My antivirus software says PPTools are a threat
Your antivirus software says that a PPTools add-in is a threat
It may complain about the EXE installer that you downloaded or about an uninstaller program that appears on your computer after you've finished the installation, or about various registry keys.
Almost certainly this is what's called a "false positive". This happens every so often, usually because someone creates an installer for malware using the same program we use to create our installers. Somebody sends a copy of the evilware to the antivirus software company, they look for certain identifiable signatures in it and end up raising red flags for all installers made with the same software.
Think of it this way: A guy robs a bank. He runs out, jumps into a getaway car (a Ford, let's say) and roars off. If you were the police, would you then arrest everyone driving a Ford, or would you look for guys in Fords that happen to match the description of the robber?
Busting ALL software that uses the same installer-creation software is more or less like arresting all the Ford drivers.
We've been distributing PPTools add-ins for PowerPoint from the same web site, using various versions of the same installer software for over 15 years. We've never had a problem with malware (other than the occasional false positive).
Still, you may want more reassurance than that, and I don't blame you one bit. So what can we do?
First, make sure you downloaded the PPTools add-in installer from our site's download page:
http://www.pptools.com/downloads.htm
If you downloaded it from some other site, we can't be responsible for the file, where it's been, who's touched it and why. Please delete it and download a version from our site instead.
Next, use the contact link on the left side of the page to get in touch, if you haven't already done so.
Tell us:
- Your Windows and PowerPoint version and which PPTools add-in you're working with (the Contact page has checkboxes for all of that)
- The name of the antivirus/antimalware software you use
- The exact text of any messages it's popped up. You might want to take a screenshot of the message to pop into a followup email later.
You'll also want to make sure that your antivirus software's definition files are up to date.
If you like, you can also email us a copy of the installer file you've downloaded. We'll check that against our local copy to make sure that it hasn't been tampered with between our download site and your hard drive.
Once we get the necessary information, we will;
- Double-check the file on the site against a local copy to make sure that it hasn't been hacked or tampered with.
- Contact your antivirus/anti-malware software vendor to let them know of the problem. In the past we've found most of them to be fairly responsive and willing to correct any false positive problems we report.
Until we can get any issues with the AV/malware software settled, it'll be up to you to decide whether to trust our installers or not.
Your antivirus software reports that our add-ins contain macros
It's true. PPTools add-ins are "macros" written in Visual Basic for Applications, a programming language that runs within PowerPoint.
Does that mean that they're dangerous? No.
Does that mean that your anti-virus software or PowerPoint are yelling for no good reason? No again.
Like all programs, add-ins can be harmless or malicious. Your antivirus software can't tell which. It can only warn you that the macro code is there, so it's doing its job as well as it can.
You have to decide for yourself whether to trust PPTools add-ins. If you've downloaded our software from this site, we think it's a safe bet. If we meant to do something nasty to your computer, we'd certainly try to hide our identity better than we do here.
But again, if you downloaded our software from another site, we strongly recommend that you do not install it. We don't authorize anyone else to distribute PPTools and we can't be responsible for unauthorized versions distributed by someone else. When in doubt, download the latest version here
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