Technology Tips – Published March 2017 in the Guide and Digest
By Don Trauger – Kennett
Malwarebytes Anti-Malware has recently introduced a new version of its venerable anti-malware offering. It’s available at malwarebytes.com. Click the Free Download button to download it. It comes with a 14 day free trial of it’s premium features including anti ransomware protection. I recommend to select the free version. More on this shortly. Double click the mb3-setup-consumer file in your Downloads folder to install it. Accept the agreement and continue to select “Next” through the installation. When you get to “Install” click it. Close out the little pop-up window that shows Protection Layers Turned Off. Click “Finish” in the install window. Click “Learn More” or “Close” in the introductory window. You may see a reference to the fact that this new version can replace your anti-virus. I will strongly recommend that you do not consider this. If you have an earlier version of Malwarebytes installed, this new version will take its place.
Although Malwarebytes comes with the 14 day free trial, I recommend that you select the free version. You can hold off for awhile to evaluate whether or not the paid version is right for you. To select the free version click Settings, My Account and click “Deactivate License”.
During the free 14 day trial updates are performed automatically. After that, or if you have deactivated the license, updating Malwarebytes free is manual. Click the up chevron on the Taskbar (Windows 10) and click the blue “M”. Click “Check for Updates”. When Malwarebytes opens, click the circular arrow in Scan Status. To update the program you can also click the Desktop Malwarebytes icon to perform the update as described above. Make sure that the program Updates are “Current” under Scan Status before clicking the Scan Now button to perform a system scan. Scanning should be done weekly or as needed.
Other program options can be found when you click Settings and by clicking the tabs at the top. However, I find that the factory settings are appropriate for most users.
AdwCleaner, another anti-malware product, is a great compliment to Malwarebytes. It’s good to have another asessment tool on your system and it’s also available from Malwarebytes. Click here to download it or copy the link to your browser. https://www.malwarebytes.com/adwcleaner/. Double click the download to open it then click Scan. Follow any screen prompts. There is no formal installation.
Please come to the PC Club meetings. We’ll show you how to install and run Malwarebytes and AdwCleaner. Also, there will be time for your general questions. We meet on the 3rd Tuesday of each month at 7 PM in the Ardmore room of the Community Center.