Nico just notified me that the popular security company ZoneAlarm has started to use scareware tactics to sell more of their products. ZoneAlarm Free Firewall users received a notification window, that informed them about a global virus alert. The notification reads “Global virus alert Your PC may be in danger! Virus Details: Risk:high Threat name: ZeuS.Zbot.aoaq”, “ZeuS.Zbot.aoaq is a new Trojan virus that steals banking passwords and financial account data. Your ZoneAlarm Free Firewall provides basic protection, but this new threat requires additional security”. Options are to see the threat details or get protection.

global virus alert

The problem lies in the wording. This is not actually a threat that was found on the user’s computer. It is merely a notification of the threat. But ZoneAlarm makes it look like the user’s PC is infected and that there is need for action. And the action is to purchase ZoneAlarm products.

Users who read the notification carefully may notice that it is a notification, and not an infection that has been found on the system. Is that something that the firewall usually detects? I have never used their firewall but it is unlikely that a firewall would display those messages. The real problem here is that the alert looks like an infection was detected on the PC. What makes matters worse is that the notification does not let the user know that everything is alright at the moment, and that the user does not need to worry if an antivirus software is installed on the system. No, it only displays an option to see the threat details or to buy a product from ZoneAlarm. That’s scareware tactics at its best.

ZoneAlarm Firewall Free users who get the global virus alert should close the notification immediately. If they have an up to date antivirus software on their system it is all they need to do. If they do not have one, they should consider installing AVG 9 or Microsoft Security Essentials, both completely free and very good at detecting those kind of things.

The forum announcement of Zonealarm 9.1 links to a download page at the Zonealarm website where users can download that version of the free software firewall. Major changes in Zonealarm 9.1 include full Windows 7 compatibility and a new browser security toolbar that detects spy sites, offers website safety checks and ratings as well as a signature and heuristic phishing detection.

The direct download link for Zonealarm 9.1 can be accessed here. Zonealarm users who are running an earlier version of the Zonealarm firewall are asked to uninstall that version before they start installation of Zonealarm 9.1. Best way to do so is to remove Zonealarm from the list of Windows startup items by going to Overview> Preferences > General > Load ZoneAlarm at startup.

It also has to be noted that Zonealarm 9.1 should be run as the only software firewall on the computer system. It is therefor highly recommended to uninstall other software firewalls and to disable Windows firewall to ensure that the firewall protects the PC properly. Zonealarm 9.1 is compatible with both 32-bit and 64-bit editions of Windows 7 and previous Windows operating systems. (Thanks Dante for the tip).

The Check Point ZoneAlarm Pro promotion represents a $40 value and includes a full year license for up to three PCs. It is limited to only one download per new customer.

Features of Zonealarm Pro Firewall 2010:

• Advanced Download – Analyzes browser downloads in three unique ways before they can infect your PC and warns if they are malicious.
• Free Credit Bureau – Protects your identity with daily credit report monitoring and provides victim recovery services.
• Complimentary and Compatible – Works well with other free and paid (non-firewall) security products, such as AVG and Norton Antivirus.
• Automatic Program Control – See less alerts than with ZoneAlarm Free Firewall.
• OSFirewall™ – Monitors changes within your computer to spot and stop new attacks that bypass traditional anti-virus protection.
• Anti-phishing and Site Status – Blocks fraudulent websites including “phishing” sites that trick you into entering personal data.
• Two-way Firewall – Keeps hackers out by making your PC invisible online and blocking intrusions.

Additional information about the firewall are available at the Zonealarm website.

Update: Users need to add credit card information for “verification” purposes. Check Point is setting the subscription to automatically renew after a year which can be changed in the use profile on the website.

The url with the free offer will go live at the same time which is why it cannot be posted yet. It is likely that the following page will provide access to the download, it seems to be connected to the offer.

Users who download Zonealarm Pro will receive the software program for free including its one year subscription. The package would normally cost $39.95 for a year. The Zonealarm Pro suite contains a firewall and anti-spyware application.

The website will most likely be overrun tomorrow by thousands of users who want to grab their free copy. The best spots are probably to be among the first or download it in the second half of the day.

Although the promotion is only running today users who download the virtualization software have seven days to install it and are still eligible to use it freely. The registration key will be send to the email address entered during registration and is good for one year of free updates.

Zonealarm Forcefield is compatible to Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 and Internet Explorer 7 as well as Mozilla Firefox 2 and Firefox 3. No Opera support in sight unfortunately though.

ZoneAlarm Forcefield adds a toolbar to the browser which thankfully can be shortened so that the icons only appear in the statubs bar and are thus less obtrusive.

Features:

• Browser Threat Immunity
• Keylogger & Screengrabber Jamming
• Anti-Phishing
• Spy Site Blocking
• On-The-Fly Encryption
• Website Safety Check

Unlike the other two virtualization software programs ZoneAlarm Forcefield virtualises only the browser and not other applications that connect to the Internet.

Users who would like to download the regular Zonealarm Anti-Spyware free of charge today have to supply their name and a valid email address to receive the download link, a valid serial number for the software and instructions on how to enter that serial number to activate the software.