Jargon

 

Like any other industry, there is a world of strange terms and jargon associated with antivirus software.  Say that you are looking to download Norton Internet Security, for example, and it comes with plenty of jargon to say what it does – half of which you don’t really even understand.  So what does some of this jargon actually mean? Here are a few examples.

BROWSER PROTECTION – This means that the antivirus software protects your computer from nasty downloads that begin automatically against your will, known as “drive by” downloads, should you visit a malicious web site. 

DOWNLOAD INTELLIGENCE –This helps to configure the function known as Download Insight – in other words, it turns that function on and off.

DOWNLOAD INSIGHT – This analyzes any executable programs that you have downloaded in order to tell you whether they are safe, unsafe, or unknown before you actually run them and potentially damage your computer. 

IDLE TIME OPTIMIZER – This waits until you are not using your computer, when the computer is in the state known as being “idle”, and then activates the built-in Windows Defragmenter in order to help “clean up” your computer. 



INSIGHT NETWORK – This refers to the combination of different definitions of malware, such as ones that have not yet been downloaded to your hard disk drive (HDD), and malware identified through the Norton Community Watch feature.

INSIGHT PROTECTION – This is the combination of different definitions of malware identified through the Insight Network, as well as those residing on the HDD.  Identification is made while doing a scan for any malware that may be on your computer or an internet site you are visiting. 

INTRUSION AUTO BLOCK – If any computer that you are remotely attached to begins attacking your computer, this function will immediately block that assault.

INTRUSION PREVENTION – Similar to Intrusion Auto Block, this function scans all network traffic that is entering or leaving your computer for any signs of any kind of malicious behavior. 

NORTON COMMUNITY WATCH – This refers to a ranking system that has been defined by other users’ experience with a downloadable application, giving you a frame of reference as to whether they are safe or otherwise. 

NORTON SAFE WEB – Similar to Norton Community Watch, this refers to an overall reputation and safety ranking given by other users to any web sites you may be currently visiting.

QUIET MODE – This enables the computer to suspend the background actions of NIS/NAV functions in order to provide better performance to a major task that the computer is currently occupied with carrying out – for instance, the burning of a CD or DVD or the recording of a television program. 

SAFE SURFING – A function that is a combination of the Norton Safe Web function and one that prevents any “phishing” for information on your computer by outsiders.

SONAR PROTECTION – This refers to a function that uses behavioral analysis in addition to NIS/NAV functions in order to decide whether a downloaded application has malicious intentions and capabilities. 

 

These definitions should help users in understanding the meaning behind the marketing terms. 



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