Trend Micro acquires HijackThis antispyware

Trend Micro Wednesday announced it has acquired the antispyware freeware tool HijackThis from its Netherlands-based creator, Merijn Bellekom, for an undisclosed price.

The free HijackThis tool is used to create a log file of text and registry settings to pinpoint spyware on an infected desktop and enable technically minded users to make the decision to eradicate it.

Trend Micro CTO Ed English says the security firm intends to maintain HijackThis as freeware for public use, though it is adding an AnalyzeThis button that would let users submit files to Trend Micro for analysis.

HijackThis beta version 2.0 will be available at the TrendSecure.com security portal, where Trend Micro also is introducing a free service called TrendProtect that combines Web site reputation monitoring and URL filtering for consumers.

According to Carolyn Carpenter, Trend Micro’s vice president of consumer marketing, the motivating factor in acquiring HijackThis, which has been downloaded more than 10 million times, is to gain more information about the general prevalence of spyware infestations on the desktop.

“We’ll use this to collect data on the spyware that’s out there,” says Carpenter, noting that Trend Micro, which sells antispyware software, already has a cleanup tool called Housecall.

It’s conceivable that HijackThis, which is used by both consumers and enterprises, could be commercialized in some way in the future, but there are no immediate plans to do so, according to Trend Micro executives.

HijackThis does not work by using a database of spyware signatures to identify known malware. Instead, it displays a list of places in Windows and the browser where spyware can hide itself. The user can then decide what to delete.

In that role, HijackThis is often used to submit logs to online discussion and help forums, such as Castlecops.com, Majorgeeks.com and Spywareinfo.com, to elicit comments that could help in cleaning up infected desktops, Trend Micro's English says.

He adds that the company believes this is a great way to use HijackThis and hopes to see this process continue.