TeamViewer, a remote control program, can be very handy when you need remote IT support. The cybercriminals behind TeamSpy, unfortunately, also find the tool to be quite useful and use it to carry out malicious activity.

Most of us have countless online accounts; and without even realizing it, we spread our personal information throughout the World Wide Web. We therefore wanted to find out how people not only value the information they store in their online accounts, but how they protect their information to prevent it from falling into the wrong hands.

What do millions of desktop and laptop users have in common? I’ll give you a hint: You are busy with some activity on your laptop and a message pops up informing you that one of your software programs or tools needs updating. If you are like most people, you hit the ‘Remind Me Later’ option, and keep doing what you’re doing. Later often never comes. Does that sound familiar?

We recently released a new version of our flagship PC product, Avast 2017, which uses various engines, including CyberCapture, to scan for threats. Our engines are protection layers, that can step in at different stages to safeguard you from threats. An additional layer we added to Avast 2017 is a patent-pending technology that we call Behavior Shield.

Websites using HTTPS can increase privacy, as the connection between the browser and the website’s server is encrypted. This means that the browser and the web server are the only points that see your browsing activity and the data you enter. Today, anyone who owns a URL can obtain a TLS/SSL certificate, needed to encrypt the web traffic, and create a HTTPS website. This, of course, includes cybercriminals. Because of this, back in 2014, Avast introduced a way to scan HTTPS URLs for malicious activity in order to protect our users from being infected via malware transmitted over HTTPS sites.

Technology has become an integral part of our lives – at work, at school, and at home – even on our bodies. Without security, we wouldn’t be nearly as productive or enjoy the benefits it brings to our lives. The range of devices and the numerous attack vectors the bad guys have at their disposal calls for technologically advanced cybersecurity. The days of simple antivirus scans are gone. Modern systems of threat detection include core processes such as structural analysis, behavioral scanning, and cloud-based intelligence.

When two creative, technologically advanced teams come together to create something, the result is outstanding. That is exactly what has happened in the last few months since Avast acquired AVG Technologies. As the product manager for Avast 2017, it is with great pleasure that I tell you about our redesigned, next-gen security software. On behalf of the entire team, I can say with confidence that the Avast 2017 collection of products – Avast Free Antivirus, Avast Pro Antivirus, Avast Internet Security and Avast Premier – is the most lightweight, state-of-the-art protection that we have ever launched.

Here are some of the features that we you to know about:

There are more ways to get to the Internet than the standard web browser. Most people go with one they have heard of or the one that comes with their PC. Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer, and Opera are common names, but there are plenty of alternative browsers available. Since we are concerned about protecting your digital life in all areas, our developers created Avast SafeZone browser. It’s a fully functioning browser for those of us who want to ensure we have the optimal privacy and data security. 

Avast is proud to sponsor our first virtual Formula One team with rookie driver Petr Zoubek in season 3 of the Thrustmaster Virtual GP.  Virtual racing competitions are new to the world of eGaming, and Virtual GP is pioneering a unique platform using modern technologies to combine the best of real motorsport with the virtual one.

In 2016, ransomware once again demonstrated that it is the biggest security threat. In the past year more than 200 new strains of ransomware were discovered, it’s growth of in-the-wild samples two-folded, but the good news is that hundreds of millions of Avast and AVG users were protected against this popular threat.