Detail Pane
.................................................................................................................................................
9
Dashboard
............................................................................................................................
10
Status Pane
...............................................................................................................................................
10
Real–Time
Protection..............................................................................................................................
11
Settings
..............................................................................................................................................................................
11
Scan Status
................................................................................................................................................
11
View Scan Reports
..........................................................................................................................................................
11
Schedule a
Scan...............................................................................................................................................................
11
Check for Updates
..........................................................................................................................................................
11
Help
.....................................................................................................................................................................................
11
Protection History
...................................................................................................................................
11
Scan
........................................................................................................................................
12
Threat Scan
...............................................................................................................................................
12
Custom Scan
............................................................................................................................................
13
Custom Scanning
Options............................................................................................................................................
13
Potentially Unwanted Programs/Modifications
.....................................................................................................
13
Folders to be Scanned
...................................................................................................................................................
13
Hyper Scan
...............................................................................................................................................
14
Scan Schedules
.......................................................................................................................................
14
Basic Mode
........................................................................................................................................................................
15
Advanced Mode
..............................................................................................................................................................
15
Advanced Scan Options
................................................................................................................................................
16
Watching Scan Progress
......................................................................................................................
16
Scan Results
.............................................................................................................................................
17
Scan Summary
.........................................................................................................................................
18
Quarantine
............................................................................................................................
21
Reports
..................................................................................................................................
22
Viewing or Deleting Logs
....................................................................................................................
24
Settings
.................................................................................................................................
25
Application Settings
..............................................................................................................................
25
Application Updates
......................................................................................................................................................
26
Notifications
.....................................................................................................................................................................
26
Impact of Scans on System
.........................................................................................................................................
26
Windows Context Menus
.............................................................................................................................................
26
Display Language
...........................................................................................................................................................
26
Event Log
Data................................................................................................................................................................
26
Proxy Server
.....................................................................................................................................................................
26
User Access
......................................................................................................................................................................
27
Windows Action Center
...............................................................................................................................................
28
Beta Application Updates
............................................................................................................................................
28
Usage and Threat Statistics
.........................................................................................................................................
28
Protection
................................................................................................................................................
29
Real–Time Protection
....................................................................................................................................................
29
Scan Options
....................................................................................................................................................................
31
Potential Threats
............................................................................................................................................................
32
Updates
.............................................................................................................................................................................
32
Startup Options
..............................................................................................................................................................
33
Automatic Quarantine
..................................................................................................................................................
33
Scan Schedule
........................................................................................................................................
33
Exclusions
.................................................................................................................................................
34
Add Exclusion
..................................................................................................................................................................
34
My Account
.............................................................................................................................................
35
About
........................................................................................................................................................
36
Appendix A: Notification Window Examples
............................................................. 37
Introduction
Malwarebytes for Windows (“Malwarebytes”) is an "AV replacement." It
is not an AV. It does not incorporate the same old engine
for file–infectors and other malware that you find in a typical AV or
Internet security suite, the large and inefficient library of
signatures, or the bloatware features which are becoming more prevalent.
You don't need to pay for a traditional AV anymore! At Malwarebytes,
we have always approached things differently and, as many
people know based on their own positive experience with Malwarebytes
finding and remediating malware that gets past AVs, we
know a thing or two about zero–day malware and their infection
tactics. We have always believed that no one product can do it
all, and the free AV that comes with modern operating systems, in
conjunction with Malwarebytes is all you will ever need.
In today's modern threat world, bad guys have learned how to evade AV
protection, making it more important than ever before
to be able to disrupt attacks in as many different stages of the attack
chain as possible. Malwarebytes, layered with the AV (which
is the default mode) or as your stand–alone defense, is the most effective
approach against modern threats. And if all else fails,
you need the best remediation technology available.
Malwarebytes has been engineered to provide the most effective layered
approach of prevention, detection and remediation
technologies:
1. Application hardening, to make them more resilient against
attacks.
2. Anti–exploit technology, to shield applications from vulnerability
exploits (currently one of the top infection vectors).
3. Application Behavior Enforcement, an advanced and signature–less
technology which prevents common infection
vectors (e.g. web & email based social engineering).
4. Anti–ransomware, a signature–less technology designed to
behaviorally detect ransomware.
5. Revamped Anti–Malware and Web Blocking engines, offering more
aggressive detection techniques.
6. Hardened and modular architecture design, allowing seamless
integration of new detection and protection technologies
in the future.
7. Highly effective as always in malware remediation, an often
overlooked part of the protection stack.
8. Ability to run as primary protection (no AV) or secondary
protection (alongside existing AV).
9. Engineered to be our next corporate endpoint client, providing
major improvements to our endpoint management
capabilities and new enterprise–focused offerings
10. Last but not least, our Research Team has been growing and
adapting lately, with notable additions to the lineup from
JRT and AdwCleaner, our new aggressive stance against PUPs, as well
as new R&D technologies which we will be
unveiling shortly.
Welcome to the Malwarebytes User Guide!
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 1
What’s New in Malwarebytes for Windows
This version of Malwarebytes contains many improvements and bug
fixes. Following is a list of changes.
Performance/protective capability
• Improved remediation for hijacked shortcuts
• Continued improvements to overall protection, detection and
remediation
Usability
• Device Name now syncs to the Malwarebytes My Account portal for
users on the paid version
• Improved accessibility features for the Notification Center
• Added custom messages designed to highlight the value of
Malwarebytes protection and help it remain free
Stability/issues fixed
• Fixed problem when cutting / pasting files with anti–ransomware
enabled
• Fixed problem where USB stick would not eject properly with
anti–ransomware enabled
• Fixed a service crash related to self–protection
• Fixed a blue screen crash related to Web Protection
• Addressed other miscellaneous defects
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 2
System Requirements
Following are minimum requirements for a computer system on which
Malwarebytes may be installed. Please note that these
requirements do not include any other functionality that the computer is
responsible for.
• Operating System: Windows 10, Windows 8.1, Windows 8, Windows 7,
Windows Vista (Service Pack 1 or later), Windows
XP (Service Pack 3 or later, 32–bit only)
PLEASE NOTE: Anti–ransomware protection is not supported for Windows
XP or Windows Vista, due to architectural
constraints.
• CPU: 800 MHz or faster, with SSE2 technology. This
includes most modern Intel x86 processors as well as AMD’s Athlon
64, Sempron 64, Turion 64 and Phenom CPU families. Please refer
to the following page for further information:
• RAM: 2048 MB (64–bit OS), 1024 MB (32–bit OS, except 256 MB
for Windows XP)
• Free Disk Space: 250 MB
• Recommended Screen Resolution: 1024x768 or higher
• Active Internet Connection
WARNING: If you are upgrading from Malwarebytes Anti–Malware version 2.x
and have enabled Malwarebytes’ self–protection
feature, please disable it prior to initiating the upgrade. It
prevents the Malwarebytes installation program from doing its job.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 3
Installation
To begin the installation, double–click on the Malwarebytes installation
file which you downloaded. If you are installing
Malwarebytes on a Windows version newer than Windows XP, a Windows dialog
box will be presented in the middle of your screen,
labeled User Account Control. Verify that the publisher is listed as
Malwarebytes Corporation and click Yes. This Windows security
feature assures limited application capabilities unless and until you
authorize higher capabilities. Installation will begin once this
has been approved. The installation program guides you and allows you
to provide alternate information if you do not wish to
accept defaults. Each screen also allows you to terminate
installation if you do not wish to continue.
Free, Premium Trial or Premium?
Before you begin, we want to let you know that throughout this guide, you
will see references to the Free, Premium Trial, and
Premium versions of Malwarebytes. This is likely unfamiliar territory
for new Malwarebytes users. The following link provides a
basic rundown on the differences between the Free and Premium versions of
Malwarebytes.
These differences are also shown in the Malwarebytes interface immediately
after it has been installed. See below….
The Premium Trial is a 14–day opportunity to use the Premium version of
the program, and to see if it is better suited to your needs.
The Premium Trial is available at no cost, but you can only use it one time
for each version of Malwarebytes. The Premium Trial is
automatically started during installation. Once installed, the
program provides options to convert from Free to Premium, and from
Premium Trial to Premium.
If you elect to use the Premium Trial and do not wish to purchase a Premium
subscription at the end of the trial, your Malwarebytes
program will revert to Free mode. The only differences will be that
the added features enabled by the trial will cease to function.
All other functionality remains unchanged.
If you are a new Malwarebytes user, or are a free/Premium Trial user
upgrading to this version, you will be alerted that a scan has
not been run. Click Scan Now and Malwarebytes will run a scan for
you. After the scan (and cleanup, if needed) has been
completed, you will see the user interface as shown below.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 4
Please take note of the Why Premium button in the lower left corner.
Click that button for a brief slide show that describes the
differences between Free and Premium modes. While Malwarebytes does
an effective job of disinfecting your computer after an
attack, there is no replacement for preventing the attack from ever
happening.
If you have already purchased a license, you may wish to activate your copy
of Malwarebytes at this time. You can do that now (or
at any time) by clicking the Activate License button at the top right
portion of the Malwarebytes user interface.
Activation
Malwarebytes is available for users of any modern Windows client to
download and install at no cost. You can also purchase an
annual subscription, which entitles you to take advantage of real–time
protection, scan/update scheduling and access policies. If
no license has been installed into the product, the blue title bar at the
top of the screen will show two buttons, Activate License
and Upgrade Now. When clicked, Upgrade Now launches a browser window
which opens to the Malwarebytes web site
pricing/purchase page. Your license information will be in an email
sent to you by Malwarebytes at the time of purchase. Locate
your license information and click the Activate License button. You
will then see the following screen.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 5
Please note the checkbox and the words “My license came with a License
ID.” If you are using our “old style” license, you will also
need to check that box and enter your License ID along with your Key.
Please note: You must be online with an active Internet connection in
order to successfully activate your Premium license.
The construction of the Key is different, so make sure that you choose the
right screen for entering your license information based
on whether you have an ID and Key, or just a Key. After entering your
license information, click the Activate License button. Your
Malwarebytes screen will refresh, as shown below.
Please note that the two license–related links in the Menu Bar have been
replaced by a link called My Account. Also note that the
banner has changed from Malwarebytes Premium Trial to Malwarebytes Premium.
A Final Word about Administrative Rights
If you installed Malwarebytes from a downloaded installation file, you
automatically started a Premium Trial, and were offered the
capability to activate the Premium features if you had purchased an annual
subscription. You may have decided to wait until later.
If that is the case, please remember that you should be logged in to
Windows as an Administrator before doing either of those
tasks.
We will go into much more detail about the features of Malwarebytes, but
before doing that, we should introduce you to the
Malwarebytes user interface.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 6
Screen Layout
The Malwarebytes program interface is designed around a screen layout which
is simplified and uncluttered. We want to make it
easy for you to configure the program to serve your needs, and we hope this
layout helps to do that. The screenshot below shows
the Dashboard – the screen you see when Malwarebytes is launched for the
first time.
Let's talk about the primary elements which make up our user interface.
Menu Bar
The Menu Bar is displayed at the top of the screen at all times. There are
two buttons in the Menu Bar. A description for both
follows.
My Account
This button will take you to the setting options to manage your
Malwarebytes subscription(s) and license(s). For more information,
please refer to pages 35–36 of this guide.
Notification Center
The Notification Center provides a convenient location to view recent
notifications generated by Malwarebytes. Clicking the icon
will show the 5 most recent notifications. You may scroll down to view up
to 25 notifications by using your mouse wheel. You can
view additional details for each notification by clicking it – Malwarebytes
will bring you to the relevant screen.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 7
Menu Pane
The Menu Pane contains the main program options, which will be discussed in
detail in this guide. They consist of:
• Dashboard: What you see here. While the exact details change over
time, the look is consistent.
• Scan: Select the type of scan you wish to run, run it, and view the
results.
• Quarantine: Delete or restore threats which have been detected by
program scans.
• Reports: View reports related to program operation, threats which
have been detected, and threats which have been
removed.
• Settings: Configure every aspect of Malwarebytes, so that it can
protect you efficiently.
In addition, there are settings for Account information. While in
Premium Trial mode, options are present to buy a Premium
subscription and to Activate the program. Once you have purchased a
subscription, those two options will revert to a single option
which handles details of your account. More on those later.
Status/Option Pane
When the Dashboard is selected from the Menu Pane, the center of the screen
is filled with the Status Pane. It is designed to give
you quick information that tells you whether there is anything for you to
be concerned about. When the Dashboard is selected,
the Detail Pane is also displayed. More on that momentarily.
When any menu option other than the Dashboard is selected, all space except
the space used by the Menu Pane is allocated to the
selected menu option. This provides sufficient room for information
pertaining to any menu option to be cleanly displayed.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 8
Detail Pane
The Detail Pane is shown only when the Dashboard is selected. It
shows information on protection options, protection updates,
and detail pertaining to the most recent scan. This information is
shown on other screen displays as part of the menu option
selected by the user, but are all displayed here for quick recognition.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 9
Dashboard
Each time Malwarebytes is launched, the first page visible to the user is
the Dashboard. It provides program status, and acts as a
launch pad for all program operations. A screenshot of the user
interface – featuring the Dashboard – is shown below for reference.
Status Pane
The main area of the screen is the Status Pane, providing current system
status. Within the Main Window, the first item displayed
is the Status Banner. This banner displays a status message along
with an icon, whose color is based on program status. The color
is meant to alert the user to conditions which may require
intervention. Colors used are similar to traffic stop signals – green
simply
indicates a good status; orange indicates a warning of a condition which
may become more severe over time; red indicates that
your immediate attention is needed. Following is a full list of
status messages. If a recommended method of correcting the
problem is immediately available, it will appear as a functional button on
the banner itself.
• Color: green (no problem)
o Awesome! You’re protected. (Premium mode and Premium Trial modes
which will expire more than 7 days in
the future)
o You’re running Malwarebytes Free. (free mode only)
• Color: orange (non–critical problem)
o You’re not fully protected.
o Your Protection Updates are not current.
o Your program version is out of date
o Your Premium Trial ends in <x> days. (trial expiring in 3–7
days)
o Renew to avoid losing protection against malware, bad websites, and
other threats
• Color: red (critical problem)
o Your Premium Trial ends in <x> days. (trial expiring in 0–3
days)
o Your trial has expired
o Renew to avoid losing protection against malware, bad websites, and
other threats
o We were unable to renew your subscription (renewal failed, and you
are now in 30–day grace period)
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 10
Real–Time Protection
This item shows the status for each of the four Real–Time Protection
features. Please note that real–time protection is enabled only
for Malwarebytes Premium and Malwarebytes Premium Trial users. This
feature is not available if you are using the Free version.
Settings
Settings are accessed from the Main Menu, and also by clicking the small
gear at the top right of the Real–Time Protection panel.
When clicked, the Settings screen will be displayed, allowing access to all
program settings. Please refer to the Settings portion of
this guide (pages 24–35) for complete information on this topic.
Scan Status
This panel shows your scanning activity at a glance. You can easily
see when the last scan was completed, when the next scan is
scheduled, and the status of your protection updates. There are four
icons on the title bar for this panel, as shown here.
A description for each icon – in the order shown – is as follows.
View Scan Reports
This icon takes you to Reports, where you can view detailed reports on
scans which Malwarebytes has performed on your computer.
Please note that information shown here is limited to the last scan that
was executed. See the Reports Pane (pages 21–23) for
information on reports as a whole.
Schedule a Scan
The second icon allows scans to be scheduled for automatic execution.
This option is available only for Malwarebytes Premium and
Malwarebytes Premium Trial users. The icon remains visible in Free
mode, but clicking it has no effect. When clicked, the Settings
screen will be displayed, allowing access to the Scan Schedule
screen. Please refer to the Scan Schedule portion of this guide (pages
13–15) for full information on this topic.
Check for Updates
The third icon causes Malwarebytes to connect with Malwarebytes servers to
check for protection updates more current than those
in use, and download them if they exist. This option is functional
for all program modes.
Help
The fourth icon links to the Malwarebytes User Guide on the Malwarebytes
website. This behavior is consistent throughout the
program.
Protection History
This panel shows three key statistics. It shows how many items were
scanned, how many threats were detected during scans, and
how many threats were detected by real–time protection. Please note
that the number of items scanned includes individual files
that are part of archive files, as well as components in dynamic link
library (DLL) files. Also note that real–time detections can only
occur in Premium and Premium Trial modes.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 11
Scan
The Scan Pane is the introduction to scan–related options in the
program. When you click Scan in the Menu Pane, you will see the
screen shown below.
On this screen, you may select the Scan Method and the Scan Schedule.
Let’s look first at Scan Methods. There are three scan types
which can be executed – Threat Scan, Custom Scan, and Hyper Scan.
Hyper Scan is only available to users of the Premium or
Premium Trial modes. Please note that global scan settings used by
Threat Scans and Hyper Scans are selected in Settings (see
pages 30–31). Following are more detailed descriptions of each of the
scan modes.
Threat Scan
This method of scanning detects a large majority of threats that your
computer may be faced with. Areas and methods tested
include:
• Memory Objects: Memory which has been allocated by operating system
processes, drivers, and other applications.
• Startup Objects: Executable files and/or modifications which will
be initiated at computer startup.
• Registry Objects: Configuration changes which may have been made to
the Windows registry.
• File System Objects: Files stored on your computer's local disk
drives which may contain malicious programs or code
snippets.
• Heuristic Analysis: Analysis methods which we employ in the
previously–mentioned objects – as well as in other areas –
which are instrumental in detection of and protection against
threats, as well as the ability to assure that the threats
cannot reassemble themselves.
The Threat Scan is the scan method which we recommend for daily
scans. While it will not scan every file on your computer, it will
scan the locations which most commonly are the launch point for a malware
attack.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 12
Custom Scan
You may also choose to run a custom scan. A custom scan allows you to
scan according to specifications which you define at the
time of the scan. These settings will override scan settings defined
elsewhere. A screenshot of the custom scan configuration
screen is shown below.
Custom Scanning Options
These settings provide capability to determine the functional areas that
will be scanned. They are as follows:
• Memory Objects: Memory which has been allocated by operating system
processes, drivers, and other applications. It is
important to note that threats detected during scans are still
considered threats if they have an active component in
memory. As an extra measure of safety, memory objects should be
scanned.
• Startup and Registry Objects: Executable files and/or modifications
which are initiated at computer startup, as well as
registry–based configuration changes that can alter startup behavior.
• Archives: If this setting is checked, archive files (ZIP, 7Z, RAR,
CAB and MSI) will be scanned up to two levels deep.
Encrypted (password–protected) archives cannot be tested. If
left unchecked, archive files will be ignored.
• Rootkits: These are files stored on your computer's local disk
drives which are invisible to the operating system. These
files may also influence system behavior.
Potentially Unwanted Programs/Modifications
These settings allow the user to choose how Potentially Unwanted Programs
(PUPs) and Potentially Unwanted Modifications
(PUMs) will be treated if they are detected.
Folders to be Scanned
This setting allows the user to include or exclude directories,
subdirectories, and individual files from scans. It utilizes a Windows
Explorer–like presentation model. In the screenshot shown above,
every directory except Desktop is selected for a custom scan.
You may scan parent directories separately from child directories based on
individual selections.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 13
Hyper Scan
This scanning option is only available to users of Malwarebytes Premium and
Malwarebytes Premium Trial versions. This method of
scanning is limited to detection of immediate threats. Areas and
methods tested include:
• Memory Objects: Memory which has been allocated by operating system
processes, drivers, and other applications.
• Startup Objects: Executable files and/or modifications which will
be initiated at computer startup.
While a Hyper Scan will clean any threats which have been detected, we
strongly recommend that a Threat Scan be performed if
a Hyper Scan has detected threats.
Scan Schedule
This tab allows users of the Premium and Premium Trial versions to add,
edit and remove scheduled scans to be executed by
Malwarebytes. This feature is not available to users of the Free
version. A screenshot of this tab is shown below.
One scheduled scan is defined when Malwarebytes is installed. Premium
and Premium Trial users are free to modify or delete scans
at will, while Free users are provided with a single monthly scheduled
scan. Please note that if the initial task is deleted without a
replacement task being defined, your Malwarebytes program will not deliver
the positive results that you expect. The same
methods are used here to add a new task as well as to edit an existing
task, so let's Add a new task in Basic mode.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 14
Basic Mode
A screenshot of the basic Add Schedule screen is shown here.
You can choose the
specific task to be
added on the left side of
the screen, in the
Scheduled Task area.
You may choose from
the following tasks:
• Threat Scan
• Custom Scan
• Hyper Scan
Scan types have been previously discussed in the Scan section of this guide
(pages 11–19). Please refer to those pages for further
information if desired. The Frequency and Settings section allows you
to define the timeframe (Schedule Frequency) that a task
will be executed, and how often (Recurrence). For scans, this
translates to:
• Frequency = Hourly, recurrence in range of 1–48 hours
• Frequency = Daily, recurrence in range of 1–60 days
• Frequency = Weekly, recurrence in range of 1–8 weeks
• Frequency = Monthly, fixed setting
• Frequency = Once, fixed
• Frequency = On Reboot, fixed
Advanced Mode
At the bottom left corner of the Add Schedule window is the Advanced
button. Click that to expand the Add Schedule window to
expose several more options. A screenshot is shown below.
In Advanced Mode, we add options which tailor the scan more to your
liking. Let's look a little deeper, beginning with the
advanced options for scans.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 15
Advanced Scan Options
Scheduled Task defines what task (scan/update) is to be added/edited, and
when that task should begin – specifying both the date
and time. Schedule Options provides several added capabilities to the
basic settings which have already been described. Here's a
rundown on the advanced options.
• Quarantine all threats automatically: This option determines if a
newly–detected threat would be automatically
quarantined, or if you would be notified so that you could choose a
course of action. While automatic quarantine may
seem to be the best course of action, it could have negative
implications if a false positive was encountered. A false
positive is the categorization of a legitimate file as a malicious
file. It does rarely occur, and when it does, Malwarebytes
Customer Success will assist you in having the offending file
evaluated more fully by our Research group.
• Restart computer when required for threat removal: This is
available only if threats are automatically quarantined, and is
not selected by default. Some threats may require a computer
restart to completely eliminate the threat, but we feel it’s
best to notify you at the time, so you may save your work before
restarting your computer. If this were checked, you
could lose work unless you were monitoring the scan in progress.
• Scan for rootkits: This option allows specialized testing for the
presence of rootkits. Due to its nature, it increases the
required time for a scan to execute. This option is not
available for Hyper Scans.
• Scan within archives: This is selected by default. It allows
scanning to go two levels deep within archive files. If not
selected, the archive will be ignored. It will also be ignored
if it is encrypted. This option is not available for Hyper Scans.
Frequency and Settings was discussed in the previous section (Advanced
Mode). Please refer to that section for more detail.
Recovery Options allow you to recover from a missed task (e.g. your
computer was off at the time a scan was to take place). A
scheduled task – if missed – will run at its next opportunity as long as it
is within the duration specified by the Recover if missed by
selector and the Recover missed tasks checkbox is checked.
Watching Scan Progress
Each scan method requires a different amount of time to complete.
Unless significant changes have occurred on your local disk, a
Hyper Scan or Threat Scan should each be rather consistent from scan to
scan. A custom scan time interval may vary widely each
time, based on the areas scanned, the number of files involved, and the
size and complexity of the files. The screenshot below is
an example of a scan in process.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 16
The progress bar shows milestones for each phase of the scan, with each
milestone represented by a green or gray symbol. In this
screenshot, some milestones are shown with green checkmarks, indicating
that phase of the scan has been completed. Scan
Memory is represented by an animation which indicates that this phase of
the scan is currently being performed. The remainder
of the tasks are shown as grey hourglasses, and are yet to be started.
You may also pause a scan while it is in process by clicking the Pause
button. The scan phase in progress will change to indicate
that the scan has been paused. Click Resume to continue the scan
where it left off. You may also click Cancel at any time to
terminate the scan. Results of the scan will be reported as if the
scan ran to completion.
Scan Results
After a scan has been executed, Scan Results are displayed as shown
here. In this scan, three threats were detected.
You may move threats to Quarantine by selecting the threat (using
checkboxes to the left of the threat’s name) and clicking
Quarantine Selected. If any threats are not selected to be moved to
Quarantine, you will be prompted to Ignore Once, Ignore
Always, or Cancel. Ignore Once will result in the threat once again
being reported as a threat during the next scan execution.
Ignore Always causes the threat to be added to Exclusions. A
threat which has been added to Exclusions will no longer be reported
as a threat unless there is reason to believe that it has been tampered
with. You must provide a disposition for each threat
displayed on this screen.
Threats which have been moved into Quarantine cannot harm your
computer. They are neutralized as part of the Quarantine
process. Please see Quarantine (page 20) for further information.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 17
Scan Summary
The final screen to be displayed as part of a scan is the Scan
Summary. It provides summary information about the scan, and allows
you to view scan detail on screen, or export scan summary or scan detail to
a text file. A screenshot of the Scan Summary is shown
below. Free and Premium Trial users will see a reminder of the value
of a Malwarebytes subscription on this page as well.
Clicking the View Report button displays the Scan Report for the scan just
completed. It is shown here as well.
When threats are detected during a scan, the user must decide how these
threats should be handled. The following series of
screenshots detail this flow. In the first screenshot, twenty threats
have been detected. By default, all are selected for removal.
Please note that the total number of detected threats is shown above the
list of threats, as is the number of threats selected for
removal.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 18
In order to demonstrate the behavior of this screen, we will uncheck some
of the threats. This indicates that only the checked
threats are to be removed. Clicking the Quarantine Selected button
results in the screen shown below.
Threats that were not selected still require remediation, based on input
supplied by the user. In this case, the choices available are
Ignore Once, Ignore Always and Cancel. Clicking the Ignore Once
button temporarily ignores a threat, although it will be shown
as a threat on subsequent scans. Selecting Ignore Always results in
the threat being added to the Exclusion List. It would not be
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 19
scanned in the future. Clicking Cancel keeps you on this screen until
you choose how to handle all detected threats. Once a
disposition has been selected for all detected threats, the screen below
will be displayed.
Although threats have been quarantined, you must restart the computer to
assure the threat removal process is complete.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 20
Quarantine
When executing scans (on–demand or as part of real–time protection), some
programs, files or registry keys may have been
categorized as threats. At that time, they were removed from the disk
location where they were stored, placed in quarantine, and
modified so that they could not pose a threat to your computer. There
may be items which fall into this category, but are not
malicious. It is up to individual users to research and make this
determination. Upon entry to the Quarantine option, you are
presented with the screen shown here.
Quarantined items are shown in a table format, with pertinent information
presented to help you determine what action needs to
be taken. Each item listed has a checkbox in the leftmost
column. Check the checkbox to restore or delete the item. Please
note
that the Restore and Delete buttons are greyed out until items are
selected. If you wish to apply the same action to all quarantined
items, select the checkbox in the table header and click Restore or Delete.
Please be aware that quarantined items which are not deleted or restored
will continue to be visible here until action is taken.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 21
Reports
The Reports Pane displays a list of scans and real–time protection
detections, in reverse chronological order. A Protection Event that
starts with the word Scan is a report summarizing the specified scan.
All other reports listed on this screen are detail pertaining to
detections made by real–time protection. A screenshot is shown here.
Selected reports may be viewed on screen, or exported to a text file for
later viewing. Opening a report will display a summary of
the event. You can click the Advanced tab to view more information
about the event. Details displayed for Protection Events will
be relevant to the type of event shown. Please note that only manual
(on demand) scans are available for users of the free version
of Malwarebytes.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 22
The Scan Report may appear in two different forms. If one or more
threats were detected during a scan, the report will appear as:
Please note that the bottom portion of the report shows the threats
detected during the scan. It is scrollable when required. The
top portion of the report contains a summary of the scan. You can
click the Advanced button to view more details, as shown here:
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 23
Viewing or Deleting Logs
You may view any log file by clicking the log to select it, then clicking
the View Report button. As mentioned previously, there are
several output options for Protection Logs. To delete logs, click the
checkbox corresponding to those logs you wish to delete, then
click the Delete button. Please bear in mind that computers which
have significant threat activity will also have larger logs. You
should periodically check how much disk space is being used for logs, so
that logs do not impact normal operation of your
computer.
Please note that an Export button is shown at the bottom left corner of
this screen. This allows you to make a copy of the log for
use by other programs. You may export to your clipboard or to a text
(TXT) file.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 24
Settings
The Settings screen allows the user to change all Malwarebytes operational
settings. We have grouped settings by the
areas/functions which they control into tabs to maintain a clean user
interface. When you select any tab, you will see the Detail
Pane change to reflect the tab which you selected. At the same time,
the tab itself is highlighted.
Before we dig in to each of the tabs, a brief description of each is in
order.
• Application Settings: Settings that affect Malwarebytes, as well as
how it coexists with Windows.
• Protection Settings: How Malwarebytes should protect you during
scans and (for Premium/Trial mode users only) Real–
Time Protection.
• Scan Schedule: When Malwarebytes should execute scans and check for
protection updates. This setting is functional
only for users of Premium/Trial mode.
• Exclusions: Items which will be excluded from testing which detects
malware, as well as websites which are categorized
as malicious but specifically approved by the user.
• My Account: Information pertaining to the status of your
subscription.
• About: Version numbers corresponding to Malwarebytes as a whole,
and for various components of the program which
may be updated individually. Malwarebytes company resources are
also listed on this page.
When Settings is selected, the Application tab is always selected. If
you navigate away from Settings – to Dashboard, Scan,
Quarantine or Reports – you will always return to the Application tab of
Settings when you click on Settings.
Now, let's take a look at Application Settings!
Application Settings
This is the entry screen you will see when you click on Settings in the
Menu Pane. It controls how Malwarebytes interacts with
many aspects of your computer’s operating system. A screenshot is
shown below.
The scroll bar at the right of this screen indicates there are many more
options available on this screen than what appear here. We
will now cover each of them in order.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 25
Application Updates
Malwarebytes may have updates available for individual program components,
or for the full program. We provide two toggle
switches which allow you to choose whether either or both upgrade modes can
be integrated into your copy of Malwarebytes
when they are available. Click Install Application Updates to check
for available program updates or upgrades. You can choose if
you upgrade, and when. Upgrades only happen with your consent.
Notifications
Notifications regarding scans, real time protection, updates and
subscriptions occur in windows at the lower right corner of your
screen, outside of the Malwarebytes interface. You may enable or
disable these notifications. Most notifications are enabled by
default, while a few can be disabled. Please note that some
non–critical information may not be visible if you disable notifications.
Disabled notifications do not leave the user at risk at any time. The
following notifications may be disabled. Please refer to
Appendix A (Notification Window Examples) at the end of this guide for
further information.
• Malicious Website Blocked
• Malware Detected (auto–quarantine)
• Non–Malware Detected (auto–quarantine)
Some users intentionally turn off one or more components of real–time
protection. Users may now disable notifications that
components have been turned off. Please note that as a result of this
setting, users will be unable to receive notifications regarding
real–time protection failures in the event of program malfunction.
Impact of Scans on System
Most users schedule scans to occur during times when their computer is
typically idle. Execution of a manual scan may be
performed as a matter of convenience, or while other tasks are being
executed. The performance of lower–powered computers
may be affected by execution of the Malwarebytes scan. This setting
allows the user to determine the priority of the scan to be
performed. Lower scan priority will require more time to execute
while impacting other operations to a lesser degree. High priority
allows the scan to be executed at the maximum speed which the computer
allows, but may affect other tasks.
Windows Context Menus
Malwarebytes has the capability to launch a Threat Scan upon one or more
individual files or directories from within Windows
Explorer by using the context menu that becomes available when the
files/directories are right–clicked. This setting allows that
capability to be turned on or off. The default setting is On.
Display Language
This setting determines the language used throughout. This is
pre–set, based on the language used during program installation.
It can be modified at will.
Event Log Data
This setting provides additional information regarding program actions
which are beyond typical needs of the user. Should you
encounter a technical issue with Malwarebytes, our Customer Success
engineers may request that you enable this setting to
provide additional troubleshooting information. Once troubleshooting
is complete, please remember to turn this setting off to
prevent unnecessary disk usage. The default setting is Off.
Proxy Server
This determines whether Internet connections will use a proxy server.
This is more often used on a corporate network. It has two
primary purposes. The first is to funnel communications to and from
the outside world through a single connection point, thus
assuring anonymity of all computers on the internal network. The
second purpose is to cache content. This means that external
content which had recently been downloaded is saved locally for some period
of time, and subsequent requests by that user (or
others) could use the recently–saved data. This conserves significant
bandwidth, resulting in lower operating costs.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 26
By default, Malwarebytes does not use a proxy. If configured to
do so, the bottom panel will change to provide configuration
options as shown in the screenshot shown here.
You can now specify the IP address or name of a proxy server,
as well as the appropriate port number. If a proxy is in use,
the
name and port number must be specified by the person who
controls access to the proxy server. He will also be able to
tell
you whether authentication is required to use the server, and if
so, provide a user name and password which have been
assigned to you.
User Access
This slider allows users of Malwarebytes Premium and Malwarebytes Premium
Trial versions to restrict access to various features
and functions in Malwarebytes with password protection. The Edit User
Access button is only visible when the slider is in the On
position, allowing the user to define sections of the program which require
a password to access.
When the Edit User Access button is clicked, a new window opens
directly above the Malwarebytes program screen to restrict
access to selected areas of the program only to those users who possess the
password. The password is also defined on this screen.
WARNING: This password is not recoverable. If you lose your password,
you will have to reinstall Malwarebytes to access restricted
features.
As shown above, the Reports tab has been placed under password
control. This also causes User Access to be placed under
password control. This prevents unauthorized users from gaining
access to restricted areas.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 27
When attempting to gain access to a
restricted area, you will be required to enter
a password (as shown here).
If an incorrect password is entered, or if a
null password is used, this error message
will be displayed.
If this feature has been enabled and is subsequently disabled, any
restrictions which have been defined are cancelled. This feature
is not available to users of the Free version. Currently, only one
policy may be in effect at any given time.
Windows Action Center
You may have noticed an icon in your system tray with a red X superimposed
over a white flag. That is a status indicator for the
Windows Action Center, which tells you when your computer has a security
issue that needs your attention. Malwarebytes Premium
or Malwarebytes Premium Trial can now be registered as a security solution
on your computer. There are three settings available,
which will be abbreviated here for easier reading. Brief descriptions
for the meaning of each setting are also provided.
• Let Malwarebytes choose whether to register: Malwarebytes will
determine whether it should be registered in Action
Center. The program will not register when Microsoft Security
Essentials is in use on a Windows 7 or older operating
system. It will also not register when Windows Defender is used on a
Windows 8 or newer OS.
• Always register Malwarebytes: Malwarebytes program status will
always appear in Action Center.
• Never register Malwarebytes: Malwarebytes program status will never
appear in Action Center.
Beta Application Updates
Some Malwarebytes users want to try the newest features as soon as they are
available, while some prefer to wait until the product
is released. We have added this program setting so that if you want
the latest and greatest immediately, we can deliver it to you
automatically. When you enable this setting, you will see the
following dialog box.
Usage and Threat Statistics
If you check this box, you will be sending us information to help us do our
jobs. We like to know what countries Malwarebytes is
being used in, and the breakdown of Premium, Premium Trial, and Free
versions. Our Research organization likes to keep track of
what malware we are detecting and how often. We learn that from what
you send us, and helps us to serve you more effectively.
We hope that's fine with you as well. For a full list of information
that is collected, please see the Malwarebytes Privacy Policy, at:
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 28
Protection
Most settings which control how Malwarebytes protects your computer are
located on the Protection tab. Settings are grouped
by category. A screenshot is shown below, along with descriptions of
all settings available on this tab.
Real–Time Protection
Malwarebytes offers four different types of real–time protection.
These features are available only to users of the Premium and
Premium Trial modes. It is important to note that Premium Trial users
who do not convert to a Premium subscription will lose all
real–time protection features at the end of their trial.
Web Protection protects Premium/Trial users by blocking access to/from
Internet addresses which are known or suspected of
engaging in malicious activity. This feature does not treat different
protocols differently. It does not distinguish between your
favorite game being served on one port and a potential malware source being
served on another. Should you choose to disable
this feature, you could inadvertently compromise your computer's
safety. Please note that this option is disabled if you are using
the Free version.
Exploit Protection uses multiple protection layers to guard against
attempted exploits of vulnerabilities in legitimate applications.
When applications are launched by the user, exploit protection is also
launched as a shield. This protection will often detect and
neutralize attacks that go undetected by other security applications.
It is on by default for Premium/Premium Trial users.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 29
Many popular applications have been pre–configured for shielding.
A screenshot is shown above. To change the status of any
application, either use the Protection slider, or double click either the
Application or File Name. Premium/Premium Trial users may
add protection for other applications, and edit specifications for any
defined shield. The Edit screen is shown here.
You may specify an Application name which is easily recognizable, and
the Application file name. You can also browse for the file.
Select a Program type which most closely resembles the purpose of the
application. If you are unsure, select Other.
The same screen is used to edit existing entries.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 30
In addition, Premium/Premium Trial users can modify advanced exploit
protection settings. Several advanced settings are spread
across four tabs, depending on the classification of protection they
provide. One tab is shown here as an example.
Each advanced setting is available for up to six different application
groups, the groups representing the method by which threats
will attempt to exploit vulnerabilities in applications of that type.
Protection may be turned on (checked), off (unchecked), or is
not applicable for that group of applications (greyed out). While
these settings provide very specific protection, they should only
be changed when requested by a Malwarebytes Customer Success
specialist. Incorrect settings may result in impaired protection.
Malware Protection may be turned on or off as needed by Premium/Premium
Trial users. It is on by default. This feature protects
against malware present in code/files that try to execute on your
computer. These files may have been downloaded, imported
from a USB drive, or received as an email attachment. While we do not
recommend disabling this protection mechanism, there
may be times when it needs to be done to troubleshoot compatibility issues
that arise with anti–virus updates or computer startup
problems. If either situation does occur, start your computer in Safe
Mode, disable Malware Protection, isolate and correct the
issue, then turn Malware Protection back on. Please note that this
option is disabled if you are using the Free version.
Ransomware Protection provides Premium/Premium Trial users protection
against the threat of ransomware. This protection is
not available for users of Windows XP or Windows Vista. While all
other protection features may provide some degree of protection
against ransomware, well–crafted ransomware may go undetected until it
attempts to initiate its attack. As many computer users
have found, there is little or no remedy available after the fact. We
strongly recommend that ransomware protection be turned
on at all times. It is on by default. Please note that this
option is disabled if you are using the Free version.
Scan Options
Scan for rootkits utilizes a specific set of rules and tests to determine
if a rootkit is present on your computer. For readers who are
unfamiliar with this term, an explanation may be handy. A rootkit is
malicious software that can be placed on a computer which
has the ability to modify operating system files in a manner that hides its
presence. Malware detection methods that rely on hooks
to the operating system for detection and analysis would prove ineffective
if the hooks had been purposely manipulated by
malware. Our testing method is more intensive and more effective, but
including rootkit scans as part of your overall scan strategy
increases the time required to perform a scan.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 31
When Scan within archives is enabled, Malwarebytes will scan two levels
deep within archive (ZIP, RAR, 7Z, CAB and MSI) files. If
this option is disabled, the archive is excluded from scanning.
Please note that encrypted archives cannot be fully tested.
We have introduced a new signature–less detection technology which takes
advantage of machine learning to supplement existing
detection methods.
Potential Threats
In addition to malicious software detection and elimination, Malwarebytes
also detects and acts upon two classes of non–malware.
These are Potentially Unwanted Programs (PUP's) and Potentially Unwanted
Modifications (PUM's). In many cases, PUP's appear
in the form of toolbars and other application software which are installed
on your computer as part of a bundle. You may have
asked for one application, and it came with a second application that was
not mentioned, or was mentioned, but you did not
uncheck the checkbox next to it to prevent it from being installed at the
same time. You may also want and use the PUP. We do
not judge the merit of the program or its usability. We do offer a
method of removing it if you choose to.
PUM's are a bit different. These are modifications that are typically
related to the Windows registry. As a user, you will generally
not be making changes to the registry that would qualify as a PUM, though
the possibility does exist. Because it does, we allow
you to define your own rules when it comes to how they are treated.
With regard to both types of modifications, we provide three handling
methods. These are:
• Ignore detections: Malwarebytes will not act on detection, nor will
you be alerted.
• Warn user: You will be alerted to the detection. You may
choose to ignore it, create an exclusion, or treat it as malware.
• Always detect PUPs/PUMs (recommended): The detection will be
treated as malware, and corrective actions will occur.
While PUP's and PUM's are both handled in the same manner, each is handled
according to separate guidelines which you specify.
Updates
Users of Malwarebytes Premium and Malwarebytes Premium Trial have the
ability to automatically check for protection updates,
and to specify when those checks will be performed. The date range is
adjustable between fifteen (15) minutes and fourteen (14)
days, the increment depending on the range (minutes/hours/days). We
recommend that you do not allow the rules database to
become dated, as much damage can be caused by zero–day infections – those
threats that are too new to be adequately protected
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 32
against by anti–virus software. The default for this feature is
on. You may also have Malwarebytes display a notification in the
corner of your screen if protection updates are more than 24 hours old.
Startup Options
These settings define how Malwarebytes behaves when your computer
starts. You may launch several applications at startup, and
they may initiate processes which require Malwarebytes launch timing to be
adjusted. Let's look at each setting in detail.
• Start Malwarebytes at Windows startup: If this setting is
unchecked, Malwarebytes will not start with Windows. No real–
time protection layers will start when Windows starts, though they
may still be started manually by launching
Malwarebytes.
• Delay Real–Time Protection when Malwarebytes starts: There
may be times when the startup of system services used by
Malwarebytes conflicts with services required by other applications
at boot time. When this is the case, turn this setting
on. You may also adjust the delay timing. You will need
to experiment with the specific delay setting necessary to
compensate for any conflicts that are noted. When required,
this must be done on a case–by–case basis. The delay setting
is adjustable from 15–180 seconds, in increments of 15 seconds.
• Enable self–protection module: This setting controls whether
Malwarebytes creates a safe zone to prevent malicious
manipulation of the program and its components. Checking this
box introduces a one–time delay as the self–protection
module is enabled. While not a negative, the delay may be
considered undesirable by some users. When unchecked,
the "early start" option which follows is disabled.
• Enable self–protection module early start: When
self–protection is enabled, you may choose to enable or disable this
option. When enabled, the self–protection module will become
enabled earlier in the computer's boot process –
essentially changing the order of services and drivers associated
with your computer's startup.
Automatic Quarantine
Users of Malwarebytes Premium and Malwarebytes Premium Trial may specify
whether malware will be automatically quarantined
when it is detected. The default setting is on. If the users
decline to automatically quarantine malware, a notification will display
in the lower right corner of the screen for each detection, and the user
must specify whether the file is to be ignored once, ignored
always (added to Exclusions) or quarantined.
Scan Schedule
You may also adjust Scan Schedules here as part of program settings.
This aspect of program settings has already been covered
on pages 11–19.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 33
Exclusions
This tab allows additions to, or deletions from a list of items to be
excluded from scans. The list may include files, folders, websites,
applications which connect to the Internet, or previously detected
exploits. A screenshot is shown below.
Add Exclusion
Exclusions are exempt from scanning and from real–time protection.
This may include files, folders, web sites, applications and
safe programs which have been identified as exploits. Clicking Add
Exclusion launches the Add Exclusion Wizard, as shown below.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 34
You may then add items – one at a time – to the list of exclusions.
Each item type is defined by criteria as follows:
• File or folder: Its location on the file system, and whether it
should be excluded from malware and ransomware, only
malware or only ransomware. While you may have your own reasons
for excluding files or folders from scans, the primary
reason for doing so is to prevent potential conflicts with anti–virus
software. Malwarebytes works well alongside most
anti–virus software, but anti–virus updates by some vendors may
occasionally be flagged as a threat. For this reason, we
offer the provision for you to exclude certain disk content from
scanning. This is commonly offered by anti–virus vendors
as well.
NOTES:
● Clicking Select Folder… selects only folders, which by default will
also exclude any files within those folders,
as well as subfolders.
● Clicking Select Files… selects individual files for
exclusion. The status of the folder is unchanged.
• Website: Enter the Domain or IP Address to specify the web
address. When adding a domain manually, please add it
both with and without the "www." prefix. Depending on several
external factors, the domain may still be blocked if only
one variation is entered. Also, domain exclusions are only
functional on Windows Vista Service Pack 2, Windows 7,
Windows 8.x and Windows 10. Please note: Exclusions can also be
added by clicking the link in the notification message
when the website is blocked by Malwarebytes Website Protection.
• Application that connects to the Internet: Specify the name of the
application. This is most applicable if the detection is
a false positive (legitimate application with some similar
characteristics to malware).
• Previously Detected Exploit: Specify the MD5 hash of the
exploit. This is most applicable if the detection is a false positive
(legitimate application with some similar characteristics to
malware). The hash guarantees uniqueness of the file in
question.
My Account
Here, you can click the Go to My Account button to obtain status of all of
your subscriptions, and change preferences related to
your account. You can also deactivate your license – useful when
moving your Malwarebytes program to a new computer – or
change license key. A screenshot is shown below.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 35
All of the information shown here is self–explanatory. A set of
option buttons are available at the bottom of the screen. The options
vary depend on the mode of the program. Buttons for the three program
modes are shown below.
Premium Mode
options
Premium Trial Mode
Options
Free mode
Options
Free mode
Options (*)
When Malwarebytes was installed, Premium Trial mode was set automatically
(if you were eligible for a trial). There may be
circumstances where you have the option of re–entering Premium Trial
mode. This would result in the second Free mode display.
If you click the button Change License Key (Premium mode) or I Already Have
a License (Premium Trial or Free mode), you will see
the following screen superimposed over the Malwarebytes interface.
Follow screen instructions to enter your license
information. If you do not have a license, either
press Cancel (to close this window and return to
the screen you came from), or Purchase a License
to go to the Malwarebytes website and purchase
a license for the product.
About
This tab tells you more about Malwarebytes, and what resources are
available to you should you need technical assistance. The
upper panel contains Version Information. We have split up the
program into software components. If you have configured the
program to provide program updates, it is easier and faster for us to
provide the newest version to you by updating the
components that have changed, rather than updating the entire
program. It also benefits you if you need technical support,
because the versions of each component may influence the direction that our
Customer Success engineers take when
troubleshooting an issue.
The Resources section provides contact addresses (URLs) which may assist
you for sales, support, and educational purposes. In
addition, you can view the third–party notices (open source software which
we use in our products) as well as a link to our End User
Licensing Agreement (EULA).
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 36
Appendix A: Notification Window Examples
Malwarebytes provides a number of user notifications during
operation. These notifications are always positioned in the lower
right corner of your screen. The length of time that they will remain
on your screen is configurable in Application Settings (page
24).
Scan Notifications
An automatic scan has been completed. Malware was
detected during execution of the scan. Click Upgrade Now
to purchase Malwarebytes Premium. This notification will
only appear for Malwarebytes Free users.
A scan (scheduled or on–demand) has been completed.
Malware was detected during execution of the scan. Click
View Scan Results to review the scan log to determine the
exact nature of the threat(s).
A scan (scheduled or on–demand) has been completed.
Non–Malware was detected during execution of the scan.
This is typically a Potentially Unwanted Program (PUP) or
Potentially Unwanted Modification (PUM), which may be
acceptable to you. Click View Scan Results to review the
scan log to determine the exact nature of the threat(s).
A scan (scheduled or on demand) has been completed. No
problems were detected.
Real Time Protection Notifications
After the user has indicated that they wish to turn off
notifications regarding real–time protection components,
this notification will be displayed to request confirmation
of the user’s wishes.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 37
One or more components of real–time protection are
disabled. You may re–enable protection by clicking Turn
On button, or by clicking Manage Protection Settings. This
is not available for Malwarebytes free users.
Malware has been detected as a function of real–time
protection. You have not chosen to exercise the auto–
quarantine capability when malware has been detected,
so no specific action has been taken. The program now
being detected as malware may be acceptable to you, so
you may choose to allow its execution once, always, or
elect to quarantine it at this time. This is not available for
Malwarebytes Free users.
Real–time protection has detected a Potentially Unwanted
Program (PUP). You have not chosen to ignore this type of
activity, or to exercise the auto–quarantine capability upon
detection, so no specific action has been taken. This
detection may be acceptable to you, so you may choose to
ignore it once, always, or elect to quarantine it at this time.
This is not available for Malwarebytes Free users.
Malware has been detected as a function of real–time
protection. You have chosen to exercise the auto–
quarantine capability when malware has been detected,
so the offending software has been moved to quarantine
and modified so that it may not cause any damage to your
computer.
A Potentially Unwanted Program (PUP) has been detected
as a function of real–time protection. You have chosen to
exercise the auto–quarantine capability when a PUP has
been detected, so the offending software has been moved
to quarantine and modified so that it may not cause any
damage to your computer.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 38
An attempt has been made by software present on your
computer to contact a website suspected to be malicious,
and has been blocked. This detection occurred as a
function of real–time protection. You may allow access by
clicking Manage Exclusions, which will redirect you to the
Exclusions screens.
Please note: Unblocking a website out of convenience may
result in damage being caused to your computer.
Anti–exploit protection has prevented an attacker from
exploiting your computer through a vulnerability.
Anti–ransomware protection has prevented an attacker
from exploiting your computer with suspected
ransomware. The threat has been neutralized and moved
to Quarantine.
After threats have been quarantined, your computer must
be rebooted to complete the quarantine process, and this
notification is displayed. After assuring that other work is
saved, click Reboot Now to perform that task.
Update Notifications
A program update for Malwarebytes is available. Click
Install Now to get the latest program protection.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 39
Your Malwarebytes updates are out of date. Click Update
Now to cause an immediate update. Failure to update will
cause subsequent scans to use outdated protection rules,
which could jeopardize the safety of your computer.
Premium Notifications
If you do not have auto–renewal set up on your
Malwarebytes account, you will begin to see this message
thirty (30) days before the expiration of your subscription,
counting down the number of days remaining on your
subscription. Click Renew Now button to renew your
subscription in a new browser window/tab.
If you do not have auto–renewal set up on your
Malwarebytes account, this notification is displayed on the
final day of your subscription. Click Renew Now button to
renew your subscription in a new browser window/tab.
If you do not have auto–renewal set up on your account
and have not responded to pending expiration, you will
see this notification a maximum of three times after your
subscription has expired. At this point, you have reverted
to the free version of Malwarebytes. Premium features
have been disabled. Click Upgrade Now to renew your
subscription in a new browser window/tab. A slightly
different version of this notification appears within the
Malwarebytes user interface.
This notification is displayed if your subscription cannot be
renewed. Usually the reason for this is an expired
credit/debit card. You will be given an opportunity to
update your card information, and your subscription will
remain in force for a brief period.
Malwarebytes for Windows User Guide 40
Your subscription has expired and could not be
automatically renewed. Your Malwarebytes service has
been downgraded from Premium to Free. You can still run
scans for protection, though real–time protection is no
longer in force.
Premium Trial Notifications
Beginning five days before your Premium trial expires, you
will receive a notification once per day about the expiring
trial, and be given an opportunity to upgrade to Premium
or to enter your Premium license information.
On the last day of your Premium trial, you will receive a
single notification, and be given an opportunity to
upgrade to Premium or to enter your Premium license
information.
After your Premium trial expires, you will receive this
notification in the Malwarebytes user interface as well as in
the Windows system tray.
