Virus scan
Kaspersky Anti-Virus comprises the following tasks to scan objects for viruses:
- Custom Scan. Scan of objects selected by the user. You can scan any object of the computer’s file system from the following list: system memory, objects loaded on startup, system backup, email databases, hard drives, removable storage media and network drives.
- Full Scan. A thorough scan of the entire system. The following objects are scanned by default: system memory, objects loaded on startup, system backup, email databases, hard drives, removable storage media and network drives.
- Critical Areas Scan. Virus scan of operating system startup objects.
The Full Scan and the Critical Areas Scan tasks have their peculiarities. For these tasks, it is not recommended to edit the lists of objects to scan.
Each scan task is performed in the specified area and can be started according to the schedule created. Besides, each scan task is characterized with the security level (combination of settings that impact the depth of the scan). By default, the mode of using records from application databases to scan for threats is always enabled. You can also apply various scan methods and technologies.
Databases created by Kaspersky Lab’s experts and containing a detailed description of all current threats to computer security as well as methods used for their detection and disinfection. These databases are constantly updated by Kaspersky Lab as new threats appear. In order to achieve a higher quality of threat detection we recommend that you copy databases from Kaspersky Lab’s update servers on a regular basis.
After the virus scan task starts, its progress is displayed under the name of the task started in the Scan section of the main Kaspersky Anti-Virus window.
If a threat is detected, Kaspersky Anti-Virus assigns one of the following statuses to the found object:
- malicious program (such as a virus or Trojan);
- potentially infected (suspicious) status if the scan cannot determine whether the object is infected or not. The file may contain a sequence of code appropriate for viruses, or modified code from a known virus.
The application displays a notification about detected threat and performs the assigned action. You can change actions to be taken on detected threats.
If you work in automatic mode, Kaspersky Anti-Virus will automatically apply the action recommended by Kaspersky Lab’s specialists when dangerous objects are detected. For malicious objects this action is , for suspicious objects – Move to Quarantine.
Before attempting to disinfect or delete an infected object, Kaspersky Anti-Virus creates a backup copy for subsequent restoration or disinfection. Suspicious (potentially infected) objects are quarantined. You can enable the automatic scan of quarantined objects after each update.
Information on the scan results and events, which have occurred during the execution of the task, is logged in a Kaspersky Anti-Virus report.