Author Archives: Avast Blog
A history of freedom | Avast
In anticipation of Avast’s thirtieth anniversary, we sat down with our founders, Pavel Baudiš and Eduard (Eda) Kučera to talk about Avast’s history and its future. The two men met in a world marked by its profound lack of freedom, and together navigated changing political, social, and technological circumstances to build the Avast we know today — a company that makes it possible for hundreds of millions of people to enjoy true freedom online. In the course of a few hours, we heard their take on writing the precursor to the Avast antivirus, creating their own company in the wake of the Velvet Revolution, becoming a serious player in the global antivirus market, and going all-in on the freemium business model, without which there would be no free Avast security today.
Stay a Step Ahead of Today’s Bigger, Badder Cyberthreats | Avast
Cyberthreats and attacks have been a negative side effect of our computer age for more than three decades. The first viruses or worms were less harmful, designed to slow a system down or annoy other users. Some even say the first viruses were designed …
Three new threats at large and one thrown behind bars | Avast
SamSam ransomware is back with a surprising addition
The ransomware strain that locked up the city of Atlanta in March of this year has returned, cybersecurity experts report, but with one mysterious addition. This new variant of the most infamous ran…
Take the Avast quiz!
When was our birthday? (Hint: Start at 2018 and count backwards)
1/15
1991
1990
1988
We had a bit of an identity crisis early on. What did we call ourselves?
2/15
Alwil
Avast!
Always
Every hero needs an origin story. Which virus were we created to stop?
3/15
Paris
Vienna
Creeper
Avast was born from broken dreams. What did our founders, Eduard Kučera and Pavel Baudiš, want to do before going into computers?
4/15
Medicine
Physics
Math
Kids, skip this question: why is HideMyAss’ mascot a donkey?
5/15
Because it’s another word for “butt”
Because we stubbornly protect people’s privacy
Because we work “as hard as a mule”
In 1997, one of our competitors tried to buy us out: who?
6/15
McAfee
Norton
AVG
There’s no excuse not to be safe online. When did we release our first free antivirus?
7/15
2001
2004
1995
Whoa! We’re getting all Carl Sagan in here! What’s this a picture of?
8/15
The vast, beautiful universe
Some funky new video game
A visualization of our enormous database of files (viewable in VR!)
Who is our famous chess-playing spokesperson?
9/15
Pavel Baudis
Vince Steckler
Garry Kasparov
Everything needs protection, including your phone. When did we make the first android antivirus so you could do just that?
10/15
2014
2015
2009
Which of the following passwords do you think is the most secure:
11/15
W3’rEturNING30!
30ye@rsYOUng>>
Neither, don’t share your passwords online!
We might not be youtube famous, but what was the first video we posted there?
12/15
“Meet Avast”
“Avast Free Antivirus gets Gold”
“The Daily Buzz with Avast”
Say… what does “Avast” actually mean, anyway?
13/15
Hello
Spotted
Stop
We’re all over the world but we’ve got one home: where’s our HQ?
14/15
Germany
The Czech Republic
The United States
What makes Avast so great?
15/15
Our blob logo.
Vince, our CEO
You, our users!
BONUS ROUND
Ready for some fun? We hope you realize…these are our most advanced questions. Enjoy 😉
Who do you love more? Your Mom, or your antivirus?
16/20
Mom — she bakes awesome brownies
AV — it protects all my, um… “private data”
We really hope you didn’t take this question seriously. Your mom is an angel
When a pop-up asks for your credit card number, you should
17/20
Hand it over — but only if it asked nicely!
Give them your mom’s, just in case it’s a hoax.
Panic and throw your computer out the nearest open window.
Do you understand the dangers of clickbait?
18/20
Wait, it’s dangerous?
If I win a GODDAMN large sum of money, there can’t be anything wrong with that!
It’s only dangerous if you’re on the receiving end — muahahaha — CLICKNOW2win
What does VPN stand for?
19/20
Very Punctual Norwegians
Vicki Picks Noses
Vicious Police Nuggets
When the internet keeps telling you about cookies
20/20
I’m on a diet, please, stop sabotaging my road to recovery
Wait, they track me, right? Is it the Po-Po?
I make cookies in my sleep
That’s it, thank you!
Ops, you are wrong!
You are right!
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Mark your summer calendar for these IT and channel events | Avast Business
Managed Workplace patch changes the patching game | Avast Business
As the world’s largest corporate enterprises expand ever-larger, absorbing acquisition after acquisition, the SMB (small to medium-sized business) finds itself working harder than ever to keep a foothold in the marketplace. It leans heavily on its MSP (managed service provider) to keep all things tech running smoothly day in and day out.
7 things you didn’t know about Avast
It’s our 30th birthday! We’ve been taking a look back at how we got to where we are today, and we’ve collected a few interesting tidbits you may not know about us.
STF Consulting celebrates 18 years in business, credits Managed Workplace for smart growth | Avast Business
The Company
Recognized by CRN as a top managed service provider (MSP), STF Consulting provides customized IT services and security to small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) and enterprises in the Monmouth, Ocean, and Middlesex counties of New Jersey.
Sean Furman, president of STF Consulting, started the company in 2000 with just one client. He now has a staff of seven and points to his company’s specialized focus for its success. Says Sean, “We are a real boutique provider and have always worked with clients through an exclusive contract-based model. Our clients have high expectations, and our model provides the right foundation for high-quality services through one contract, so deliverables are clear and achievable. This also enables us to be very proactive and easily add new services as clients evolve their businesses.”
Avoiding accidents on the cyber highway | Avast
I spoke on politics and human rights at an important forum in New York last May, and my fellow speakers included many current and former politicians and academics there to talk about everything from North Korea to press freedom to cybersecurity. Former US Congressman Mike Rogers was one of them, and he gave a polished presentation about many of the risks we are facing today in the digital sphere, both for personal and national security. As the former Chair of the House Intelligence Committee, he was faced with these urgent concerns on a daily basis. (Unfortunately, the Committee has now become a political battleground, a very dangerous situation because security shouldn’t be a partisan issue.)