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ScanURL.net

Frequently Asked Questions









If your site says a website is safe to visit, is it 100% safe?

No! It is definitely NOT 100% safe. We use other reliable third party virus checkers to give you a general idea of how safe a URL is to visit. For more information, there are dozens of links at the bottom half of the page where you can do further investigation by some of the top antivirus sites online.


I plan on buying an item from the url I scanned, is it safe?

Again, we can not say if the site is 100% safe or not to visit. If you are asking about the quality of the product or if the product is a scam, we really can not give you information about that. We mostly are checking for viruses and malware, that is not related to product quality. That said, there are a couple indicators we give that may give you a clue as to the vendor, if you look at the ipinfo field, you can see where there site is hosted. If it's in a non-reputable country or in a country that doesn't make sense that this product is sold there, then that may be a clue not to make the purchase. We also show you the WOT results that give some indication as to web reputation, specifically a trustworthiness measure. We suggest you look at all the clues together before you make a decision.


Why should I trust your site?

Well, for starters, we never request any of your personal information. As a user, you are only submitting websites that you would like to visit, so there really is no risk to you or to the websites you are submitting. If there is ever a popup on this site requesting you to click a link or download an application, DO NOT DO IT! That means we have been hacked and someone is trying something malicious. This site has no popups, so be wary if you see one on this site. Like any site, we are vulnerable to getting hacked just like any other site. But that said, simply submitting URLs via the search box is not a risk to you the user.


What is the ipinfo and whois results box?

Those two fields are just meant to give you more info in determining if a site is safe to visit. For example, the ipinfo gives you information on the IP address that the submitted URL is operating from. One of the more useful things you can use from this field is the country the site is hosted in. Many malicious sites are hosted in countries where government regulations are lax, so this can be a clue in determining the safety of the site. But, there are also many instances where a hacker can hack into a perfectly legitimate site that is located in a first world country. So when using this info, treat it as just one clue when determining the safety of a site.

The whois results shows information about the domain name. One piece of information that can be helpful is how long the domain has been in existance. Many harmful sites do not have a long history, usually shorter than a year. Again though, hackers may have hacked into a perfectly good site and inserted malware. In this case, the whois can show a good domain with a long history, but it has in fact been compromised.


Why are some of the fields blank after I submit a URL?

Sometimes the websites we request information from are not operating properly, sometimes their website is down, or sometimes the connection simply fails. If this occurs, we recommend that you retry entering the URL on our homepage.


How long has your site been operating?

Scanurl.net has been operating for 13 years.


Can I upload a file for you to analyze?

Sorry, we do not allow uploads for us to analyze. We only analyze URLs that are submitted to us online. How long has your site been operating?

Scanurl.net has been operating for 13 years.


I see my site is listed on your site, can you remove it please?

Sure, just use the leave a message box at the bottom of the page to send us a message and we will take care of it right away.


Do you have an API I can use to get data?

I'm sorry, at this time we do not have an API.


Sometimes I can't access the site and I see a page about cloudflare?

Yes, we sometimes use cloudflare to protect our site against botnet attacks. Usually, if you simply do the captcha provided by cloudflare you will be given access to the site without any problems.


Sometimes I can't access the site and I see a page about cloudflare?

Yes, we sometimes use cloudflare to protect our site against botnet attacks. Usually, if you simply do the captcha provided by cloudflare you will be given access to the site without any problems.


Why do I have to enter a comment before I can check a URL? It's so annoying!

We believe that one of the best clues as to whether a site is a threat or not is to get input from our users so that others may get valuable clues that can help them make a decision. For example, if you were sent an email from a friend of yours asking you to click on a link, and you see that other users also received this same email, then it is likely a scam or phishing attack. Why? Because the chances that both of you recieved the same email from a friend is extemely low. It is much more likely that someone has hijacked a large number of email accounts and is sending spam/phishing attacks from them.

In most cases, just the very fact that another person has decided to check the same url as you means that there is a higher chance that it is suspicious. Especially if both of you recieved the email under similar circumstances.


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