EFR service Zonealarm high CPU

[Bernardus]

Why is EFR service Zone alarm if running using 50% of CPU time?
What does it? Is it necessary?
If stopped by process explorer it starts again on itself.
Zonealarm creates locked and hidden secret files on every disk-partition and those are only sometimes visible even if show hidden files is activated.

 

[Megahertz07]

What ZA product and what version you have installed?
I have an old ZA firewall that has only firewall. New versions also has some kind of anti malware.
For a specific help you should post at ZA forum
ZoneAlarm Community Forums - Your ZoneAlarm Information Source

 

[Bernardus]

ZoneAlarm Free Antivirus + Firewall version: 15.3.062.17721
Vsmon version: 15.3.58.17668
Driver version: 15.1.29.17237
Antivirus engine version: 8.8.1.110
Antivirus signature DAT file version: 1297591392
So it's antivirus as well as firewall.

 

[Megahertz07]

Antivirus and Firewall are security programs that can only be disabled by it's own program. If they are disabled by other program, like Process Explorer, it will restart. This is to avoid malware to disable the Antivirus and / or Firewall.
The CPU running using 50% is probably the antivirus scanning the drives. It's normal.

 

[Bernardus]

For the moment I have changed the name of the AFR.exe it to prevent starting consuming processortime.
The file is locked but it's easy to tackle that with a little program. (Unlocker)
See if ZA still runs ok as it seems to do. 50% CPU is way to much and it runs without my consent every now and then.
Watching video's it causes hampering. It also stacks piles of unknown locked content at every folder.
I don't think that it's antivirus scanning because than the scan monitor would be available.
That would give me at least the option to interrupt it or pause.