Anti-malware software

As malware attacks become more frequent, attention has begun to shift from viruses and spyware protection, to malware protection, and programs have been developed to specifically combat them.

Anti-malware programs can combat malware in two ways: Real-time protection from malware works identically to real-time anti-virus protection: the software scans disk files at download time, and blocks the activity of components known to represent malware. In some cases, it may also intercept attempts to install start-up items or to modify browser settings. Because many malware components are installed as a result of browser exploits or user error, using security software (some of which are anti-malware, though many are not) to "sandbox" browsers (essentially babysit the user and their browser) can also be effective to help restrict any damage done.
 * 1) They can provide real time protection against the installation of malware software on a computer. This type of spyware protection works the same way as that of anti-virus protection in that the anti-malware software scans all incoming network data for malware software and blocks any threats it comes across.
 * 2) Anti-malware software programs can be used solely for detection and removal of malware software that has already been installed onto a computer. This type of anti-malware software scans the contents of the windows registry, operating system files, and installed programs on a computer and will provide a list of any threats found, allowing the user to choose what which files to delete or keep, or compare this list to a list of known malware components, removing files which match.