to other emerging threats to draw a contrast in its particular severity. The Threat Meter is a useful tool in the endeavor of seeking a solution to remove a threat or pursue additional analytical research for all types of computer users.

The following fields listed on the Threat Meter containing a specific value, are explained in detail below:

Threat Level: The threat level scale goes from 1 to 10 where 10 is the highest level of severity and 1 is the lowest level of severity. Each specific level is relative to the threat's consistent assessed behaviors collected from SpyHunter's risk assessment model.

Detection Count: The collective number of confirmed and suspected cases of a particular malware threat. The detection count is calculated from infected PCs retrieved from diagnostic and scan log reports generated by SpyHunter.

Volume Count: Similar to the detection count, the Volume Count is specifically based on the number of confirmed and suspected threats infecting systems on a daily basis. High volume counts usually represent a popular threat but may or may not have infected a large number of systems. High detection count threats could lay dormant and have a low volume count. Criteria for Volume Count is relative to a daily detection count.

Trend Path: The Trend Path, utilizing an up arrow, down arrow or equal symbol, represents the level of recent movement of a particular threat. Up arrows represent an increase, down arrows represent a decline and the equal symbol represent no change to a threat's recent movement.

% Impact (Last 7 Days): This demonstrates a 7-day period change in the frequency of a malware threat infecting PCs. The percentage impact correlates directly to the current Trend Path to determine a rise or decline in the percentage.

Threat Level:	10/10
Infected PCs:	19

First Seen:	November 19, 2014
Last Seen:	April 1, 2020
OS(es) Affected:	Windows

Zorton Antivirus 2014 is a rogue anti-malware product cloned from similar members of the FakeRean family of scamware. As with previous threats from that group, Zorton XP/Vista/Win 7/Win 8 Antivirus 2014 may modify its name to correspond to your operating system, disable other programs and display fraudulent security alerts. Although Zorton Antivirus 2014 may resemble a legitimate anti-malware scanner, malware researchers heavily advise removing Zorton Antivirus 2014 as an immediate threat to your PC.

An Appraisal of a Modern Anti-Virus Hoax

The FakeRean series of rogue anti-virus, anti-malware and anti-spyware software has undergone some modest payload modifications over time. However, FakeRean primarily is known for the breadth of its changes in brand names and scanner skins, which now include all variants of Zorton Antivirus 2014. This singular PC threat changes its name to match the version of Windows that corresponds to the infected machine, such as Zorton Vista Antivirus 2014. Like other FakeRean members, Zorton Antivirus 2014 also includes an updated year name – despite its lacking of any previous annual versions.

Some members of the FakeRean family, similar to Zorton Antivirus 2014, include Antivirus 2008 Pro, Antivirus XP 2008, Windows Antivirus 2008, Vista Antivirus 2008, PC Clean Pro, Antivirus Pro 2009, Rogue.Vista Antivirus 2008, AntiSpy Safeguard, ThinkPoint, Spyware Protection 2010, Internet Antivirus 2011, Palladium Pro, XP Anti-Virus 2011, CleanThis, XP Security 2012, XP Home Security 2012 and AntiVirus PRO 2015.

Zorton Antivirus 2014 imitates system scans that deliver predetermined results, which always include detections of various threats, such as backdoor Trojans and worms. These threats may be identified according to legitimate threat-naming terminology as determined by the PC security industry. However, Zorton Antivirus 2014 does not detect real infections or lapses in your computer's security. You also may see equally inaccurate pop-up warnings alerting you to various live attacks.

These fake security features are designed to force the PC's user to pay for Zorton Antivirus 2014's registration, which Zorton Antivirus 2014 claims will allow Zorton Antivirus 2014 to remove all (nonexistent) threats.

Dealing with Fraudulent Security Products that Disable Your Real Ones

Zorton Antivirus 2014 and other FakeRean-based rogue AV programs are notable for their program-blocking functions. Some security programs may be disabled through the Registry while other programs may be terminated from memory immediately. Common ways of bypassing these attacks include rebooting in Safe Mode and booting from a safe, removable hard drive. After disabling Zorton Antivirus 2014 by any necessary means, anti-malware products should be used to delete Zorton Antivirus 2014 from your computer without purchasing its registration.

Zorton Antivirus 2014 sometimes can be installed by other threats, including Trojans with general file-downloading functions. Threatening Web pages that use corrupted scripts also are a popular means of distribution rogue anti-virus products, both from Zorton Antivirus 2014's family and others, including Winwebsec and FakeAV. Unsurprisingly, malware analysts emphasize browser-oriented security features and software to prevent such attacks.

Technical Details

File System Modifications

Tutorials: If you wish to learn how to remove malware components manually, you can read the tutorials on how to find malware, kill unwanted processes, remove malicious DLLs and delete other harmful files. Always be sure to back up your PC before making any changes.

The following files were created in the system:

file.exe

File name: file.exe
Size: 82.43 KB (82432 bytes)
MD5: c7ca0a5924ecca3871ffb390d35aeb38
Detection count: 9
File type: Executable File
Mime Type: unknown/exe
Group: Malware file
Last Updated: April 1, 2020