Windows Defender Offline Beta

[othersteve]

You guys seen this yet?

What is Windows Defender Offline Beta?

Sometimes, malicious and other potentially unwanted software, including rootkits, try to install themselves on your PC. This can happen when you connect to the Internet or install some programs from a CD, DVD, or other media. Once on your PC, this software might run immediately, or it might run at unexpected times. Windows Defender Offline Beta can help remove such hard to find malicious and potentially unwanted programs using definitions that recognize threats. Definitions are files that provide an encyclopedia of potential software threats. Because new threats appear daily, it's important to always have the most up-to-date definitions installed in Windows Defender Offline Beta. Armed with definition files, Windows Defender Offline Beta can detect malicious and potentially unwanted software, and then notify you of the risks.

To use Windows Defender Offline Beta, you need to follow four basic steps:

Download Windows Defender Offline Beta and create a CD, DVD, or USB flash drive.

Restart your PC using the Windows Defender Offline Beta media.

Scan your PC for malicious and other potentially unwanted software.

Remove any malware that is found from your PC.

Windows Defender Offline Beta will walk you through the details of these four steps when you're using the tool. If you've been prompted in Microsoft Security Essentials or Windows Defender to download and run Windows Defender Offline Beta, it's important that you do so, to make sure that your data and your PC isn't compromised.

To get started, find a blank CD, DVD, or USB flash drive with at least 250 MB of free space and then download and run the tool—the tool will help you create the removable media.

[source]

Haven't had a chance to test it yet... next infected system I run across I will probably give it a shot. Anyone else messed with it yet?

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

Interesting....
I wonder how it differs in detection and definition sets from MSE?
And while we're at it...how it differs from MRT?

I've had MRT surprise me with what it found in the past, after running other much more widely used malware removal tools.

 

[parker.casey]

I just can't imagine that being more useful than the MSSE offline one ... or maybe they just changed what they're calling it?

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

I dunno....Defender was out for quite a while, it was the re-hash of Microsoft AntiSpyware...which was a rename of the product "Giant Antispyware" that a company called Giant made, which Microsoft bought up.

MSE actually disabled the Defender service if it detects it on a system its being installed on.

 

[iisjman07]

I just can't imagine that being more useful than the MSSE offline one ... or maybe they just changed what they're calling it?

I was thinking the same; maybe this is what it's called now it's out of beta. They certainly seem the same

 

[Xander]

Microsoft Sweeper has crashed on every system I've tried it on thus far; on 3 different flash drives and on disc.

 

[FoolishTech]

I was thinking the same; maybe this is what it's called now it's out of beta. They certainly seem the same

Hasn't this been a part of the latest MS DaRT for a while? Or is that called something different...

 

[othersteve]

Microsoft Sweeper has crashed on every system I've tried it on thus far; on 3 different flash drives and on disc.

Huh! I haven't tried it still. Will add to my toolkit later this week and see how it works out for me.

 

[hoosier13]

I tried it to try and remove a Alureon infection with it but I'm not sure if it really worked or not. It reports that the computer is clean but it feels like it is still infected.

I downloaded from this link where it is called "Microsoft Standalone System Sweeper," but it seems to be the same product.

 

[glricht]

Woody Leonhard published an article in Windows Secrets about Windows Defender Offline. Does a pretty good job of describing it, it's heritage, etc. Also check out the paragraph about how MS is "botching" the name-game again. (Hint: WDO is a completely new product, although it's name is a retread.)

Take a look at http://windowssecrets.com/newsletter/windows-defender-offline-old-name-new-use/

 

[Metanis]

Woody Leonhard published an article in Windows Secrets about Windows Defender Offline. Does a pretty good job of describing it, it's heritage, etc. Also check out the paragraph about how MS is "botching" the name-game again. (Hint: WDO is a completely new product, although it's name is a retread.)

Take a look at http://windowssecrets.com/newsletter/windows-defender-offline-old-name-new-use/

I also noticed the Woody's write-up. I decided to give it a try today.

The installer/build is nearly totally automated. Upon running it looks and feels just like Windows Defender or Security Essentials. In fact it uses the exact same Engine as my Security Essentials instance. So it appears to be just a WinPE version of MSE or Forefront. I'm not saying that's a bad thing.

It surely appears to be another tool to add to the arsenal.

-Mike