Security company Check Point has come under fire for imitating the tactics of fake antimalware applications, also known as rogue software. ZoneAlert users have apparently received malware warnings this week via a pop-up dialog box that says "Global Virus Alert." Bright red letters directly under it proclaimed that "Your PC may be in danger!"

Alluding to a newly discovered malware, users are informed that "Your ZoneAlarm Free Firewall provides basic protection, but this new threat requires additional security." A handy button labeled "Get Protection" is offered on the same dialog, presumably to direct worried users to a checkout page.

The marketing move generated such negative publicity that ZoneAlarm has already killed the controversial campaign. The damage was already done though, and at least one thread on the company's forum has many users registering simply to express their displeasure. One such user, GreyDuck, called the ploy "childish." Reflect widespread sentiments, he wrote that "I'm very disappointed with ZA for sending out the bogus scare regarding ZeuS.Zbot.aoaq." Some others wrote that they have already uninstalled the ZoneAlarm.

In an official blog post, the company responded that "It was never our intent to lead customers to believe they have a virus on their computer. This was purely an informative message about a legitimate and serious virus that also included information about the differences in protection of various products, and how to get protection against it. "

However, the adoption of tactics similar to those used by scareware goes overboard. After all, dozens of new malware are uncovered every day, and users would be inundated by useless "information messages" should security software opt to go down this road. For now, the long term repercussions on the reputation of Check Point remain to be seen.

For more on this story:
- check out this article at Ars Technica
- check out this article at Computerworld
- check out this article at The Register

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