Safety Center

Everyone who depends on their computer for work, school, news, information, and entertainment wants to protect their systems; this can be difficult when we receive an influx of pop-up ads claiming that we are at risk.  Rogue antivirus programs, such as Safety Center, claim to offer protective software but do not deliver on their promises.

What is Safety Center?

Safety Center is a clone of Privacy Center, both of which have the goal of alerting computer users to severe security threats and persuading the users to purchase their software in order to resolve the problem.  This sounds good initially:  no one wants to leave threats and potentially damage their systems, and if you can pay for peace of mind and added security, why not?  For two simple reasons: one, there are no security threats (other than Safety Center itself), and two, the software does not protect your computer from present or future risks.  Using typical rogue antivirus tools, such as pop-up ads and false scan results, Safety Center seeks to mimic a legitimate security program, but will not be able to scan, detect, or remove any type of threat. 

Is Safety Center In Your System?

This may seem like an odd question at first.  If you didn't install Safety Center, it shouldn't be in your system, right?  But since it can gain access without your knowledge, it is important to be able to recognize the signs that it has been installed.  Safety Center uses a variety of pop-up "warning messages" in order to convince users of security risks.  Remember, though, that these are not warnings at all, but simply elaborate ads.  These ads appear to come from the legitimate Windows Security Center and will even have the distinctive Windows logo in the top left corner.  A typical one reads:

You have become the victim of an attack by various malicious software programs!  The activity of different types of harmful activities (including mail spamming) has been detected on your computer!  You must install the latest updates for Safety Center immediately for the safety of your computer and the privacy of your personal data!

There is then the option to update Safety Center, which many people may do without thinking twice because this looks very much like a Windows warning.  But it pays to look just a bit closer.  The language is rather inflammatory and more dramatic than you would find in a legitimate warning.  The syntax and wording is also odd.  These are red flags to watch for. 

There are also a variety of pop-ups designed to look like Windows' security suite.  You may encounter Registry Doctor, Spyware Scanner, and Cookie Remover.  Each uses the distinctive Windows design.  Also common is to see a "warning" on your homepage, such as Google.  This will read:

Google search has detected an unregistered version of Safety Center [or Privacy Center. They should be treated the same] and recommends updating to the full version for safe web browsing.

This message appears to be legitimate because it has the Windows logo and it appears to come from Google.  It does not, and you should consider this a sign that this rogue is installed in your system.

Also typical of rogue antivirus programs, Safety Center also slows computer performance by diverting your CPU usage for its own use.  It can hijack your browser settings.  When you attempt to navigate to a site, you may receive a false 404 error message.  It will tell you that you are at risk from malicious software.  It appears to come from Internet Explorer.  Do not click on Scan Now.  End task with your task manager.

How Does Safety Center Become Installed?

Safety Center, like other rogue antivirus programs, does not depend on your direct installation in order to enter your system.  That is one method though.  Many people will see an ad and click on it, believing it to have come from Windows.  In this way, the program is installed directly, or with user consent.  "Consent" may be a misnomer, however, because they believe they will be protected by Windows Security. 

Far more common, though, is indirect installation.  Safety Center is closely associated with the Trojan Vundo.  This Trojan can be picked up when computer users open an affected email attachment.  These usually contain links that lead to insecure websites.  Once on that site, any existing security vulnerabilities in your system are exploited, allowing Vundo in.  Vundo can decrease your available system virtual memory, and it deposits malware, such as Safety Center. 

Removing Safety Center

Rogue antivirus programs are notoriously difficult to remove.  This is because they can alter your security settings, evading detection.  They are also not classified as viruses, which means they will not be detected by your existing antivirus program.  It copies itself and hides files, so it is not effective to simply delete or uninstall the program.  Often, it disables your ability to restore your settings.  When these methods fail, what can you do to remove Safety Center?

Manual removal is one option.  This is recommended for technical experts only because there is the risk that users could damage their systems inadvertently.  Deleting necessary files is one easy mistake, and missing files associated with Safety Center is another.  These files look very much the same and it can be tedious searching for the correct ones.  If you have technical experience, you will find removal instructions below.