Panda USB Vaccine

Introduction
The Microsoft Windows Operating System uses the AUTORUN.INF file from removable drives in order to know which actions to perform when a new external storage device, such as a USB drive or CD/DVD, is inserted into the PC. The AUTORUN.INF file is a configuration file that is normally located in the root directory of removable media and contains, among other things, a reference to the icon that will be shown associated to the removable drive or volume, a description of its content and also the possibility to define a program which should be executed automatically when the unit is mounted.
The problem is that this feature is used by malware in order to spread to other computers infecting them as soon as a new USB drive is inserted into a new computer. What the malware does is copying a malicious executable in the drive and modifying the AUTORUN.INF file so that Windows opens the malicious file silently as soon as the drive is mounted. The most recent example of this is the Conficker worm which, in addition to spreading via the network, also spreads via USB drives.

Computer vaccination
The free Panda USB Vaccine allows users to vaccinate their PCs in order to disable AutoRun completely so that no program from any USB/CD/DVD drive (regardless of whether they have been previously vaccinated or not) can auto-execute.

USB drive vaccination
The free Panda USB Vaccine also can be used on individual USB drives to disable its AUTORUN.INF file in order to prevent malware infections from spreading automatically. When applied on a USB drive, the vaccine permanently blocks the AUTORUN.INF file, preventing it from being read, created, deleted or modified. Once applied it effectively disables Windows from automatically executing any malicious file that might be stored in that particular USB drive. The drive can otherwise be used normally and files (even malware) copied to/from it, but they will be prevented from opening automatically.
Please take into account that vaccinating a USB drive is a non reversible operation and under some very unlikely conditions some applications could stop working. In any case if you do not have an AUTORUN.INF file in your USB drive it’s completely safe to vaccinate it.

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