When we connect to the Internet, one program that, of course, cannot be missing on our computer is the antivirus. However, viruses, Trojans, worms and other types of malware are not the only threats that lurk on the Internet. And with globalization in which we increasingly shop online, hackers also take advantage of this by creating fake stores with which to trick users into stealing their money and bank details.
A fake shop is a website created to steal personal and banking information, as well as money, from users who end up on it. These websites usually imitate the appearance of other websites, or offer products at very good prices that, of course, never reach their destination. These pages are usually promoted through ads on social networks or links on forums, they have a very short life cycle (since when they are detected and blocked they disappear) and are often so well done that it is difficult to detect them.
Although it is true that antivirus programs, and also browsers, usually warn us when we are going to enter a fake, suspicious, or simply potentially dangerous store, there are many cases in which these security tools are not sufficiently accurate when it comes to detecting threats. And this is where another type of program comes into play, which we often tend to ignore: fake store detectors.
The only reliable fake store detector
AV-Comparatives is a platform known for testing the different antiviruses on the market to see which one protects us best. But it doesn’t only analyze antiviruses, it also usually publishes reports on other types of security software. In this case, it’s the turn of fake store detectors.
This platform has tested the main programs on the market in order to detect and block these types of websites. You are sure to be familiar with more than one of them, as they are modules that are included in the main antivirus programs on the market. But others are independent programs that are much less known:
- Adaware Privacy Standard
- Avast Premium Security
- AVG Internet Security
- Avira Internet Security
- Bitdefender Total Security
- Comodo Internet Security Pro
- Dr.Web Security Space
- Emsisoft Anti-Malware Home
- eScan Total Security Suite
- ESET Home Security Essential
- Fake Shop Detector
- F-Secure Total
- G Data Total Security
- Google Chrome
- K7 Total Security
- Kaspersky Standard
- Malwarebytes Premium
- McAfee Total Protection
- MetaCert Internet Security
- Microsoft Defender Browser Protection
- Netcraft Extension
- NordVPN Threat Protection Pro
- Norton 360 Deluxe
- Panda Dome Essential
- Quick Heal Internet Security
- SafeDNS Home
- Sophos Home Premium
- Total Defense Premium Internet Security
- TotalAV Antivirus Pro
- Trend Micro Internet Security
- Trusted Shops Extension
- VIPRE Advanced Security
- Webroot Internet Security Plus
- WOT: Website Security & Safety Checker
- ZoneAlarm Extreme Security NextGen
AV-Comparatives has put all these fake shop detectors to the test. The methodology has been very simple: they have tested 100 legitimate shops, and 500 fake shops, and they have analysed the behaviour of the security tool. Thus, they have measured the detections and false positives to see if the program is really effective or not.
And, to the surprise of many, only one has been able to protect us from more than 80% of threats: Fake-Shop Detector.
Fake Shop Detector
Fake-Shop Detector’s functionality is clear from the name alone. This German-made security program was able to detect over 90% of the fake shops it missed during testing. And it was by far the only one to do so. Second place went to the Netcraft extension, with a detection rate of between 71% and 80%, and third place went to NordVPN Threat Protection Pro, with a detection rate of between 61% and 71%. The other 32 programs tested detected less than 50% of the fake shops it missed. Even Google Chrome and its Safe Browsing failed, detecting less than 6% of the fake shops.
Fake-Shop Detector works as a simple extension for Chrome, Edge and Firefox. And it’s completely free. So, since it has achieved the highest detection rate of fake shops, the least we can do is install it on our browser right now. We can find it in the respective extension stores of Google, Microsoft and Mozilla respectively.
