Windows Task Manager does a decent job of reporting the state of resident processes, but it says nothing about outgoing connections and the open ports used by each one. That information helps you determine whether requests are legitimate or whether you are dealing with some digital bug up to its usual tricks. Whatever the reason, Advanced Port Scanner is an excellent ally.
A Common Scenario
The scenario is familiar to anyone who has spent years doing maintenance: the internet connection is slow or unstable, and the computer shows no sign of a massive infection. Often it is enough to open Task Manager and spot strange processes, but sometimes those processes adopt a different name and pretend to be something they are not. Another useful clue for establishing whether it is malware is to look for any unusual port in an outgoing connection. After all, average malware needs to contact its command server or explore alternative routes (such as a misconfigured LAN) in order to infect other systems.
In an attempt to get more data, users can download a free copy of Advanced Port Scanner. With just a couple of clicks, you will be able to see the active ports on each IP address within a subnet, and in many cases, the associated process or service. For example, in the image above you can see TCP port 135, controlled by the Windows RPC service... but next to it appears a mysterious '29541'. This time, Advanced Port Scanner was able to detect the outgoing connection but not identify the process; however, our computer is not at risk because it is a BitTorrent client.
Key Features
Advanced Port Scanner offers the possibility of scanning several subnets at once, covering the full range of ports or a part. By design, the program investigates the first 1,024 ports, but it is a matter of expanding its reach and being patient while the software checks each one. Advanced Port Scanner is completely free and can run in portable mode, skipping the formal installation process.
