What is Active Security Monitor?
Active Security Monitor is a software program that helps you determine how vulnerable your PC is to computer viruses, spyware and other dangers and learn what steps you can take to improve your protection. And if you have more than one PC in your home network, you can use Active Security Monitor to check the security status of your entire home network.
Your PC's level of protection is represented by a Safety Score, shown on Active Security Monitor's dashboard. Active Security Monitor calculates the Safety Score by evaluating what software is installed on your computers to protect you and your home network against intrusion, viruses, worms, and other forms of internet attacks; also evaluated are some of the security-related configuration settings on all your computers. The higher the Safety Score, the more protected your system.
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Why Do You Need Active Security Monitor?
When your computer is connected to the Internet, it's vulnerable to all manner of intrusions and attack. The Internet can be used to spread computer viruses, worms, spyware, and other threats that can cripple your PC. As long as your PC is connected to the Internet, it is a target for these and other types of attack.
To help protect your system from Internet-based attack, you must install and run a variety of computer protection and security programs -- including firewalls, anti-virus programs, and anti-spyware programs. In addition, you can also configure the settings for your operation system (OS) and web browser to increase your level of protection. Installing the right programs and properly configuring your software will make your computer less vulnerable to attack.
This is where Active Security Monitor comes in. Active Security Monitor automatically evaluates your computer's security configuration, looking for all the programs and some of the settings that are necessary to protect your system from attack. If you don't have the right programs installed, Active Security Monitor tells you. All you have to do is follow the onscreen advice to improve your system's security. The result is reflected in a higher Safety Score, as shown in Active Security Monitor's dashboard.
What Does Active Security Monitor Do?
Active Security Monitor helps take the guesswork out of protecting your PC. It provides you with:
- A simple, easy-to-understand display of your PC's security status -- for all the PCs in your home network
- A Safety Score, similar in concept to a credit score, that indicates how safe your PC is from viruses, spyware, identity theft, and other intrusions and attacks
- A list of recommended products, services, settings, and articles you can use to improve your PC's level of protection
- Messages and alerts about the status of your security software
What Does Active Security Monitor Check For?
Active Security Monitor works by automatically checking your system for the following items:
- Firewall: Active Security Monitor checks to see if firewall software is installed on your computer to help protect against Internet-based attacks.
- Virus Protection: Active Security Monitor checks to see if you have anti-virus software installed on your computer, to help protect against computer viruses and worms that might allow a hacker to take control of your computer.
- Spyware Protection: Active Security Monitor checks to see if you have anti-spyware software installed on your computer, to help guard against software that can track your online activities or record your keystrokes without your knowledge or permission.
- Windows & Browser: Active Security Monitor checks to see if you have the latest Windows updates installed on your system, and if your Internet Explorer browser is properly configured for protection against web-based security threats
- Wireless Security: Active Security Monitor checks to see if you have the most appropriate security settings enabled on your wireless home network, to help prevent unauthorized users from using your Internet connection or viewing files on your home network PCs.
- Peer to Peer: Active Security Monitor checks to see if you have peer to peer file sharing software on your computer because you can download viruses and spyware from these file sharing networks and infect your computer
- PC Utilities: Active Security Monitor checks to see if you have utilities installed to fine-tune your computer for optimal performance and to recover from data loss.
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What Is the Safety Score?
Active Security Monitor automatically checks your system and generates a Safety Score, which is displayed as a number inside a dial on the Active Security Monitor dashboard. Your Safety Score indicates how safe your system is from threats, from a low of 0 to a high of 100. The higher the Safety Score, the more protected your system.
The Safety Score is based on what security software is installed on your computers and on some of the configuration settings in your Windows operating system, web browser, and other software. The Safety Score is not a perfect predictor, but rather a general indicator of how safe your computers and network are.
Because of the large number of available security programs and the potential interactions between the settings in different programs, you should not rely solely on the Security Score without also reviewing the specific issues found on each computer on your home network. No single security program -- including this one -- can substitute for being cautious and taking other precautions while online.
How Is the Safety Score Calculated?
The Safety Score for your computer is calculated by evaluating six categories of threat protection:
- Virus protection
- Spyware protection
- Firewall protection
- Operating system updates
- Web browser settings
- Wireless security settings
The presences or absence of peer-to-peer file sharing software and PC optimization utilities are not used to calculate the Safety Score.
System Requirements
- Operating systems supported: Windows 2000, Windows XP Home, Windows XP Professional
- Browsers supported: Internet Explorer 5.0 or higher
- Download size: less than 5MB
Your safety information will not be used or sold to third parties. Please read privacy policy for more information.
To uninstall Active Security Monitor:
- Go to All Programs
- Click on Active Security Monitor
- Select Uninstall Active Security Monitor