Application Control
7
Application Control
Introduction RealSecure Desktop Protector lets you control which applications and related processes
can run on your system. Sometimes a program may be installed on your system without
your knowledge. Many of these programs are useful or harmless. However, some of these
programs can present security risks. They may allow an intruder to locate password
information, make the system more vulnerable to future entry, or destroy programs or
data on the hard disk.
How Application
Control works
When Application Protection is enabled on your system, it creates a list of currently
installed applications.Whenever the computer begins to start an application, Desktop
Protector checks that the application is one of these known applications. You can control
this default behavior by changing the settings on the Application Control tab.
Example: spyware For example, some installation programs install a separate application on your system to
track your Web site visits (commonly known as spyware). Desktop Protector detects the
application when it starts, and checks to see if you have authorized the application to run.
If not, Desktop Protector can close the program automatically or alert you, depending on
the Application Control options you have set.
Application control
is not virus
detection
Application control is not the same as virus detection. Desktop Protector does not search
your system for harmful applications. Instead, Desktop Protector watches for new
applications that may have been installed on your system since the last time Application
Protection searched for new or altered applications, and alerts you when they start. For
example, if you install Desktop Protector after a Trojan application has been installed on
your computer, Desktop Protector assumes the application is known to you and does not
block it from starting or contacting a network.
Important: To get the full benefit of Application control, scan your system for viruses with
an anti-virus program to make sure it is free of dangerous applications before you install
Desktop Protector or have Desktop Protector search for new or modified applications. It is
a good idea to run your anti-virus scan in both normal and safe mode.
More information For instructions, see “Working with the Application Protection Baseline” on page 42.