Multiple Cloud Virus Scanning with Hitman Pro
It’s common knowledge that a system is best to have only one antivirus onboard…well, sort of, because there ARE some antivirus pairings that work well together, for example, Kaspersky with Microsoft Security Essentials. Problem is, sometimes malware still get pass your system undetected, even when you have two antivirus installed on your PC. You can always upload suspected files up to online scanning service such as VirusTotal.com, but then what if you don’t know which file to suspect? Surely you can’t upload everything one by one?
Hitman Pro, a cloud-based virus scanning software developed by SurfRight, has the closest answer to the problem above. Unlike Panda Cloud Antivirus or Immunet Protect, which are both independent cloud antivirus, Hitman Pro utilizes FIVE scanning engines as their in-the-cloud detection, where users can immediately scan their PC directly from the desktop. Like all cloud scanning technology, Hitman Pro is designed to be portable, light on system resources, requires minimum interaction and improved scanning time. Hitman Pro also works alongside any existing antivirus software without compatibility issues. The free version of Hitman Pro allows users to scan their PC for infection (with a free 30-day period removal), while the paid version allows users to scan for and remove infections from their PC.
The five scanning engines are publicly revealed as G DATA, Avira, ESET NOD32, Prevx CSI & A-Squared Antimalware, although one can argue that with this lineup, Hitman Pro is essentially utilizing 7 scanning engines, since GDATA uses the Bitdefender and Avast scanning engines, while A-Squared uses its own scanning engine together with Ikarus scanning engine. According to inside sources, Hitman Pro carefully chooses their scanning engines based on their distinctive advantages. G DATA and Avira is chosen for their proven high and accurate detection rate, while NOD32 is chosen for its famous ThreatSense heuristic scanning engine. Prevx is chosen for its HIPS detection and rootkit detection while A-Squared is chosen for its antispyware and common malware detection.
Hitman Pro scans fast and reliably, identifying the main key areas for scan based on collective intelligence from its five scanning engines. On its scan result page, it displays the amount of files scanned and the total time taken for scanning the files. It is also more configurable than Panda Cloud Antivirus, A-Squared MalAware and Immunet Protect in some areas, notably the option to scan the PC during every computer bootup.
The limitations of Hitman Pro, however, is that is is meant to be a scanning and removal tool instead of a monitoring tool. Therefore, it is recommended that users still have a real-time antivirus running on their desktop. If users decide to rely on Hitman Pro for detection, then they must frequently scan their PC for infections. Since the free version does not provide removal, Hitman Pro is also not a really good free virus scanner for novice users who does not have sufficient knowledge in manually removing malwares.
All in all, Hitman Pro is the best portable cloud virus scanner available for both novice and advanced users.
Hitman Pro is currently a v3.5 final release (Build 80), available in both 32-bit and 64-bit. Windows XP, Vista, 7 and all Server OS (2003 & 2008) are supported.
Download Hitman Pro v3.5 32-bit
Download Hitman Pro v3.5 64-bit
