Question I Don't See the Point of Malwarebytes Anymore

[accesscpu_]

I've been testing the best virus scanners for my new system. I have a single file I have confirmed is infected with a virus, that I keep zipped and use for testing purposes. When I place it in various places of several of my internal hard drives, Bitdefender always drills down finds it no problem.

I just did a full system scan and a contextual scan with Malwarebytes Pro that I purchased (with scanning within archives enabled) and it doesn't see it. But it did falsely mark several OK programs as "Potentially Unwanted."

I only use Malwarebytes for on-demand contextual scanning (not real-time protection). But if it won't see this file I'm trying to get it to find, of what use is this program anymore?

Would like to hear thoughts.

 

[satrow]

Malwarebytes is not an antivirus, it doesn't scan for viruses - there are plenty of alts that claim to do that, some do a pretty good job of it as well.

W10/11 and their default settings, firewalls and security software are doing a much better job of keeping the lazy bad guys out than previous versions did.

What Malwarebytes does is attempt to trace and remove most of the non-viral nuisance software and .exe files, also some files that may be useful to techs but can be potential problems for others (Hey, did you know that xyz was in this folder? Um, yes, I put it there for checking and troubleshooting abc.) or No, I've no idea where that came from).

If you have general malware/spyware issues that show up and are difficult to track and remove (also prevent!) then Malwarebytes is still one of the better tools for this job.

They're a few of my thoughts but another is that you really should be using the Malwarebytes site to research what their software is for, rather than knee-jerk downloading or buying software that isn't designed for what you're trying to use it for and then complaining on a more general tech site.

 

[hotaru.hino]

I just did a full system scan and a contextual scan with Malwarebytes Pro that I purchased (with scanning within archives enabled) and it doesn't see it. But it did falsely mark several OK programs as "Potentially Unwanted."

If you're doing this on installers of an app, they may contain so-called Potentially Unwanted Programs or PUPs. i.e., the crapware that gets included on installers.

But also, the definition of "potentially unwanted" is subjective. You may find the program OK, but Malwarebytes may have determined most people don't want it.

I only use Malwarebytes for on-demand contextual scanning (not real-time protection). But if it won't see this file I'm trying to get it to find, of what use is this program anymore?

Would like to hear thoughts.

Using a single test file to prove the validity of an anti-malware scanner I feel is not really a great test. You have to consider the whole of what protection it provides and the amount of malware that's floating around on the internet. You might find a file out there that Bitdefender misses, but Malwarebytes flags.

It's like saying you can prove the effectiveness of local law enforcement because they caught a single speeder or shoplifter.