An uninstaller, also called a deinstaller, is a variety of utility software designed to remove other software or parts of it from a computer. It is the opposite of an installer. Uninstallers are useful primarily when software components are installed In multiple directories, or where some software components might be shared between the system being uninstalled and other systems that remain in use.
Spybot – Search & Destroy (S&D) is a spyware and adware removal computer program compatible with Microsoft Windows, which has free and paid versions. Dating back to the first Adwares in 2000, Spybot scans the computer hard disk and/or RAM for malicious software.
Cydoor is a Trojan downloader, Trojan dropper, or Trojan spy. Its first known detection was in January 2018, according to Microsoft and Apple Malware Protection Center.
Norton AntiVirus is an anti-virus or anti-malware software product, developed and distributed by Symantec Corporation since 1991 as part of its Norton family of computer security products. It uses signatures and heuristics to identify viruses. Other features included in it are e-mail spam filtering and phishing protection.
Peter Norton Computing, Inc., was a software company founded by Peter Norton. The first and best known software package it produced was Norton Utilities. Another successful software package was Norton Commander, especially the DOS version. In 1990, the company was acquired by Symantec. The acquired company became a division of Symantec and was renamed Peter Norton Computing Group. Most of Norton Computing's 115 employees were retained.
Norton Utilities is a utility software suite designed to help analyze, configure, optimize and maintain a computer. The current version of Norton Utilities is Norton Utilities 16 for Windows XP/Vista/7/8 was released 26 October 2012.
Norton Internet Security, developed by Symantec Corporation, is a computer program that provides malware prevention and removal during a subscription period and uses signatures and heuristics to identify viruses. Other features included in the product are a personal firewall, email spam filtering, and phishing protection. With the release of the 2015 line in summer 2014, Symantec officially retired Norton Internet Security after 14 years as the chief Norton product. It is superseded by Norton Security, a rechristened adaptation of the Norton 360 security suite.
PC Tools was a collection of software utilities for DOS developed by Central Point Software.
AntiVirus Gold is rogue software developed by ICommerce Solutions S.A. that poses as a legitimate antivirus program. It attempts to persuade users to buy the software by displaying ads and other nagware. It is believed that the name of the program is an attempt at social engineering to confuse people about the legitimate program AVG Anti-Virus.
Norton SystemWorks was a utility software suite by Symantec Corp. It integrates three of Symantec's most popular products, Norton Utilities, Norton CrashGuard and Norton AntiVirus into one program designed to simplify solving common PC issues. Backup software was added later to high-end editions. SystemWorks was innovative in that it combined several applications into an all-in-one software for managing computer health, thus saving significant costs and time often spent on using different unrelated programs. SystemWorks, which was introduced in 1998 has since inspired a host of competitors such as iolo System Mechanic, McAfee Nuts And Bolts, Badosoft First Aid and many others.
Google Pack was a collection of software tools offered by Google to download in a single archive. It was announced at the 2006 Consumer Electronics Show, on January 6. Google Pack was only available for Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows 7.
Security and Maintenance is a component of the Windows NT family of operating systems that monitors the security and maintenance status of the computer. Its monitoring criteria includes optimal operation of antivirus software, personal firewall, as well as the working status of Backup and Restore, Network Access Protection (NAP), User Account Control (UAC), Windows Error Reporting (WER), and Windows Update. It notifies the user of any problem with the monitored criteria, such as when an antivirus program is not up-to-date or is offline.
Norton 360, which was developed by Symantec, is an “all-in-one” security suite that combined online protection with performance tuning. The thing that distinguished this suite from Norton Internet Security is the inclusion of optimization and problem-solving tools.
PC Tools, formerly known as WinGuides.com, was a software company acquired by Symantec in 2008; the new owner eventually discontinued the PC Tools name. Company headquarters were in Australia, with offices in Luxembourg, the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland and Ukraine. The company had previously developed and distributed security and optimization software for the Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows platforms.
MacSweeper is a rogue application that misleads users by exaggerating reports about spyware, adware or viruses on their computer. It is the first known "rogue" application for the Mac OS X operating system. The software was discovered by F-Secure, a Finland-based computer security software company on January 17, 2008.
UpdateStar is a freeware software application providing update information for approximately 1.3 million software programs. Implementing a social computing aspect, the update database is maintained by the users. UpdateStar uses advertising to refinance the free service and shares ad revenue 50/50 with the software authors via their Share program.
Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE) is an antivirus software (AV) that provides protection against different types of malicious software, such as computer viruses, spyware, rootkits, and trojan horses. Prior to version 4.5, MSE ran on Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows 7, but not on Windows 8 and later versions, which have built-in AV components known as Windows Defender. MSE 4.5 and later versions do not run on Windows XP. The license agreement allows home users and small businesses to install and use the product free-of-charge. It replaces Windows Live OneCare, a discontinued commercial subscription-based AV service, and the free Windows Defender, which only protected users from spyware until Windows 8.
Norton LiveUpdate is a utility developed by Symantec Corporation that downloads and installs security updates and software patches. LiveUpdate can only apply updates for a particular version of Norton; it cannot however upgrade a version of Norton to a later version. To upgrade the product to the latest version, one would have to go to a separate website.
Norton, also known as Norton by Symantec, is a division of Symantec, and is based out of Mountain View, California. Since being acquired by the Symantec Corporation in 1990, Norton has offered a variety of products and services related to digital security. In 2014, it was announced that Norton's parent company Symantec would split its business into two units - one focused on security, and one focused on information management, with Norton being placed in the unit focused on security.
