Malwarebytes is accusing China-based computer security firm IObit of intellectual property theft, but IObit denied the allegations and said there were problems with its malware submission site.
Malwarebytes claims IObit stole from its database of signatures of malicious applications that its software uses for detecting malware on customer computers.
Malwarebytes discovered that IObit's Security 360 free anti-malware software was flagging a specific key generator piece of code for Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware software and using the same naming scheme, which includes the phrase "Don't Steal Our Software," according to a blog post on the Malwarebytes.org site.
This screen shot shows IObit's product uses the same naming scheme as Malwarebytes.org.
(Credit: Malwarebytes.org)After finding additional evidence, Malwarebytes conducted a test and added fake definitions for a fake rogue application to its database of malware. Within two weeks, IObit was detecting the fake files and using "almost exactly" the fake names, Malwarebytes said.
"We soon became convinced that this was not a mistake, it was not a coincidence, it was not an isolated event, and it persisted presently in their current database," the blog post says. "They are using both our database and our database format exactly."
Malwarebytes, which said it uncovered evidence that IObit may have stolen proprietary databases of other security vendors as well, said it plans to pursue legal action against IObit
IObit denied the allegations, saying it was a "mistake," and accused Malwarebytes of spreading "malicious rumors."IObit said it would soon release a legal letter an explanation about the technical aspects that proves its case. In the meantime, IObit temporarily deleted all disputed items in its database to avoid "dispute and possible problems" and disabled its malware submission page, the company said in a blog post.
Basically, someone submitted samples with the name used by another vendor, the post says.
"Unfortunately, IObit database analyzer carelessly used the names provided by the submission. This mistake can be understood because it is very normal--Many enthusiastic IObit users find there are samples missed by IObit Security 360 but detected by other anti-malware products, then they would submit these samples to us and provide names defined by other anti-malware vendors."
"There are holes and problems with IObit malware submission procedure and database management," the post concluded.
Malwarebyte's found that IObit's product detected the fake malware Malwarebytes put in its database as a test.
(Credit: Malwarebytes.org)IOBit 360 is a relative newcomer on the antimalware scene, although the Chinese publisher is known for making solid utility software such as Smart Defrag. It's a fast and welterweight freeware utility for detecting and removing malware, and plugging your system's security holes before they can been exploited. The new improvements in version 1.10 include integration with the Windows 7 security center, a new feature that creates a USB key-portable version, a toolbar, and scan engine tweaks.
IOBit 360
(Credit: Screenshot by Seth Rosenblatt/CNET)If you're unfamiliar with the program, it's fairly simple to figure out and use. The interface has large left navigation icons with simple labels that won't confuse novices, while the tools menu offers some useful features that more advanced users are sure to appreciate.
The Overview tab is the main window and it contains links for immediate Smart scans, definition file updates, a "security analysis"--which evaluates potential exploits in your system and includes Windows security patches--and a status update window. This tells you whether your real-time protection, automatic scans and updates, and heuristic-based scans are on or off. Automatic scans and updates, and scheduled scans, are restricted to the paid upgrade, which is currently being offered on sale for $19.95. It's usually $29.95.
The Scan tab lets you initiate a Smart scan, a Full scan, or a Custom scan, and the Protection tab lets you toggle your real-time protection status. It seems a bit odd that a user would want the separate controls that the program offers for "known malware" and "unknown threats," but you can toggle them independently.
A running scan that wound up taking about six minutes to finish.
(Credit: Screenshot by Seth Rosenblatt/CNET)The Tools tab is what makes IOBit 360 comparable to others in its class, giving you seven useful system security tools. There's a Hijack scan for power users, a Security Holes scan, a Passive Defense that disables cookies in Firefox and Internet Explorer, and ActiveX in IE, and an Unlock and Delete tool for getting rid of files your system thinks are in use. This feature is slightly less important in Windows 7, which will tell you when you encounter a locked file where it lives, but the unlocking and deletion features are definitely useful.
There's a Privacy Sweeper that will clean not just cookies and cache but saved forms, download history, and other Internet traces in all the major browsers it detected on my system, including Firefox, Internet Explorer, Google Chrome, Opera, and Safari, but the sweeper will also check utilities such as archival tools, multimedia players, and other applications that regularly ping the Internet. These days, that's nearly everything.
Annoyingly, the PC Tuneup option takes you to the download page for another IOBit program, but users on the go will like that you can create a custom portable version, launchable from a USB key. IOBit 360 eats about 50MB of RAM when idle, with a Smart scan taking about 6 minutes and a full scan finishing in 45 minutes, making this one of the fastest in its class. I didn't notice any system lags while running it, and it didn't detect any malware on my system, although it did point out tracking cookies from multiple browsers. Third-party efficacy tests haven't yet been performed against high-performing competitors such as Ad-Aware or Malwarebytes, but IOBit is proving that the antimalware tool without antivirus isn't dead--yet.
(Credit:
CNET Networks)
One of the remedies I often recommend for a sluggish system is to defrag the hard drive. For those unfamiliar with the term, defragging involves reorganizing your hard disk by placing files closer together so your operating system can find them more quickly. Your Windows operating system comes with a disk defrag utility of its own, but anyone who has ever used it knows it takes an unbearably long time to do the job. Fortunately there are excellent free defrag utilities you can download to make your system run better immediately.
An intuitive interface makes it easy for anyone to defrag a hard drive.
(Credit: CNET Networks)One of my most recommended free defrag apps is Auslogics Disk Defrag, but another program which was recently released might be even better. IOBit's Smart Defrag quickly analyzes your hard drive for fragments and sets to work piecing them back together. It can defrag several drives including partitions simultaneously. It can also optimize file locations and free space to get the best performance out of your hard drive, though this process takes a bit longer. The full scan time for my test machine's 75GB hard drive (without optimization) took just over 4 minutes. While Auslogics Disk Defrag runs in about the same amount of time, it's the added options of Smart Defrag that might make it your No. 1 defrag utility.
Hit the scheduling button to set up when you want Smart Defrag to do its dirty work.
(Credit: CNET Networks)Smart Defrag lets you set up a schedule for defragging your hard drive so you'll never forget to run it. You can set it up to defrag at a certain time every day, every week, every two weeks, or at any interval you want. You also can have it defrag your hard drive every time you log in to your system or even have it set to autodefrag when your computer is otherwise idle. While it remains active in your system tray (unlike Auslogics), the footprint is small and doesn't significantly interfere with other processes.
Enable autodefrag to make sure your computer is always running at peak performance.
(Credit: CNET Networks)One option, which seems small but has long been on my wish list for Auslogics Disk Defrag, is the ability to have Smart Defrag shut down my computer when it's finished. My favorite time to turn on a defrag utility on my home gaming machine is right before going to sleep, and with the autoshutdown feature, I don't have to worry about leaving my system running over night.
Smart Defrag is a free program, but the developer asks for donations if you like the software. My guess is, once you try it out, you might think a few bucks is worth your time for this excellent utility.
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