Comodo Internet Security

• Introduction To Comodo Internet Security
  • Special Features
  • Download, Installation And Activation
  • Start Comodo Internet Security
  • The Main Interface
    • The Home Screen
    • The Tasks Interface
    • The Widget
    • The System Tray Icon
  • Understand Security Alerts
• General Tasks – Introduction
  • Scan And Clean Your Computer
    • Run A Quick Scan
    • Run A Full Computer Scan
    • Run A Rating Scan
    • Run A Custom Scan
      • Scan A Folder
      • Scan A File
      • Create, Schedule And Run A Custom Scan
  • Secure Shopping Settings
  • Manage Virus Database And Program Updates
  • Get Live Support
  • Manage Blocked Items
  • Instantly Scan Files And Folders
  • Process Infected Files
• Firewall Tasks - Introduction
  • Configure Internet Access Rights For Applications
  • Manage Network Connections
  • Stop All Network Activities
  • Stealth Your Computer Ports
  • View Active Internet Connections
• Containment Tasks - Introduction
  • Run An Application In The Container
  • Reset The Container
  • Identify And Kill Unsafe Running Processes
  • View Active Process List
  • The Virtual Desktop
    • Start The Virtual Desktop
    • The Main Interface
    • Run Browsers Inside The Virtual Desktop
    • Open Files And Run Applications Inside The Virtual Desktop
    • Configure The Virtual Desktop
    • Close The Virtual Desktop
• Advanced Tasks – Introduction
  • Create A Rescue Disk
    • Download And Burn Comodo Rescue Disk
  • Remove Deeply Hidden Malware
  • Manage CIS Tasks
  • Manage Quarantined Items
  • View CIS Logs
    • Antivirus Logs
    • VirusScope Logs
    • Firewall Logs
    • HIPS Logs
    • Containment Logs
    • Website Filtering Logs
    • Device Control Logs
    • Autorun Event Logs
    • Alerts Logs
    • CIS Tasks Logs
    • File List Changes Logs
    • Vendor List Changes Logs
    • Trusted Certificate Authority Change Logs
    • Configuration Change Logs
    • Secure Shopping Activity Logs
    • Search And Filter Logs
  • Submit Files For Analysis To Comodo
• CIS Settings
  • General Settings
    • Customize User Interface
    • Configure Program And Virus Database Updates
    • Log Settings
    • Manage CIS Configurations
      • Comodo Preset Configurations
      • Personal Configurations
  • Antivirus Configurations
    • Real-time Scan Settings
    • Scan Profiles
  • Firewall Configuration
    • General Firewall Settings
    • Application Rules
    • Global Rules
    • Firewall Rule Sets
    • Network Zones
      • Network Zones
      • Blocked Zones
    • Port Sets
  • HIPS Configuration
    • HIPS Settings
    • Active HIPS Rules
    • HIPS Rule Sets
    • Protected Objects
      • Protected Files
      • Blocked Files
      • Protected Registry Keys
      • Protected COM Interfaces
      • Protected Data Files And Folders
    • HIPS Groups
      • Registry Groups
      • COM Groups
  • Containment Configuration
    • Containment Settings
    • Auto-Containment Rules
    • Containment - An Overview
    • Unknown Files - The Scanning Processes
  • File Rating Configuration
    • File Rating Settings
    • File Groups
    • Submitted Files
  • Advanced Protection Configuration
    • VirusScope Settings
    • Scan Exclusions
    • Device Control Settings
    • Script Analysis Settings
    • Miscellaneous Settings
    • Comodo Secure Shopping
  • Website Filtering Configuration
    • Website Filtering Rules
    • Website Categories
• Comodo GeekBuddy
  • Download And Install GeekBuddy
  • Overview Of Services
  • Activation Of Service
  • Launch The Client And Use The Service
  • Accept Remote Desktop Requests
  • Uninstall Comodo GeekBuddy
• TrustConnect Overview
• Dragon Browser
• Comodo Backup
• Comodo Internet Security Essentials
  • What Is Comodo Internet Security Essentials
  • What Is A Man-in-the-middle Attack
  • How Does Comodo Internet Security Essentials Protect Me From A Man-in-the-middle Attack
  • What Is The Install Location Of Comodo Internet Security Essentials
  • How Do I Update CISE
  • Understand Alerts And Configure Exceptions
  • How Do I View CISE Help
  • How Do I View The Version Number And Release Notes
  • How Do I Remove Comodo Internet Security Essentials
• Appendix 1 CIS How To... Tutorials
  • Enable / Disable AV, Firewall, Auto-Containment, VirusScope And Website Filter Easily
  • Set Up The Firewall For Maximum Security And Usability
  • Block Internet Access While Allowing Local Area Network (LAN) Access
  • Block/Allow Specific Websites To Specific Users
  • Set Up HIPS For Maximum Security And Usability
  • Create Rules To Auto-Contain Applications
  • Password Protect Your CIS Settings
  • Reset Forgotten Password (Advanced)
  • Run An Instant Antivirus Scan On Selected Items
  • Create An Antivirus Scan Schedule
  • Run Untrusted Programs In The Container
  • Run Browsers In The Container
  • Run Untrusted Programs In The Virtual Desktop
  • Run Browsers In The Virtual Desktop
  • Restore Incorrectly Blocked Items
  • Restore Incorrectly Quarantined Items
  • Submit Quarantined Items To Comodo For Analysis
  • Enable File Sharing Applications Like BitTorrent And Emule
  • Block Any Downloads Of A Specific File Type
  • Switch Between Complete CIS Suite And Individual Components (just AV Or FW)
  • Switch Off Automatic Antivirus And Software Updates
  • Suppress CIS Alerts Temporarily While Playing Games
  • Renew Or Upgrade Your License
  • Use CIS Protocol Handlers
  • Configure Secure Shopping
  • Comodo Cloud Backup
  • Give Contained Applications Write Access To Local Folders
  • Use The Comodo Uninstaller Tool
• Appendix 2 - Comodo Secure DNS Service
  • Router - Enable Comodo Secure DNS Service
  • Windows - Enable Comodo Secure DNS
• Appendix 3 - Glossary Of Terms
• Appendix 4 - CIS Versions
• About Comodo Security Solutions

Unknown Files: The Scanning Processes

 

• When an executable is first run it passes through the following CIS security inspections: 

• Antivirus scan

• HIPS Heuristic check

• Buffer Overflow check

• If the processes above determine that the file is malware then the user is alerted and the file is quarantined or deleted

• An application can become recognized as 'safe' by CIS (and therefore not auto-contained or scanned in the cloud) in the following ways:

• Because it is on the local Comodo White List of known safe applications

• Because the user has rated the file as 'Trusted' in the 'File List'

• By the user granting the installer elevated privileges (CIS detects if an executable requires administrative privileges. If it does, it asks the user. If they choose to trust, CIS regards the installer and all files generated by the installer as safe)

• Additionally, a file is not auto-contained or sent for analysis in the cloud if it is defined as an Installer or Updater in HIPS Ruleset (See 'Active HIPS Rules' for more details)  

• Cloud Scanning 

Files and processes that pass the security inspections above but are not yet recognized as 'safe' (white-listed) are 'Unrecognized' files and contained automatically. In order to try to establish whether a file is safe or not, CIS will first consult Comodo's File Look-Up Server (FLS) to check the very latest signature databases:

• A digital hash of the unrecognized process or file is created.

• These hashes are uploaded to the FLS to check whether the signature of the file is present on the latest databases. This database contains the latest, global black list of the signatures of all known malware and a white list of the signatures of the 'safe' files.

• First, our servers check these hashes against the latest available black-list

• If the hash is discovered on this blacklist then it is malware

• The result is sent back to the local installation of CIS

• If the hash is not on the latest black-list, it's signature is checked against the latest white-list

• If the hash is discovered on this white-list then it is trusted

• The result is sent back to local installation of CIS

• The local white-list is updated 

• The FLS checks detailed above are near instantaneous. 

• If the hash is not on the latest black-list or white-list then it remains as 'unrecognized'.

• Unrecognized files are simultaneously uploaded to Comodo's Instant Malware Analysis servers for further checks:

• Firstly, the files undergo another antivirus scan on our servers.

• If the scan discovers the file to be malicious (for example, heuristics discover it is a brand new variant) then it is designated as malware. This result is sent back to the local installation of CIS and the local and global black-list is updated.

• If the scan does not detect that the file is malicious then it passes onto the next stage of inspection - behavior monitoring.

• The behavior analysis system is a cloud based service that is used to help determine whether a file exhibits malicious behavior. Once submitted to the system, the unknown executable will be automatically run in a virtual environment and all actions that it takes will be monitored. For example, processes spawned, files and registry key modifications, host state changes and network activity will be recorded. 

• If these behaviors are found to be malicious, the file is submitted to our technicians for further manual checks and confirmation. If the manual testing confirms it as a malware, then it will be added to the global blacklist which will benefit all users. The results will be sent back to local installation of CIS, file will be quarantined and the user alerted. 

If the manual analysis confirms the file is safe, then it will be added to global whitelist and results sent back to local installation of CIS.