In the large category of malware, there are not only computer viruses, but many other dangerous objects that can sneak into computers and work on behalf of its creator. Unfortunately, no antivirus can fully protect computers, unless you accept a strong limitation on the freedom to use that computer. However, if you want full freedom, you also need to be very careful and always be on the lookout for any suspicious behavior that suggests the presence of malware. Hijack Hunter is a very small and very useful special free NoVirusThanks program that scans your Windows system more thoroughly than any antivirus to detect any suspicious behavior on your computer. Without going into technical details, the analysis of Hijack Hunter does not go to find viruses on the basis of regular updates as normal antivirus do, but goes to check the hidden areas of the system to find suspicious elements based on name and behavior.
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Hijack Hunter is a portable program that requires no installation and should only be launched to start the scan. This can last around 15 minutes and needs to precisely check the following activities and locations : processes, loaded modules, registry startups, autorun folders, TCPIP names, Internet Explorer settings, programs and ports enabled in Windows Firewall, System Hijack, executable in the Temp folder, executable in suspicious folders, Autorun.ini, Unknown files with .SYS extension, Inaccessible files, Files created / modified 15 days ago.
Once the scan is complete, the program saves a report and displays the list of modules, running processes, startup items, hosts file, boot file, BHO information (browser components) etc. The most delicate elements can be managed from the program interface, where you can remove BHO or automatic start elements by pressing on them with the right mouse button.
Like other similar tools (like Hijackthis), Hijack Hunter leaves the user the task of understanding if those elements are actually dangerous or not by studying the detailed report.
Hijack Hunter is not only an external object scanner, but also checks the system settings giving the possibility to correct any security holes or problems caused by viruses. In the Restorer tab, for example, it will be possible to reactivate the basic functions of the computer, such as the Registry Editor, the Windows Firewall, the safe mode, the Task Manager and other options. I want to clarify that the files listed in the scan report may not necessarily be malware so you should not remove them immediately without having studied and analyzed them.
To summarize, Hijack Hunter is one of those programs that is better to always keep on your computer, to be run once in a while to do a security check and be sure that there are no strange activities on your computer. It is not for beginners in the sense that, having a very minimal interface, it does not provide many instructions for use and understanding.
Alternatively, there is also another very useful program to discover unknown malware, to prevent the PC from consuming memory unnecessarily and to make it turn on and load faster, the old but still good WinPatrol .
WinPatrol is a historical program for Windows, has existed for many years and continues to be updated and useful even in its free version. The latest version of WinPatrol is from 2017 and is compatible with Windows 10, Windows 7 and Windows 8 . Although the commercial paid version has some very useful functions, the free version is perfectly functional and complete for a global control of what is happening on the computer and to protect it from any malicious software or files. WinPatrol is very light, you can download it in Italian (on the download page, scroll down) and it looks a lot like another famous program like Autoruns which is used to control the automatic start-up items very useful if Windows starts slowly. Compared to Autoruns, however, WinPatrol offers more complete control over computer activity and, above all, it is much easier to use and understand.
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