Social networking giant integrates threat defense technology from Trend Micro and F-secure to prevent malicious activities while maintaining user privacy
Facebook in coordination with Trend Micro and F-Secure has incorporated a new security solution that helps detect malware and keep devices secure for Facebook users.
“Our goal is to make it easier for people to find and use the right technology to better protect their devices. We’ve worked with F-Secure and Trend Micro to incorporate free anti-malware software downloads directly into our existing abuse detection and prevention systems. These are the same systems that help us block malicious links and bad sites from among the trillions of clicks that take place every day on Facebook,” says Facebook in a post.
So here’s how it works, when a user logs in from an infected device, a pop notification on the screen is displayed along with recommendation to use F-Secure’s malware scanning and cleanup technology or HouseCall from Trend Micro.
According to Facebook, “Each product contains distinct malware signatures and is suited to different kinds of threats, so we recommend trying the suggested product even if you already have an anti-virus or similar program running on your machine. You won’t have to worry about maintenance; these versions are up-to-date and will remove themselves once they’re done running.”
Users have the option to skip the malware removal process and download recommendation scanner. But, users may be again prompted for download later in that case.
That said, users can continue using the social network and other services while one downloads and runs the scanner. After the scan is complete, users receive a notification through Facebook along with results of the scan.
“HouseCall will give Facebook users an additional safeguard against the malicious attacks that interacting online can bring,” said Dhanya Thakkar, Managing Director, India & SEA, Trend Micro. “We are pleased to partner with one of the world’s leading social media networks to provide a free solution that will help protect the online security and privacy of billions of users.”