A Multi-Layered Approach

Today PC Matic is announcing the release of our newest product, Ransomware Lifeline. The Ransomware Lifeline product is designed to work seamlessly and as an additional layer of security with the user’s current AV software. Ransomware Lifeline mounts unrivaled EDR and reporting tools into the solution and provides IT staffers with unique controls of devices from its easy to use cloud-based console.

Ransomware Lifeline uses breakthrough technology in the whitelisting space to remove the immense amount of manual work that comes with a traditional whitelisting solution. Our global whitelist is managed by a team of professional malware researchers that automatically analyze blocked unknown applications and categorize them globally. Can’t wait to run a new application? IT Administrators have the ability to locally override for your entire account.

Experts recommend deploying a security environment with a layered approach to protect resources and data, while using application whitelisting as the fail safe layer. It’s a simple approach to security, if any malware makes it through all of the above layers, Ransomware Lifeline blocks it from running on the workstation because it is not a known good application. Simple as that.

The Details

Whitelist Layer: Ransomware Lifeline provides default-deny protection against unknown malware and ransomware on your network. Using our global whitelist, we remove the work that normally comes with Application Whitelisting; a NIST recommended approach.

Unrivaled EDR Tools: Respond to activity inside your network from anywhere in the world. Quickly VNC into a user’s machine, open a Remote CMD Prompt to run scripts locally, browse and upload to file directories, remotely shutdown or reboot in bulk, and more.

Expansive Reporting: Retain detailed logging on executions and blocks in your environment. You can easily track when and where an application was blocked. Add simple overrides, and target specific files for quarantine with one click across your entire network of devices.

To purchase, please visit www.pcmatic.com/ransomwarelifeline.

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The New Face of IT

IT directors are the first line of defense against the war on ransomware. As more companies move to managed services, there are new challenges facing independent IT directors. From work overload to balancing automation, many IT directors are facing a host of new issues. Let’s take a look at some of the more common issues.

Workload

IT directors are tasked with managing increasing workloads. Businesses across all verticals are increasing their security demands. This is leaving many IT directors with a backlog of work. More work means less time for training and keeping up on the latest news regarding security.

While automation is the key to reducing workload, relying too heavily on automation can lead to security oversights. Using an MSP solution that automates more mundane tasks is the answer. This allows IT staff to continue to stay aware of immediate needs while also freeing up time to dedicate to all tasks. Auto reporting and automated tasks like patch management keep staff in the know without requiring they get too granular on too many fronts.

Cybersecurity

Staying on top of current malware news is a great line of defense. Likewise, you should be using state of the art AV software which incorporates whitelisting technology. This allows IT directors to dedicate more time to learning about and identifying new potential threats. Working with a company that provides an extensive whitelist solution protects systems from new or unknown threats.

Utilizing The Cloud

A cloud based portal, like the kind PC Matic deploys, gives IT staff the freedom to monitor their systems from any location with internet access. Automated reporting allows them to keep an eye on what is going on with the rest of their machines without needing to be in the room.

The cloud also connects PC Matic users to our extensive monitoring services. Your solution should provide support through research and monitoring. In addition to support, it provides another layer of defense.

Cost

Additionally, rising ransomware costs lead to rising costs for security. As an IT professional, you should be working with a company that believes in keeping security affordable for everyone while still providing an exemplary product. Therefore, working with a provider that makes it easy to pay for services means the ability to cover all systems instead of picking and choosing.

The Future of AV

Most importantly, IT directors need to be keeping up-to-date with cyber hygiene. This includes modern research on effective methods and recommendations on the type of support to use. In addition, learning about new and trending way the ransomware industry is growing will help you keep an eye on what’s coming across your machines.

Looking Ahead

As ransomware becomes more sophisticated, our defenses against it will have to rise to the occasion. By keeping an eye on trends, workload, and usability, modern IT directors will arm themselves with the tools to beat the criminals. To learn more about PC Matic’s products, click here. Join us in keeping everyone safe.

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Free Licensing for MSPs

In addition to our release this morning regarding free PC Matic Pro for businesses with new remote workers, PC Matic is offering free endpoint additions to our MSPs.

PC Matic MSPs can add customers affected by COVID-19 to their management portals for free through June 30th to help keep companies safe while employees work from home.\

For more information, please visit pcmatic.com/covid19.

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PC Matic Takes Top Awards in AV-TEST Awards

PC Matic has come out on top of the AV-TEST Awards for Performance for Consumer Products. PC Matic Home continually showed a high-performance finish in the AV-TEST labs throughout the test period of an entire year.

PC Matic succeeded at fielding a top product in 2019 which was able to meet the high standards of the AV-TEST Institute. In the consumer field, PC Matic receives recognition for best performance and is thus given the Best Performance 2019 Award by the AV-TEST Institute. 

“‘PC Matic upholds its product pledge to its users: good malware protection while maintaining a low system load. This deserves the Performance Award”, says Andreas Marx, CEO of AV-TEST. “Hardly any other software was able to achieve such stellar results in the category of performance in the annual test. Which is why PC Matic receives the Performance Award for consumer software.”

About AV-TEST

AV-TEST GmbH is an independent supplier of services in the fields of IT Security and Antivirus Research, focusing on the detection and analysis of the latest malicious software and its use in comprehensive comparative testing of security products.

Due to the timeliness of the testing data, malware can instantly be analyzed and categorized, trends within virus development can be detected early, and IT-security solutions can be tested and certified. The AV-TEST Institute’s results provide an exclusive basis of information helping vendors to optimize their products, special interest magazines to publish research data, and end users to make good product choices.

AV-TEST has operated out of Magdeburg (Germany) since 2004 and employs more than 30 professionals with extensive practical experience. The AV-TEST laboratories include 300 client and server systems, where more than 2,500 terabytes of independently-collected test data, containing both malicious and harmless sample information, are stored and processed.

For more information please visit AV-Test’s website at https://www.av-test.org

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A Security Tool on The Rise

At the beginning of the last decade, talking about your VPN usage might have raised an eyebrow. Outside of business, no one knew what a VPN was or why it was used. But now, VPN usage is on the rise in the private sector.

PC Matic has collected data from over 2 million machines in an effort to see the trends in VPN usage.

I Still Don’t Know What You’re Talking About

I should clarify for those of you who still don’t know what a VPN is or why we use them. Originally, VPNs were created for at home workers who wanted to access company files and applications. VPN stands for Virtual Private Network and allows the user to securely access private networks while using public internet.

A VPN not only replaces the user’s IP address with one within the VPN service, but also encrypts data transmitted. This allows more secure work over a shared network. For the remote worker, it means working from that coffee shop or art gallery with free public wifi without compromising their company’s files.

Wait, I Can Use This?

Yes, and you should! Imagine checking your bank balance in line at your favorite coffee shop. Your phone has automatically connected to the wifi (of course, you’re always there) and you type your password into your app. There’s a person in the corner reading all the data transmitted across that open wifi connection and now they know your password. A VPN would have changed your IP and encrypted your password so the virtual peeper couldn’t see what you were doing.

And that’s the appeal. PC Matic noted that from 2010 until the end of 2019 commercial VPN usage stayed pretty consistent. At the beginning of ’10 VPN usage in the commercial vein was was around 0.74% with an increase to 0.99% by the end of 2019. Not a huge jump.

Personal VPN usage, however, had a massive increase; going from 0.13% to 4.65% for a 3,477% increase. While it’s true that those numbers don’t seem huge, the rate of growth of personal VPN usage is a startling jump.

So Where Do I Get It?

While PC Matic doesn’t endorse any one VPN, we did notice NordVPN has become the most used product since its introduction in 2012. Whatever product you choose, however, should fit your needs. A quick internet search will allow you to break down the components of each one offered.

I do suggest choosing a paid service. Most VPNs aren’t that expensive. While there are free VPNs out there, you should remember that you get what you pay for. The point of increased security is having a product that keeps you secure!

Good luck out there, and stay safe. Especially now more than ever.

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Folding@Home Tackles COVID-19

We live in a unique age. A pandemic hitting the world at any other time in history has been a devastating loss. Even though we have seen loss during this COVID-19 crisis, we have resources unlike any seen previously in human history. Super computing and the most advanced medical science ever are both working diligently on a solution to this problem.

But it’s easy to feel unhelpful in a time like this; like you can’t contribute to the greater good. There’s a quote by the incomparable Fred Rogers that frequents the internet in times of trouble.

“Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping,” his mother once told him. And that’s what Folding@Home is working on as we speak. They use super computing technology to help solve medical problems.

How It Works

Admittedly, I didn’t understand how this worked at first. To understand what you can do to help, first you have to understand what they’re trying to accomplish.

Proteins are the building blocks of our cells. We know that after basic biology classes. What we didn’t necessarily learn, however, was how they fold. Folding refers to the way the proteins structure themselves to take on different roles within our cells. If those proteins fold incorrectly, whether on their own or from an outside invader like a virus, diseases can occur within the human body.

That’s where Folding@Home comes into play. These labs simulate all the ways a protein can fold (and correct themselves) to form diseases. By studying how they fold incorrectly, and how the other proteins work to correct that process, we can learn about how to cure the diseases caused by improper folding. All of these simulations can be run through super computing work units to figure out a complex problem.

Where Do I Fit In All This

Folding@Home asks volunteers to download their software to allow the use of your idle processing resources to help with the work units. Essentially, you allow them to use part of your computer’s processing ability to get more work done quickly. PC Matic has joined the Folding@Home family with our own “team” to assist with their research.

If you’re like me, the idea of someone using my computer makes me a little leery. After some research from Folding@Home, Google, and other teams like PC Matic, I found independent information from a larger team that explains why Folding@Home is safe.

“Folding@Home is secure. The Stanford team has gone to great lengths to ensure security, both for the integrity of their research and the safety of donors’ computers. However, the more secure the better. The Gentoo ebuild for Folding@Home creates a new user foldingathome whose sole purpose is to run the client. Now, fah_install and origami offer the same. They create a user whose account is disabled, and runs the client as this user when the init script is run as root, so the client is never run as root.”

So what that means is that the software creates a new user on your machine to run the program. This makes a more secure connection because the account is set up as a user and not a program running at the root of your computer.

Why Do They Need Me?

The question has been asked why Folding@Home can’t just use a supercomputer instead of the extra space on home users machines. Super computers are essentially a collection of processors linked by fast networking. Surprisingly, home computers are often times just as or faster than supercomputers.

Additionally, supercomputers are expensive and therefore shared between many different research facilities. It becomes tricky to scale molecular simulation to all of their processors. The idle time on your home computer allows the work to be broken up, completed, and sent back to the analysts at Folding@Home.

Their software allows you to earn points by completing projects (you don’t have to do anything to complete these, your computer will do it on its own.) You also have the ability to see the projects you’re working on. Fighting COVID-19 is one project, but they’re also working on research to find cures for Cancer, Alzheimer’s, Ebola, Huntington’s, Hepatitis, Zika, Parkinson’s and many others.

Join The Team

While we are currently living in the most technically advanced age in human history, we have seen in the past months how vulnerable we are to disease. Let’s all band together to help bring an end to this and many other illnesses. Join us today.

If you’re ready to become one of the helpers, you can join our PC Matic team via our link here. If you need more information, or want to find out more about Folding, please visit Folding@Home via their FAQ page.

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American cybersecurity firm, PC Matic, announced it is launching a federal division whose mission will be aimed at delivering cyber-threat prevention software to the United States Federal Government

Myrtle Beach, SC – PC Matic, American cybersecurity firm, today announced the launch of its new federal services division, PC Matic Federal. The division, the company also announced, will be led by Retired Army Lieutenant Colonel Terrence McGraw, who will serve as the division’s President.

Aiming to deliver cyber-threat prevention software in compliance with standards put forth by the National Institutes of Standards and Technology (NIST), the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Continuous Diagnostic and Mitigation Program (CDM), and the U.S. Department of Defense’ Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC), PC Matic Federal will utilize its proprietary proactive whitelist technology to enhance zero-trust security for federal agencies.

“As PC Matic expands our footprint into the federal services market, Terry’s experience, depth of knowledge, and insight into America’s most pressing cybersecurity threats perfectly positions him to lead PC Matic Federal,” said PC Matic CEO and Founder, Rob Cheng. “Terry’s lifelong career of service and leadership exemplifies his qualification and dedication to increasing the resilience of our nation’s cybersecurity infrastructure, and we are thrilled to welcome him to our team.”

Mr. McGraw, prior to joining PC Matic, served as both the Vice President of Global Service Delivery and Vice President of Global Cyber Threat Research and Analysis for Dell SecureWorks.  Prior to his tenure with Dell SecureWorks, Mr. McGraw is a retired Lieutenant Colonel and spent twenty-seven years in the United States Army where he served as both an enlisted soldier and commissioned officer leading critical cyber operations for various Army Commands including the Network Enterprise and Technology Command,  Army Cyber Command, and Signal Intelligence agencies. Terry holds a bachelor’s degree from Old Dominion University, a Master of Science Degree in Computer Information Systems from Central Michigan University and a Telecommunications Systems Engineering Certification from the Army School of Information Technology.

“Cybersecurity and protecting people are topics I am very passionate about,” said Mr. McGraw. “I am excited to bring this passion to PC Matic as we navigate the rigorous and comprehensive process of launching our federal services division, PC Matic Federal.”

More information about PC Matic Federal may be found here.

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PC Matic Support Scams Being Broadcast on YouTube

Heads up, readers. There are more PC Matic support scams on YouTube every day! Let’s take a look at some below.

This one splashes the number right across the front so you don’t have to watch the entire thing. Something PC Matic does frequently is to feature our employees in our videos. Even if we feature others, like in the video below, they’re still wearing PC Matic shirts.

The next clip below also has the number as the first image, but once you click shows you the video was produced using Flex Clip. That’s another great way to spot a fake. PC Matic produces all videos in house without the use of ease software available for quick video production.

This video doesn’t use any people, but also has another glaring flaw. There’s no logo.

When scam videos use our logo, it’s much easier for us to get them removed. If a video doesn’t have the PC Matic logos, it’s most likely not one of ours.

This is what a PC Matic video looks like, dynamic movements, very informative, and covered in our logo.

Additionally, PC Matic will never encourage consumers to call a number. We always ask you direct any inquiries through our website, unlike this video below.

We’re proud of being American made. As you can see below, we show that pride by sharing with our customers information about where their product is coming from.

So when you have questions about your PC Matic consumer product, reach out via our website. You can email one of our customer service representatives or talk live with them on our onsite chat.

And if you see a scam, make sure to let us know. We can all work together to keep each other safe.

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Over Half of Respondents Unable To Work

Today PC Matic is releasing the results of a survey with over 6,000 polled. The information, taken from adult men and women across the country, operates with the goal of assessing security practices in companies moving workers to a remote workforce.

58% of those polled said the COVID-19 closings made it impossible for them to work from home. These respondents include restaurant workers, service workers, and those in the retail industry among others. These industries rely heavily on a physical presence. On the other hand, some industries that typically do not allow remote work were able to transition to that model with little disruption.

Security Detail

Just over 40% of people who were able to continue to work from home. Of those, only 39% were provided with a machine by their employer. This is important. We’ve warned before about the dangers of personal devices on a work network. Accessing personal information can leave your organization open to hacking or dangerous malware. Moreover, the simple act of connecting your phone to your company’s wifi can put the network at risk.

Additionally, 93% of those working from home were not provided with any type of antivirus solution. To clarify, almost all of the working force polled were left to secure their machines on their own.

Personal Experience

I would say these numbers are consistent within my own social circle. Many of my friends were unemployed by the end of March, 2020. Of those that were still working (and that number is maybe 4 people out of the 30 I can think of off the top of my head), only one was provided with a machine from her employer. None of my working friends or family were provided with an AV solution.

As a result, I watched those I was quarantined with access videos, personal email, and web browsing while also logging into their company’s portals. Working for PC Matic, I was able to give them information on our COVID-19 promotion that provided companies with free antivirus through the pandemic. Of those who passed on the information, only a few had upper management that put much thought into securing their networks.

However, the companies that were taking advantage of our promotion seemed keen to keep their and their clients’ information safe. It’s important to note that many companies have extensive security practices in place on their networks. In other words, companies understand the need for security is vital, but don’t recognize the disconnect between remote and network access.

Where Do We Go From Here

As society slowly begins to reopen, we’re seeing a trend in newly remote workers continuing the lifestyle. It makes sense. Subsequently, offices are realizing productivity stays the same or increases while cost decreases.

There are warnings that a second wave will hit later in the year. As a result, most companies are making plans to continue remote work if that occurs. In the meantime, workers and consumers should be advocating for a strong security plan to be apart of those road maps.

We’re all in this together, as many have said, and keeping our data secure is the responsibility of us all.

To read the full report on PC Matic’s findings, please visit us here.

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The Security Revolution

PC Matic always believed that the best security should be accessible to everyone. As an American company, we’ve taken steps along the way to ensure we’re providing the best for our customers. From working with a company to provide veterans protection, to securing governments, PC Matic has a myriad of customers.

Our Home customers, however, benefit from our advancements. PC Matic was ahead of the curve when presenting advanced protection through application whitelisting. Now, application whitelisting is recognized as the future of antivirus (AV). Instead of keeping this for only enterprise customers, PC Matic made this technology available to everyone from the beginning.

With such a different product on the market, the cost could have been much more. Frequently, those leading the charge in any advancement usually charge for that foresight. We hold the belief that protection belongs to everyone. Additionally, we’ve made our advanced product much lower than our competitors.

Take a look below to see how PC Matic stacks up against the other AV companies.

The Price Difference

Now that you see how PC Matic stacks up to our competitors with performance, check out our pricing. Most of our competitors come in under $50/year for the first year. Annual recurring cost, however, jumps way past that for renewal customers. How does that make sense? Why would you pay more to keep a service you’ve already purchased?

If you subscribe yearly, over a 5 year period you’re still paying significantly less than you are for any of our major 3 competitors. That’s because PC Matic doesn’t change price once you’re our customer. We work on the foundation of affordability for all.

Additionally, PC Matic offers an Evergreen pricing option that allows you to purchase once and enjoy a lifetime of antivirus. That’s not the lifetime of the machine either, that’s your lifetime. You can add and delete machines as you change them out.

When you purchase Evergreen, look at the savings below.

I, admittedly, was not as savvy regarding antivirus before coming to PC Matic. I never really purchased it, always turned off by the price. PC Matic takes away that variable with affordable pricing. Don’t leave yourself unprotected.

As always, stay safe out there.

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Since day one of our operation, all PC Matic employees have worked from the comfort of their own homes

This morning, PC Matic CEO Rob Cheng, was featured on Fox Business with insight as to how and why he created PC Matic as a remote company.

“Amid historic job losses and an ongoing health-pandemic, the American economy is beginning to boom again. In a jobs report just released by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, nonfarm payroll employment rose by 2.5 million in May 2020 – the largest jobs increase for a single month ever.

As more Americans continue to return to work, there is a question that should be at top of mind for every company and its leadership team – what did we learn from this?

Among many other responsibilities, as the CEO of my company, PC Matic, it is my responsibility to lead. While there are many components to leading, one major component incredibly relevant to a company’s success – and our nation’s recovery from this pandemic – is figuring out the best way to execute.

In 1999, when I started my cybersecurity firm, I wanted to do business in a less traditional form.  So, rather than working with a real estate agent and searching for a company headquarters, I decided to build a company where our employees worked remotely.

Yes, you read that right – since day one of our operation, all PC Matic employees have worked from the comfort of their own homes.”

For the rest of the article, please visit Fox Business.

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Patriotism Isn’t One Sided

My grandfather, Mike, was a World War II vet who spent his life working on the Erie Lakawanna railway. He was one of eight children of immigrants, extremely patriotic, and a staunch democrat. Above all, Mike was American.

I was only a teenager when he passed, but we were close. In the time I had with him, he instilled a succinct set of lessons; your good name is worth more than money, care about other people, and buy American.

There’s a certain type of irony that I found my way to PC Matic. My grandfather’s lessons are part of the core values of the company. PC Matic is a superior product, and yet we choose to make it affordable for everyone. We do this because we care about others and their ability to access cybersecurity.

Finally, PC Matic believes in buying American. We believe in it so much that it’s an integral part of who we are. Yet the idea of American inclusiveness is being pushed almost as a partisan ideal. That shouldn’t, however, be the case.

Buy Local

There’s been a movement the past few years to buy local. This means going back to your small town businesses and supporting them. The idea is that the money you’re paying for goods and services stays within your community and with your friends and neighbors. This works on a grander, national scale as well.

Global business is always necessary. I believe thoroughly in the idea that goods and services should be exchanged between cultures. It diversifies our abilities and understanding, but there’s something to be said for “buying local.”

In our current state, we are worried more than ever about our national economy. By keeping our business dollars internal, we’re doing our part to stay self-sufficient. We’re also making sure our money is going back into our communities. PC Matic employees are remote and all across the US. We live and play in big cities and small towns from the East to the West coast and everywhere in between.

A Safer Stance

There’s another bipartisan aspect to an American made antivirus. We know the laws and regulations in our country. There’s a level of transparency (stay with me even if you’re shaking your head “no” right now) in our governmental systems.

You trust your AV with a lot of information and data for your business and personal accounts. In the US, as Apple proved, a company can refuse to release data to government agencies. US companies have the right to protect their customers. That, however, isn’t the case in other countries.

Having the protections and backings of the American justice system allows a peace of mind that simply isn’t there for other products.

The Issue At Hand

Somehow, however, the idea of being proud of our country has fallen by the wayside. My personal opinion is that we haven’t spent enough time on my grandfather’s second edict; care about other people. That’s exactly what supporting American made is about though. We care enough about each other as a nation to lift each other up.

As our nation’s 243rd birthday approaches, think about American made. Think about how it’s an idea that benefits us all. Most importantly, consider, for a moment, Mike’s ideals and do something nice for someone else.

Stay safe out there.

Businesses Weren’t Prepared

When the pandemic struck and there were mass closures across the country, most businesses weren’t prepared. In house, networks are exponentially more secure. As the workforce moved home, however, many companies exposed themselves to a slew of security issues.

PC Matic conducted our own survey on COVID-19 work from home trends. Consequently, the trends found in those survey answers are pretty consistent with what tech professionals are seeing across the country. We’re seeing ransomware attacks increase, security measures decrease, and security health relax.

PC Matic fits perfectly into a healthy security plan. Our default-deny approach keeps machines safe from even new threats. In other words, even if it’s a new threat, we’ll block it.

As workers use their own devices, they reduce the security of their professional environments. Surfing the web, checking bank accounts, and visiting shopping sites can all expose your machine to security threats. As a result, you are also compromising your company’s information because you access it on the same device.

We believe in protecting a machine on a different level. Our Pro product can’t be uninstalled from the machine. This means a hacker in your personal machine won’t be able to uninstall the product and drop a malicious file.

Tech Boom

Meanwhile, original projections thought that tech spending would go down. Due to the security concerns raised by remote work, security needs are on the rise. IT professionals have been dubbed essential workers, and are out there keeping systems safe as Americans continue to social distance.

PC Matic is also there. We’re working our hardest to provide IT professionals with the tools they need to bring remote work and IT management into this new normal.

DuckDuckGo Claims Anonymity, But Does It Work?

Recently an inquiry came into the PC Matic help desk asking us to review search engine site DuckDuckGo. Typically, we aren’t into reviewing other products or sites, but we didn’t have a lot of background information and were curious.

DuckDuckGo claims anonymity and unbiased search results. That means when you use their site, your search history won’t be saved. It also means your answers won’t be filtered by targeted ads or tracking algorithms.

But does this site work? And, if so, what revenue fuels its fire?

There’s a great article on Forbes.com that provided me with some insight. DuckDuckGo does use advertising, but only based on what you’ve typed into the search bar at that moment. Instead of listening across your devices to find out what you’re thinking, they will simply connect you with something that matches your current search. And that’s it.

If you begin a new search? Well, anything you’d previously engaged with simply won’t be there. Want to bounce from bouncy castles to grills as you plan your upgraded backyard for the summer? DuckDuckGo isn’t looking to keep your data on their servers. As you search each item, they move with you. Instead of curating a backyard for you, DuckDuckGo allows you an unbiased look at what’s out there.

The Safer Search

DuckDuckGo is being touted as the “safer search engine” by those interested in privacy. That shouldn’t mean, however, that you should think of it as protection against malicious scripts or as a web filtering tool.

The website CommonSenseMedia.org outlines briefly how DuckDuckGo is still delivering a myriad of results for your searches. In other words, it’s not going to keep your kids from finding the bad stuff on the internet. It will, however, keep anyone from knowing what they search.

Not recording a search history will also not protect you from phishing attempts and picking up malicious scripts. You’re still going to need antivirus protection for that. Please don’t enter into this thinking the search engine will be a replacement for your protection software.

So Does It Work?

By all accounts, DuckDuckGo is doing exactly what it says it’s doing. So, yes. Users seem happy and reviewers agree it’s a great way to keep your searches private and tracking algorithm free.

While we don’t officially endorse other products here at PC Matic, I will say that I’m intrigued. There’s the ability on their site to add the extension to your browser. I went ahead an activated it. The few searches I’ve done thus far have come up with a great variety of results. All the tools I’m used to from my other searches are there. So far so good.

If privacy is your thing, and you know that the site isn’t protecting you from malware, I’d say there’s no harm in trying it out. Just make sure to keep your common sense hat on and your antivirus product active. Otherwise, happy searching!

PC Matic Webinar Series

A panel discussion regarding emerging/trending work from home technology topics: security, tools, and more! Watch the full video below.

AV-Test Scores Announced

AV-Test has released its evaluation of the best home AV products tested through May and June. When you look down through the list, you’ll see us stacked against our competitors. On our page, however, AV-Test breaks down how we performed.

PC Matic always takes a hit on false positives. What does that mean? Because we work on an always deny technology, we’re always denying any unrecognized software trying to execute on your system. This is how PC Matic is different from all the other competitors out there.

Our competitors work on an always allow technology. This means they’ll allow anything to run on your machine. Which also means that new and unrecognized threats are allowed through. Once a new piece of malware hits a system, then their analysts can look at it and block it.

When testing products, most tests like AV-Test are modeled to see if those always allow lists are just happening to block legitimate technology. Since we will block something unknown, we get hit in this particular section of tests for a false positive.

To me, false positives make far more sense. It doesn’t take PC Matic analysts long to identify if the blocked software is good or bad. I’d rather wait a few minutes for that identification than be the testing ground for a new piece of malware.

Protection

AV-Test evaluated us in May and June of this year. There are two separate portions for this category.

The first portion is the “Real World Test.” This checks to see that an AV product is stopping 0-day attacks (you know, those new nasties that are being released every day) as well as email and web threats. The industry standard is 98.8% protection. In May, PC Matic scored 99.4% and in June 100%. 339 samples were used in this test.

The second portion is the AV-Test reference set. This makes sure an AV product is blocking known and prevalent threats identified within the last 4 weeks. The industry standard for this test is 100%. PC Matic scored 100% in both May and June.

Performance

The next category, Performance, is where our competitors can’t touch us. AV-Test used both a standard and high end PC to perform these tests.

The first section tests to see if we slow down your machine when launching popular websites. Industry standard is a 14% standard and 11% high end. PC Matic clocked in at 7% and 8% respectively

Next was slowing down frequently used applications. This means, do we slow down the programs you use on your computer just by having us installed? Industry standard for both machines is 1% and PC Matic clocked in at 0%. We have 0 interruption to loading your favorites.

Third is slowdown of standard software. Industry standard is 12% on standard PCs and 9% on high end PCs. PC Matic 6% and 5% respectively.

The fourth category tested to see if your AV was giving you slower installation on frequently used applications. Industry standard for a standard PC is 27% with PC Matic scoring 10%, and a high end PC industry standard is 22% with PC Matic clocking in at 10%.

Finally, the last test measured to see if there was a slower copying of files. Industry standard on a standard PC is 2% and on a high end is 6%. PC Matic scored 2% and 0% respectively.

In only one of the sections did we match industry standards. In every other section, we more than exceeded performance at a far lower percentage than our competitors.

Usability

This is where the test looks for false positives. Since all other AVs work on an always allow system, the test is set up for that system. It’s like saying you’re going to see which fruit is the best, lining up a bunch of different apples, and then also judging the orange against them.

That being said, for the section on False warnings when visiting websites, the industry standard is 0 and we also scored 0.

The next section was for falsely detecting safe software as malware. This means they could introduce any new piece of software. Obviously, since PC Matic blocks anything unknown, we surpassed the industry standard of 16 by scoring 24 for May, but came down under industry standard in June with only 11 false positives.

We provided 1 false warning on an installation in June with industry standard being 0.

Finally, industry standard is 1 false blockage of legitimate software and we scored that in both May and June.

Overall

Overall, PC Matic’s performance is nothing to mess with. While no AV is perfect, we’ll happily take hits on the Usability portion of these tests if it means our product is different from the pack. It’s that difference that gives us the ability to keep you protected from what’s new and unseen.

Stay safe out there.

We’ve Changed

With less than a semester to go, many US schools shuttered their doors in March of this year. In an effort to quell the growing COVID-19 outbreak, our schools shifted towards an online learning model. No one imagined that students wouldn’t be back for the end of the year. Yet, as a result of the surge in cases, schools stayed closed through the end of the 2019-2020 school year.

But as the infection rate, and death toll, of COVID-19 grew, it was apparent that school was truly out for the summer. As the season progressed, administrators grappled with the decisions they’d need to make for the start of the 2020-2021 school year.

Plans to return vary vastly from coast to coast. PC Matic wanted to know what the return to school would look like for many American families. A survey was conducted asking parents of K-12 kids what their plans were for this year’s instruction.

The Results

The full results of the survey can be found here.

While most parents are split on what their education plans are for this school year, distance learning came out clearly in the lead at 38%. 27% of parents said they would do a combination of in person and distance learning. Only 22% said they would be sending their students back full time. Finally, 13% of parents would be instituting a home school curriculum.

With the majority of students participating in some form of distance learning, PC Matic questioned parents regarding cyber security. While 43% said they weren’t concerned, a combination of 55% of parents were. Furthermore, 60% of parents expressed additional concern for their child’s data privacy.

Finally, PC Matic asked about the types of devices students will be using. It was reported that 45% of students would be using personal devices. There’s an added security risk with devices that access additional information. Ideally, schools would provide students with devices for learning, but that isn’t possible in all cases.

The Full Report

PC Matic has assembled all the survey data in a handy pager. You can view it in its entirety here. What are your thoughts on cybersecurity for this school year?

Staying On Top Of Current Events

PC Matic VP Corey Munson instituted a webinar series when COVID-19 began. We’ve shared a variety of topics that he’s covered. The most recent webinar, however, focuses on security for schools as we delve into the new year.

Corey is carefully curating an array of topics, some for business and some for home users, providing information as we navigate these new waters. Below is the full video transcript of the K12 webinar.

To keep up with Corey and all the webinar topics, follow him on LinkedIn.

Taking Home The Gold (and Silver and Bronze)

Network PG released its 2020 IT World Awards. The contestants for this award are individuals and organizations private or public, corporations, for-profit, and nonprofits, large, medium, and small, associations, vendors and government organizations worldwide.

The IT World Awards are industry and peer recognition from Network Products Guide honoring achievements and recognition of world’s best in organizational performance, products and services, hot technologies, executives and management teams, successful deployments, product management and engineering, customer satisfaction, and public relations in every area of information technology.

PC Matic took Gold in Best IT Company of the Year – Security Software. We then took Silver in Application Security Testing. Finally, we rounded out our trio of awards with Bronze in Hot Company of the Year – Security Software.

It’s always an honor to compete internationally and be placed so high. We believe in our products and are excited to be recognized for our work.

We Asked, You Answered

PC Matic has been hard at work collecting information from people like you to create a clearer picture of what our lives look like now that we’re working and learning from home. A survey of over 1,000 Americans yielded some interesting results regarding passwords and privacy.

Of those questioned, only 1 in 3 knew how to update their router password. This is an important step in keeping your data safe. Think of a router password as another barrier between cyber criminals and your treasure trove of data. You want strong walls. For more information on how to change your router password, check out this article.

Next we dug into Zoom calling activity. With Zoom being the preferred method for CEOs and teachers alike nowadays, keeping your Zoom meeting locked down will keep unwanted participants from your private conversations. Therefore, you’ll need to get those settings updated.

Only 50% of those surveyed new how to update the security settings on their video conferencing sites. However, Zoom provides a handy guide on how to keep your security settings up-to-date. While you’re at it, why not add a fun background to your Zoom call? Here’s how to do that.

Our next survey question revealed that only 1 in 5 of those surveyed didn’t know how to backup their data. Halfway through grad school, my hard drive crashed. It was devastating. Backing up your data will save you a massive headache. Take it from someone who cried profusely for a week while stress emailing her professors, just back up your data. Some things can’t be recovered. Here are some tips on how to do that.

38% of respondents said they couldn’t identify a phishing attack. No worries! PC Matic has you covered. Here’s a great Tech Talk resource on how to spot phishing emails. Furthermore, here’s another on Vishing, a new hybrid phishing scheme. Stay informed, folks!

Finally, we covered updating. Less than two thirds of those surveyed knew how to update third party applications. Let’s get that handled with this article. Additionally, only 25% knew how to update their OS. Don’t worry, the article there can help with that too.

Sturdy Walls

Keeping those walls of protection updated will provide you with a sturdy foundation of support and security. As we all spend more time online, keeping ourselves safe becomes more important than ever before.

As always, stay safe out there.