App Review RansomFree by CyberReason Quick Test

It is advised to take all reviews with a grain of salt. In extreme cases some reviews use dramatization for entertainment purposes.

Windows_Security

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Due to its canary files design RansomFree will have trouble with some forms of ransomware

On the plus side of RansomFree
  • Has little system impact
  • Is very easy to use, also for average PC user
  • Has a track record of causing no problems with other software
  • Usually updates a day after public notifications of new ransomware variants
For people putting their faith into a FREE antivirus with no advanced defenses like sandboxes/HIPS/ect, it is a great addition.

For informed PC users there are better alternatives.

A Ferrari is a great car, but a lousy transporter in the heights of the Himalaya's

A Yak is a great pack animal, but a lousy means to commute in the greater Londen area.
 
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cruelsister

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WS- RansomFree is by no means junk, and as I pointed out has improved a great deal over the past year. However the product relies far too much on definition detection (with a new def push into the Local base) which is problematic as it tends to hide a still immature mechanistic detection routine. As most ransomware authors have expectations for the lifespan of their malware to be 24 hours or less (and so will stop distribution after that timespan and morph the original), does detection at D+2 for a specific variant have any real world significance?

Although I do agree that there is a need for a dedicated anti-ransom app for those that rely on tradition AV's, Appcheck (free) or RansomOff will provide broader coverage..
 
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Windows_Security

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CS

I personally like RansomOff a lot. It is probably the best free option for power users. AppCheck free is also a great application. the free version allows a registry hack to protect more file extensions. The default list misses a few file etxtension. That is a pitty because AppCheck free is a great install and forget application suitable for average Joe/Jane also IF it was not for the missing file extensions (probably by design to pull people towards the paid variant).

So for average Joe/Jane we have RansomFree and AppCheck: not perfect protection for all documents, versus near perfect protection for not all documents, The constant day after updates of RansomFree makes mee lean towards RansomFree as the better solution for Average Joe/Jan (broader document protection than AppCheck). But every man/woman has to decide for them selves.

For power users RansOff is great, but it has to come out of beta first IMO.

Regards

Kees
 
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cimmay

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Oct 24, 2017
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Although I do agree that there is a need for a dedicated anti-ransom app for those that rely on tradition AV's, Appcheck (free) or RansomOff will provide broader coverage..

Finally tried AppCheck and it looks great. They changed a feature in the Free version, MBR protection is now enabled. I depended a lot on video testing, they have a ton of examples. The one that sold it is Cerber. Tried a dozen times to get Ransomoff installed, it makes my Win7 machine unresponsive and needing a Reset.
 

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