20 Examples of Scanning for Viruses with ClamAV on Linux

Computer viruses can cause significant harm to your system, including stealing data and compromising privacy. While Linux is known to be a secure operating system, it’s still important to have antivirus software to protect your system. ClamAV is a free, open-source antivirus software that detects and removes viruses, malware, phishing attacks, and spyware on Linux systems. This guide will explore 20 examples of how to scan for viruses using ClamAV on Linux.

What is ClamAV?

ClamAV is a popular, free, and open-source antivirus software for Linux. Users and system administrators widely use it to protect their systems from viruses. ClamAV is easy to install, use, and can scan your system for viruses in real-time or on demand. It can also be integrated with other software to provide real-time virus protection. ClamAV uses signature-based detection to identify known viruses and heuristics to detect new viruses. It can scan files, directories, email attachments, archives, and compressed files. ClamAV can be customized to scan specific files, directories, or email attachments and can be configured to exclude certain file types or directories from scanning.

How does ClamAV work?

ClamAV uses virus definitions and instructions that tell the software how to detect specific viruses. These virus definitions are regularly updated to ensure that the software can detect new and emerging viruses. ClamAV scans files, directories, and emails for viruses and can scan archives and compressed files. It uses a signature-based detection method to identify known viruses and can also detect new viruses using heuristics. ClamAV can be customized to scan specific files, directories, or email attachments and can be configured to exclude certain file types or directories from scanning. ClamAV can also scan for vulnerabilities and security threats in web applications and websites. By providing these features, ClamAV helps to keep Linux systems secure and protect against a wide range of threats.

Scanning for Viruses using ClamAV

To scan for viruses using ClamAV, you must open a terminal and enter a command. There are many options and parameters that you can use to customize your scan.

Here are 20 examples of scanning for viruses using ClamAV on Linux:

1. Scan a single file for viruses:

clamscan /path/to/file

This command will scan the specified file for viruses.

2. Scan a directory and its subdirectories for viruses:

clamscan -r /path/to/directory

This command will scan the specified directory and its subdirectories for viruses.

3. Scan a directory and its subdirectories for viruses and display only infected files:

clamscan -r --infected /path/to/directory

This command will scan the specified directory and subdirectories for viruses and display only infected files.

4. Scan a directory and its subdirectories for viruses and display infected files with their details:

clamscan -r --infected --verbose /path/to/directory

This command will scan the specified directory and its subdirectories for viruses and display infected files with their details.

5. Scan a directory and its subdirectories for viruses and save the results to a file:

clamscan -r -o /path/to/output/file /path/to/directory

This command will scan the specified directory and subdirectories for viruses and save the results to the specified output file.

6. Scan a directory and its subdirectories for viruses and exclude specific file types:

clamscan -r --exclude=*.txt /path/to/directory

This command will scan the specified directory and subdirectories for viruses but exclude files with the .txt extension.

7. Scan a directory and its subdirectories for viruses and exclude specific directories:

clamscan -r --exclude-dir=/path/to/excluded/directory /path/to/directory

This command will scan the specified directory and subdirectories for viruses but exclude the specified directory.

8. Scan a directory and its subdirectories for viruses and use multiple threads:

clamscan -r --multiscan /path/to/directory

Using multiple threads, this command will scan the specified directory and its subdirectories for viruses.

9. Scan a directory and its subdirectories for viruses and show progress:

clamscan -r --progress /path/to/directory

This command will scan the specified directory and its subdirectories for viruses and display the scan’s progress in real-time.

10. Scan a directory and its subdirectories for viruses and only display the summary:

clamscan -r --summary /path/to/directory

This command will scan the specified directory and subdirectories for viruses and only display the summary.

11. Scan a directory and its subdirectories for viruses and use archive scanning:

clamscan -r --archive-verbose /path/to/directory

This command will scan the specified directory and its subdirectories for viruses and also scan archives for viruses.

12. Scan a directory and its subdirectories for viruses and use the raw output format:

clamscan -r --raw /path/to/directory

This command will scan the specified directory and subdirectories for viruses and display the results in the raw output format.

13. Scan a directory and its subdirectories for viruses, and only scan files that have been modified within the last 7 days:

clamscan -r --max-age=7 /path/to/directory

This command will scan the specified directory and subdirectories for viruses and only scan files modified within the last 7 days.

14. Scan a directory and its subdirectories for viruses and only scan files that have been modified since a specific date:

clamscan -r --max-age=2022-01-01 /path/to/directory

This command will scan the specified directory and subdirectories for viruses and only scan files modified since January 1st, 2022.

15. Scan a directory and its subdirectories for viruses, and only scan files that have been modified before a specific date:

clamscan -r --max-filesize=100M /path/to/directory

This command will scan the specified directory and its subdirectories for viruses and only scan files smaller than 100 megabytes.

16. Scan a directory and its subdirectories for viruses, and only scan files that are smaller than a specific size:

clamscan -r --max-filesize=100M /path/to/directory

This command will scan the specified directory and its subdirectories for viruses and only scan files smaller than 100 megabytes.

17. Scan a directory and its subdirectories for viruses, and only scan files that are larger than a specific size:

clamscan -r --min-filesize=1M /path/to/directory

This command will scan the specified directory and its subdirectories for viruses and only scan files larger than 1 megabyte.

18. Scan a directory and its subdirectories for viruses and ignore files that are larger than a specific size:

clamscan -r --max-filesize=10M --exclude-dir=/path/to/excluded/directory /path/to/directory

This command will scan the specified directory and its subdirectories for viruses but will exclude files larger than 10 megabytes and the specified directory.

19. Scan a directory and its subdirectories for viruses and stop scanning when the first virus is found:

clamscan -r --bell --max-scansize=10M /path/to/directory

This command will scan the specified directory and subdirectories for viruses and stop scanning when the first virus is found.

20. Scan a directory and its subdirectories for viruses, and only scan files that have been modified before a specific date:

clamscan -r --max-filesize=100M /path/to/directory

This command will scan the specified directory and subdirectories for viruses and only scan files modified before January 1st, 2022.

Conclusion

ClamAV is a powerful and easy-to-use antivirus software that detects and removes viruses on Linux systems. With the examples in this article, you can customize your scans to meet your needs. It is important to remember that ClamAV is part of a comprehensive security solution and should be used with other security measures. Regularly updating your system and software, using strong passwords, and avoiding suspicious emails and websites are also essential for maintaining the security of your Linux system.

Additional Resources and Links

To further enhance your understanding of ClamAV and its usage on Linux, the following official resources and documentation are provided:

• ClamAV Official Website: Visit the official website to explore ClamAV’s features, updates, and news directly from the developers.
• ClamAV GitHub Repository: Access the source code, contribute, or report issues on the ClamAV GitHub repository.
• ClamAV Documentation: Gain comprehensive knowledge about ClamAV, its features, and system administration through the official documentation.
• ClamAV Mailing Lists: Subscribe to ClamAV mailing lists to stay updated on news, announcements, and development discussions.