How to Scan a File using VirusTotal.com
If you are suspicious of a file that is emailed to you, follow these steps before clicking on it.
Remember: If you find a file that is not considered safe, please do not open the file and make sure you delete it and the e-mail. If you know the sender of the e-mail, it would be considerate to send them a new e-mail message telling them you received an infected file from them. If you have any questions about this please contact the IT Department. Do NOT forward the email with the unsafe file to anyone.
1. If the file is an e-mail attachment, you must save the file somewhere. If the file is already saved somewhere, skip forward to Step 4.
2. Find the attachment on the e-mail and right-click on it and click Save As.
3. Once you’ve clicked Save As, a window will come up to choose where to save the attachment. Select the Desktop as the location and press Save.
4. Now that the file you want to scan is saved to your computer, open your internet browser and go to www.virustotal.com.
5. Click the File option and then the Choose File button.
6. Navigate to your Desktop and find the file that you want to scan. Click Open.
7. Click Confirm upload and then the site will begin to analyze your file. Depending on the file size it could take anywhere from 30 seconds to a couple minutes.
8. In a few seconds you’ll get the results of the scan. The site will give it a score out of all the malware that it scans for, in this case, the score was 0. The green circle around the score and the notification that No security vendors and no sandboxes flagged this file as malicious means that this website is safe to view. If the circle is an orange/yellow, that means that some malware has been found and that you should open the file at your own risk. A red circle means it has many malware on it and you should NOT open it.
***IMPORTANT***
If you find a file that is not considered safe, please do not open the file and make sure you delete it and the e-mail. If you know the sender of the e-mail, it would be considerate to send them a new e-mail message telling them you received an infected file from them. If you have any questions about this please contact the IT Department. Do NOT forward the email with the unsafe file to anyone.