Facebook Announces Anti-Virus Marketplace
IT News Online Staff
2012-04-30
Facebook has announced the Anti-Virus Marketplace, developed with industry partners to enhance protection for people on Facebook. The company has partnered with Microsoft, McAfee, TrendMicro, Sophos and Symantec, who will augment Facebook's URL blacklist system with their own URL blacklist databases.
The Anti-Virus Marketplace will also let people download six-month licenses to full versions of anti-virus software at no charge.
Facebook said its users will now be protected by the combined intelligence of these industry leaders. The company's URL blacklist system, which scans trillions of clicks per day, will now incorporate the malicious URL databases from these security companies to augment its existing level of protection. This means that whenever users click a link on Facebook, they benefit not just from Facebook's existing protections, but the ongoing vigilance of the world's leading corporations involved in computer security.
Facebook said that at the moment, less than 4% of content shared is spam (compared to nearly 90% of email) and it is looking forward to making even more progress in the future.
Beyond the expansion of its URL blacklist system, Facebook has announced the new AV Marketplace for all Facebook users. Accessible from the Facebook Security Page, or directly at http://on.fb.me/FBAVMarketplace, people will be able to select a free download from one of its anti-virus partners. Facebook said it believes that arming its users with anti-virus software will help empower them to stay safe no matter where they are on the Web.
The Anti-Virus Marketplace enables people to download six-month licenses to full versions of anti-virus software at no charge from Microsoft, McAfee, TrendMicro, Sophos, or Symantec. Facebook's global community can now download for free powerful software to protect their computers from current and future viruses, and content security threats providing hundreds of millions of people free access to anti-virus software.
Facebook has also welcomed these companies to the Facebook Security Blog, where they will provide important educational materials to help those who use the site keep themselves, and their data, safe. The company has asked users to Like the Security Page to make sure they receive these updates.
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