Malicious software is on the rise, and it’s up to IT to keep it from making its way into end-user systems. But just because it’s your responsibility to be the first line of defense doesn’t mean you can’t enlist the help of your users (and their tools). It’s likely that your organization already has anti-malware measures in place. However, no single approach is perfect. As a result, when Google chose to put out a built-in anti-malware tool, Chrome users gained an extra layer of protection.
The one downside to this anti-malware software is that it isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution. It isn’t going to search your entire system for risks. Instead, it will check the Chrome browser for known dangers. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, because many malware threats are picked up through the use of a browser.
Google has built its own malware scanner, which runs in the background (as long as Chrome is open) and can also be manually launched. As you might assume, this feature is only available in Chrome for Windows, so Linux and macOS users are out of luck. I’m going to show you how to use this extra layer of virus protection on Windows.
How to Check for Malware With Chrome?
On the internet, there are several computer viruses and malware that can infect your computer if you are not careful or simply unfortunate. You can lower the chances of your computer being infected with malware by practising safe browsing practises. To protect yourself, make sure your browser is up to date, that Safe Browsing is turned on, that you have an ad-blocker installed, and that you do not download anything from dubious websites.
Even if you take precautions, your computer may become infected with malware at some point. It’s best to have an anti-virus solution installed as part of a defense-in-depth plan to protect oneself against malware that does get through. Chrome offers a built-in capability to discover and remove many sorts of malware, regardless of whether you have your own anti-malware solution or not.
How to use Chrome to scan your PC for malware?
To perform a scan, go to Chrome’s settings. To do so, go to the top-right corner and click the triple-dot icon, then “Settings.” Once in the settings, click on “Check now” under the “Safety check” tab, which is third from the top, to do a quick “Safety check.” This will just take a few seconds and will verify that your browser is up to date, that any saved credentials are included in known data breaches, that safe browsing is enabled, and that no potentially malicious extensions are loaded.
To run a malware scan, go to the bottom of the settings page, expand the advanced options if necessary, and then click “Clean up PC.” You can start a virus scan by clicking the “Find” button on the “Clean up PC” page. By checking the checkbox, you can choose to share report details to Google.
It may take some time for the scan to complete. If no malware is found, Chrome will display the message “No dangerous software found.” However, if malware is detected, you will be prompted to confirm that you want to remove it by clicking the “Remove” option.
