Virus protection in the cloud

Further to Web User's report on Symantec's intention to change the way it approaches the detection of viruses, the company has revealed more information about how its new technique might work.

Using the principles of cloud computing, where all necessary elements of a software program are stored remotely online and not on an individual PC, Symantec's approach relies on deriving reputation ratings for every executable file available on the internet.

"Just like you use reputation ratings to choose whether or not to buy a book or a new MP3 player, the next generation of anti-virus software can use data to determine whether or not to allow an application to run on your computer," said Symantec's Carey Nachenberg.

The new approach should have a significant effect on the performance of PCs running Symantec anti-virus products.

"Unlike traditional antivirus, all our reputation data is stored in the cloud, meaning that if and when we shift to this model, we can drastically reduce the memory and performance impact of traditional anti-virus software," said Nachenberg.

However, the new generation of software products was still some way off, said Symantec.

"We're not quite ready to completely replace our traditional anti-virus technology, but we hope to release hybrid security products that leverage both old and new techniques soon," Nachenberg said.

www.symantec.com