Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014
Written by Tomas Meskauskas on (updated)
What is Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014?
Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 is a fake antivirus program originating from a family of rogue security scanners called Braviax/FakeRean. This program was developed by cyber criminals and employs a deceptive strategy intended to coerce computer users into purchasing a useless license key.
This program holds no virus scan engine or malware definition database, however, it performs 'security scans' and displays lists of identified security infections supposedly detected on PCs.
This is a scam designed to scare PC users into believing that their computers are infected with high-risk malware and viruses. Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 is merely an imitation of a legitimate antivirus program, and therefore, should not be trusted or purchased.
This malicious program is capable of adapting its name according to the operating system infiltrated. For example, on computers running the Windows 7 operating system, the rogue program appears as Zorton Win 7 Antivirus 2014; on PCs with Windows XP, it appears as Zorton XP Antivirus 2014.
To achieve its deceptive goal of misleading PC users, this bogus software not only displays fake security scans and mimics the detection of multiple security infections, but also modifies the registry entries of infiltrated operating systems. Furthermore, Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 disables execution of installed software and hijacks Internet browsers.
Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 is a scam. None of the information displayed (security scans, warning pop-ups, etc) are legitimate. Commonly, cyber criminals employ Trojans and fake online security warning messages to infiltrate systems. To prevent infections by these rogue security scanners, use legitimate antivirus and antispyware programs.
To make the work of cyber criminals more difficult, keep your operating system and installed software (Flash, Java, etc.) up-to-date. If you observe Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 scanning your computer for security infections, your PC is infiltrated with fake antivirus software - do not trust it and use this removal guide to eliminate it from your computer.
Examples of fake security warning messages displayed by Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014:
“System security threat was detected. Viruses and/or spyware may be damaging your system now. Prevent infection and data loss or stealing by running a free security scan”
“Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 has blocked a program from accessing the internet - This program is infected with Trojan-BNK.Win32.Keylogger.gen Private data can be stolen by third parties, including credit card details and passwords”
“Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 Alert - System Hacked! Unknown program is scanning your system registry right now! Identity theft detected”
“Tracking software found! Your PC activity is being monitored. Possible spyware infection. Your data security may be compromised. Sensitive data can be stolen. Prevent damage now by completing a security scan”
Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 rogue antivirus performing a fake computer security scan:
Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 blocking Internet access:
Internet Explorer alert. Visiting this site may pose a security threat to your system!
Possible reasons include:
Dangerous code found in this site’s pages which installs unwanted software into your system.
Suspicious and potentially unwanted network activity detected.
Spyware infection in your system.
Complaints from other users about this site.
Port and system scans performed by the site being visited.Things you can do:
Get a copy of “Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014” to safeguard your PC while surfing the web (RECOMMENDED)
Run a spyware, virus and malware scan
Continue surfing without any security measures (DANGEROUS)
Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 blocking execution of installed programs:
Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 has blocked a program from accessing the Internet. This program is infected with Trojan-BNK.Win32.Keylogger.gen Private data can be stolen by third parties, including credit card detail and passwords.
Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 displaying a fake Windows Action Center:
Action Center has detected one or more issues for you to review. Windows Defender and Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 are both turned off.
A rogue website used for collecting payment of license keys for Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 fake antivirus software:
Instant automatic malware removal:
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Quick menu:
- What is Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014?
- STEP 1. Remove Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 using Safe Mode with Networking.
- STEP 2. Optional Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 removal method.
- STEP 3. Manual Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 removal.
Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 removal:
Windows 8 users: Go to the Windows 8 Start Screen, type Advanced, in the search results select Settings. Click on Advanced Startup options, in the opened "General PC Settings" window select Advanced Startup. Click on the "Restart now" button. Your computer will now restart into "Advanced Startup options menu".
Click on the "Troubleshoot" button, then click on "Advanced options" button. In the advanced option screen click on "Startup settings". Click on the "Restart" button. Your PC will restart into the Startup Settings screen. Press "5" to boot in Safe Mode with Networking.
Video showing how to start Windows 8 in "Safe Mode with Networking":
After booting your computer in Safe Mode with Networking, try downloading and running the recommended antimalware software. If the download is blocked, follow the instructions presented below.
IMPORTANT! Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 rogue antivirus damages Windows Security Center and Windows Defender services. After removing this fake antivirus program, download the registry fixes presented below. After downloading, double-click each and click Yes (when asked to merge data).
NOTE: If you cannot run the remover, try to right-click on it and select "Run as administrator". If the installation of the malware remover fails, or you cannot open the .exe files, try one of the alternative download locations below:
- Location 1 (the file is renamed to "iexplore.exe", since most spyware does not block this file)
- Location 2
If, after or before, removal of this fake antivirus you are unable to run any of your installed software, Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 has modified your operating system's .exe file associations. To fix this, download the registry fix (link below). Save it to your computer, double click it, click "Yes", and then "OK". After rebooting your PC, file associations should function normally.
If you cannot open your browser (Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome):
Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 hijacks Internet browsers, modifies registry settings, and disables execution of programs. For these cases, our developers have created a custom installer - useful when you are unable to browse the Internet or execute .exe files.
It starts like an MS-Dos program, runs some registry fixes, and then initiates execution of an installer. This installer was tested on the Windows 7, Windows Vista, and XP operating systems infected with the most common spyware infections.
To use this installer, right-click in the lower left corner of the screen. In the Quick Access Menu, select Run.
In the Search field, enter this link: www.pcrisk.com/installer.com and then press ENTER.
Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 generates a fake warning after pressing ENTER. Ignore this and click "No, stay unprotected..." on this message.
File download dialogue will appear reporting that you are downloading the file, installer.com. Click Run, wait for download to complete, and then follow the on-screen instructions. Windows may warn you that opening unknown files may be unsafe. Please ignore these warnings.
If your Internet browsers work, use this button to download the customized installer.
IMPORTANT! Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 rogue antivirus damages Windows Security Center and Windows Defender services. After removing this fake antivirus program, download the registry fixes presented below. After downloading, double-click each and click Yes (when asked to merge data).
If installation or downloading fails:
If you are still unable to run or download the removal tool, download the registry fix file. It enables normal execution of applications and fixes web browser errors. Click the link below, and when download completes, click run, click yes, and then OK.
If installation of the malware remover fails, try our Customized installer built by our technicians to bypass infections and install removers regardless.
If you cannot access your Internet browsers using the infected computer, use a clean system to download this remover and use removable media (such as a CD, USB, etc.) to transfer it to the infected PC. Note that this rogue also blocks execution of programs.
If you are using a clean PC to download the remover, also download the registry fix (download link below) provided. Transfer both files to the infected machine, first run the registry fix, and then run the full scan with the recommended remover.
Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 removal (optional method):
Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 rogue blocks execution of all installed software - this makes its removal complicated. The best way to eliminate this rogue is to login to an unaffected user account and run a security scan from it. If available, login to a "Guest" account and follow the removal steps provided below. If your "Guest" user account is not activated, follow these steps:
Right-click in the lower left corner of the screen, in the Quick Access Menu, select Control Panel.
In the opened window, click "Change account type" (under "User Accounts and Family Safety").
In the opened window, click "Guest".
In the next window, click the "Turn On" button.
Restart your PC, when the Windows logon screen appears, select the "Guest" user, then continue with the removal steps provided below.
After logging into your Guest account, download recommended malware removal software and run a full system scan to completely eliminate this fake antivirus software from your PC.
Manual Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 removal instructions
Some spyware can block downloading of spyware removers. If you cannot download it using the default location, try one of the alternative download locations below:
- Location 1 (the file is renamed to "iexplore.exe", since most spyware does not block this file)
- Location 2
If installation of the remover fails, try downloading the customized installer built by our technicians to bypass spyware infections. Download customized installer
If you still cannot download or run the spyware removing software, please perform these steps:
Step 1
Download the registry fix for Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 malware. This fix removes registry entries that disallow execution of programs in some variants of this spyware. To download it, click the link below. After downloading, double click win8_av_fix.reg file, click Yes when asked, and then click OK.
Step 2
Some variants of this spyware modify system proxy settings so that you are unable to access the Internet (or website addresses are redirected to malicious or phishing websites). To reset the proxy settings to default, download and run this tool:
Step 3
Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 modifies the system Hosts file. The Hosts file is used to resolve canonical names of websites to IP addresses. When it is changed, the user may be redirected to malicious sites, despite seeing legitimate URLs in address bar. It is difficult to determine if sites are genuine when the Hosts file is modified.
To fix this, download the Microsoft Fix It tool, which restores your Hosts file to the Windows default. Run this tool when downloaded and follow the on-screen instructions. Download link below:
Step 4
That's It! You can now try to download the Malware remover or install and run it if already downloaded.
IMPORTANT! Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014 rogue antivirus damages Windows Security Center and Windows Defender services. After removing this fake antivirus program, download the registry fixes presented below. After downloading, double-click each and click Yes (when asked to merge data).
Other tools known to remove Zorton Win 8 Antivirus 2014:
Summary:
The fake antivirus programs (also known as "rogue antivirus programs" or "scareware") are applications that tries to lure computer users into paying for their non-existent full versions to remove the supposedly detected security infections (although the computer is actually clean). These bogus programs are created by cyber criminals who design them to look as legitimate antivirus software. Most commonly rogue antivirus programs infiltrate user's computer using poop-up windows or alerts which appear when users surf the Internet. These deceptive messages trick users into downloading a rogue antivirus program on their computers. Other known tactics used to spread scareware include exploit kits, infected email messages, online ad networks, drive-by downloads, or even direct calls to user's offering free support.
A computer that is infected with a fake antivirus program might also have other malware installed on it as rogue antivirus programs often are bundled with Trojans and exploit kits. Noteworthy that additional malware that infiltrates user's operating system remains on victim's computer regardless of whether a payment for a non-existent full version of a fake antivirus program is made. Here are some examples of fake security warning messages that are used in fake antivirus distribution:
Computer users who are dealing with a rogue security software shouldn't buy it's full version. By paying for a license key of a fake antivirus program users would send their money and banking information to cyber criminals. Users who have already entered their credit card number (or other sensitive information) when asked by such bogus software should inform their credit card company that they have been tricked into buying a rogue security software. Screenshot of a web page used to lure computer users into paying for a non-existent full version of zorton win 8 antivirus 2014 scam and other rogue antivirus programs:
To protect your computer from zorton win 8 antivirus 2014 scam and other rogue antivirus programs users should:
- Keep their operating system and all of the installed programs up-to-date.
- Use legitimate antivirus and anti-spyware programs.
- Use caution when clicking on links in social networking websites and email messages.
- Don't trust online pop-up messages which state that your computer is infected and offers you to download security software.
Symptoms indicating that your operating system is infected with a fake antivirus program:
- Intrusive security warning pop-up messages.
- Alerts asking to upgrade to a paid version of a program to remove the supposedly detected malware.
- Slow computer performance.
- Disabled Windows updates.
- Blocked Task Manager.
- Blocked Internet browsers or inability to visit legitimate antivirus vendor websites.
If you have additional information on zorton win 8 antivirus 2014 scam or it's removal please share your knowledge in the comments section below.
Outstanding!
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