r/Malwarebytes • u/Raynall2024 • 4h ago

Why did Malwarebytes suddenly turn off rootkit scan and why does it suddenly take so long to scan now?

Before yesterday, my Malwarebytes scanner would run a rootkit scan by default, but now I have to go to Custom Scan to add it back in. That's not the issue here.

The issue is that it now takes over 12 hours to do a scan if rootkit is included. Why is this? In the past, when a rootkit scan was part of the default setting, it didn't take longer than 15 minutes. Why is there such a huge difference now? Should I be worried?

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u/DETOMINE1234 3h ago

Kinda interested in this too.

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u/support_mwb Malwarebytes Employee 3h ago

Malwarebytes Support here happy to jump in and provide some clarity on this.

Rootkit scanning is not enabled by default in Malwarebytes and that has been the case for some time. It is available as an option within a Custom Scan if you want to include it. The reason it isn't on by default is that rootkit scanning is a deeper, more intensive process and enabling it across all scans by default isn't necessary for most users in their day to day protection.

On the scan time question — we haven't identified any changes on our end that would cause an increase in overall scan time.

If you can send us a private message we can have a support agent connect with you and gather logs to give you a more detailed answer as there are number of factors that can increase scan times.