New product by Data Fellows uses unique approach to the detection of macro viruses

ESPOO, FINLAND, 16 March 1998 -- Data Fellows, the maker of the award winning F-PROT Professional anti-virus and data security tool kit, today announced that its new F-Secure Anti-Virus Macro Control is now available worldwide.

F-Secure Anti-Virus Macro Control uses an innovative approach to detecting and disinfecting macro viruses. This approach is based on the concept of certification, whereby the network administrator approves a list of macros that can be used in the company. A typical organization would only have a limited number of macros that relate to its business, and as the number of macro viruses keeps growing, it is far easier to track the trusted macros than all the viruses. All unknown macros that have not been certified by the administrator, including macro viruses, will be locked out.

"This powerful technique works simply, yet elegantly," says Mikko Hypponen, Technical Product Manager of Data Fellows. "When a document is opened, copied or created, F-Secure Anti-Virus Macro Control checks if it contains macros. Most documents don't, and these are passed on. If any macros are found, they are checked against an authentication database. If a macro is present, it must be certified. In this way, the possibility of new macros and macro viruses entering the organization is eliminated. The idea works very much like a corporate security system, which only allows those employees into the organization who carry a security badge."

The authentication system first checks the file for known macro viruses. If a match is found, the user is alerted and a predefined action taken. The network administrator predefines what action is to be taken upon an alert prior to deploying F-Secure Anti-Virus Macro Control throughout the organization.

Secondly, the authentication checks the file for generally known macros, such as ’smart templates’ or commercial templates that are supplied by third party companies. And finally, F-Secure Anti-Virus Macro Control checks the file for known macros that have been created for general use within an organization.

To give an idea of the scope of the problem, the International Computer Security Assocation (ICSA) notes that about 80% of all virus infections in the last year were macro viruses.

"Macro viruses are the fastest growing and most widespread category of all viruses," says Mr. Hypponen. "In the beginning of this year, the number of known macro viruses alone soared past the 2000 mark. As macro viruses tend to mutate and spread very fast, it is hard even for the best scanners to keep track of every single variation. This is why the proactive approach of F-Secure Anti-Virus Macro Control can complement your existing anti-virus software."

Mr. Hypponen continues: "F-Secure Anti-Virus Macro Control works transparently in the background. The user will not even know it is there, until an unknown macro is found. It is managed and distributed centrally, allowing the administrator to add new certified macros from a convenient central console. Updates can be performed daily or at an administrator specified frequency."

"F-Secure Anti-Virus Macro Control is a radical departure from the traditional approach to macro virus detection. It is yet another product of the technological innovativeness that Data Fellows is renowned for."