Can Malwarebytes 4.6.16.330 w. a lifetime license ID and key be updated

[Tambourineman]

I have a Malwarebytes 4.6.16.330 installation with. a lifetime license ID and key.  Can it be updated to ver. 5x on the same PC?  Checking for updates does not trigger an option to update the latest version?

 

[Malwarebytes]

***This is an automated reply***

Hi,

Thanks for posting in the Malwarebytes for Windows Help forum.

If you are having technical issues with our Windows product, please do the following:

Malwarebytes Support Tool - Advanced Options

This feature is designed for the following reasons:

• For use when you are on the forums and need to provide logs for assistance
• For use when you don't need or want to create a ticket with Malwarebytes
• For use when you want to perform local troubleshooting on your own

How to use the Advanced Options:

Spoiler

1. Download Malwarebytes Support Tool
2. Double-click mb-support-X.X.X.XXXX.exe to run the program
   • You may be prompted by User Account Control (UAC) to allow changes to be made to your computer. Click Yes to consent.
3. Place a checkmark next to Accept License Agreement and click Next
4. Navigate to the Advanced tab
5. The Advanced menu page contains four categories:
   • Gather Logs: Collects troubleshooting information from the computer. As part of this process, Farbar Recovery Scan Tool (FRST) is run to perform a complete diagnosis. The information is saved to a file on the Desktop named mbst-grab-results.zip and can be added as an email attachment or uploaded to a forum post to assist with troubleshooting the issue at hand.
   • Clean: Performs an automated uninstallation of all Malwarebytes products installed to the computer and prompts to install the latest version of Malwarebytes for Windows afterwards. The Premium license key is backed up and reinstated. All user configurations and other data are removed. This process requires a reboot.
   •  Repair System: Includes various system-related repairs in case a Windows service is not functioning correctly that Malwarebytes for Windows is dependent on. It is not recommended to use any Repair System options unless instructed by a Malwarebytes Support agent.
   • Anonymously help the community by providing usage and threat statistics: Unchecking this option will prevent Malwarebytes Support Tool from sending anonymous telemetry data on usage of the program.
6. To provide logs for review click the Gather Logs button
7. Upon completion, click OK
8. A file named mbst-grab-results.zip will be saved to your Desktop
9. Please attach the file in your next reply.
10. To uninstall all Malwarebytes Products, click the Clean button.
11. Click the Yes button to proceed. 
12. Save all your work and click OK when you are ready to reboot.
13. After the reboot, you will have the option to re-install the latest version of Malwarebytes for Windows.
14. Select Yes to install Malwarebytes.
15. Malwarebytes for Windows will open once the installation completes successfully.

Screenshots:

Spoiler

 

 

 

 

Spoiler

 

 

 

 

If you are having licensing issues, please do the following: 

Spoiler

For any of these issues:

• Renewals
• Refunds (including double billing)
• Cancellations
• Update Billing Info
• Multiple Transactions
• Consumer Purchases
• Transaction Receipt

Please contact our support team at https://support.malwarebytes.com/hc/en-us/requests/new to get help

If you need help looking up your license details, please head here: Find my premium license key

 

 

Thanks in advance for your patience.

-The Malwarebytes Forum Team

[Porthos]

51 minutes ago, Tambourineman said:

 

I have a Malwarebytes 4.6.16.330 installation with. a lifetime license ID and key.  Can it be updated to ver. 5x on the same PC?  Checking for updates does not trigger an option to update the latest version?

 

Yes, it can be updated. First, make sure your key is located in your my.malwarebytes.com account. <<<<< Important.

After you check the account post back and I will advise you further.

Also, do you also have the Malwarebytes VPN installed as well? <<<<< Important.

Edited July 24 by Porthos

[AdvancedSetup]

Install Desktop Security on Windows devices
https://support.malwarebytes.com/hc/en-us/articles/22268077630099-Install-Desktop-Security-on-Windows-devices

Activate your subscription for Desktop Security
https://support.malwarebytes.com/hc/en-us/articles/22267277990803-Activate-your-subscription-for-Desktop-Security

Create your Malwarebytes Account
https://support.malwarebytes.com/hc/en-us/articles/360039023753-Create-your-Malwarebytes-Account

Add a license to your Malwarebytes Account
https://support.malwarebytes.com/hc/en-us/articles/360038516954-Add-a-license-to-your-Malwarebytes-Account

 

[Tambourineman]

Thanks for the hlp.

I did not initially add this to a my.malwarebytes.com account.  I simply entered the license ID and the license key, but I have now added an email address and my account now shows the software is activated, but the key is much different from the one I initially used.  The original key was one block of 5 characters followed by four block of 4 characters.  The new one shown on the subscription page is two blocks of 5 characters, followed by ac colon and then four blocks of 4 characters.  When I check for an update it says it is up to date, but it is still version 4.6.16.330 ands there is no option to update to version 5..  I have not changed the key shown in the software on the device.  I left the license code and the key the same as originally entered.  Should I changed it to the key now shown in my.malwarebytes.com?  The screen for the email account only has a block for the key (there is no block to enter the license ID).

I do not have Malwarebytes VPN and it is shown as not included on the subscriptions page.

[Porthos]

@Tambourineman

Disable-Fast-Startup <<<<< Important.
https://forums.malwarebytes.com/topic/299350-disable-fast-startup/

Then please restart the computer and then do the following. <<<<< Important.

1. Download the offline installer from: https://downloads.malwarebytes.com/file/mb5_offline

2. Run the installer. Restart the computer after the installation.

Can you please let me know if that worked?

[Tambourineman]

THANK YOU SO MUCH!  This worked! !

I have been using MalwareBytes since its early beta/shareware days on "Bleeping" in connection with a top rated other program, but I know TASNTAFL (there ain't no such thing as a free lunch and even if there were after a long time it may become stale) so I recently tried the commercial MalwareBytes on another PC and like it much better than the other (which complains about me running both although I know the early beta was designed to be friendly to this) belts and suspenders practice.

[AdvancedSetup]

As we move forward with licensing it's more and more important that you get  your license into a Malwarebytes Account

I would highly recommend you create a support ticket and have an agent assist you if you're unable to successfully complete that on you own

 

[Tambourineman]

I had to resurrect an old account as the my other one said it had the max (3) PC's on it already and this one couldn't be added, but this in (one of) my accounts now. 

BTW a very top competitor offers a 15 device for $65/year deal which easily handles and keeps up to date my wife and my desktops, laptops and smartphones kept at our home and cottage which are not used simultaneously and seemingly not much of an additional burden on their system resources.  Although I vastly prefer lifetime licenses and avoid subscriptions unless there is no good alternative.

[AdvancedSetup]

I agree on the lifetime preference. I have several vendors with lifetime licenses over the years but I've been doing computing for decades.

I never select a product though based solely on price. I purchase a product because it does what I want it to do or performs a task how I want it done. Many of my applications could be replaced by a cheaper product or one that allows more installs, but they simply do not perform how I want them to perform.

Glad you found something you like though even if it's not our product.

Cheers

 

[Tambourineman]

I got my first home computer in the 70's, so I too have been computing for decades.  For years there were 2 top dogs in antimalware and now after Kaspersky is gone, only one of those two remains and I remain happy with it despite it being on a subscription basis. As I said  I am happy with Malwarebytes and planning on using it on most, if not all of my devices especially if I am able to grab lifetime licenses before you do away with them.  :-) And perhaps as long as they will co-exist and if not then will come some tough choices.

[Porthos]

32 minutes ago, Tambourineman said:

if I am able to grab lifetime licenses before you do away with them.

They have been gone from sale since mid-2014.

Edited July 25 by Porthos

[AdvancedSetup]

We officially stopped selling Lifetime licenses in 2014 as @Porthos mentioned.

If you find any online they are fake and scamming you

 

[Tambourineman]

To the best of my knowledge mine are official, genuine ones, although regrettably some are on a subscription basis.  My concern with fake ones is that they may contain worms, trojans (whatever) that also install Ransomware. bots or perform MitM data/banking skimming/phoning home attacks more than getting scammed.  As I said when subscriptions expire, as a retiree on  a fixed income I have to reassess my options for equivalent programs preferably on a non-subscription basis.  I used to have multiple 5 device Blt d3f3nd3r T0t@l S3curlty ("BD TS") subscriptions and was happy to get a good deal on a renewal 15 device plan.  Unfortunately other than Microsoft Windows, good anti-malware ones are few and far between. I now see Malwarebytes has a 10 device family plan which will work for my non-lifetime ones.  A 3 device or even a 5 device plan does not work even for a 2 person retiree household let alone a modern family where every kid also has multiple devices.  Despite frequent offline backups I used to mainly concerned about ransomware, but now with the proliferation of AI sh.t   all trying to use their users to train their LLMs my concern has shifted.  For Ransomware I thought the original MalwareBytes heuristic monitoring used in connection with  BS TS was sufficient.  I am now thinking I also need something that monitors outbound data and destinations in addition to scanning programs/downloads/inbound data.  A long, long time ago I used to depend on Zone Alarm's firewall to monitor outbound connections.  This new perceived need seem likely to be an impossible task especially as data may be encrypted and non-monitorable but seemingly destinations can be checked for legitimate interests.

[AdvancedSetup]

Following the advice below we greatly lower the risk of infection. Having good solid backups of your data that is not kept online except during back ups will also improve resiliency to any threats

 

The following information will help you to keep your computer and data safer as well as improve your overall privacy

1. Recommend using a Password Manager for all websites, etc. that require a password. Never use the same password on more than one site.
   https://www.howtogeek.com/780233/best-password-manager/
2. Make sure you're backing up your files https://forums.malwarebytes.com/topic/136226-backup-software/
3. Keep all software up to date - PatchMyPC - https://patchmypc.com/home-updater#download     https://patchmypc.com/about-us
4. Keep your Operating System up to date and current at all times - https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/windows-update-faq-8a903416-6f45-0718-f5c7-375e92dddeb2
5. Further tips to help protect your computer data and improve your privacy: https://forums.malwarebytes.com/topic/258363-tips-to-help-protect-from-infection/ 
6. Please consider installing the following Content Blockers for your Web browsers if you haven't done so already. This will help improve overall security

Malwarebytes Browser Guard

•   Google Chrome: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/malwarebytes-browser-guar/ihcjicgdanjaechkgeegckofjjedodee
•   Microsoft Edge: https://support.malwarebytes.com/hc/en-us/articles/4413298736787-Install-Malwarebytes-Browser-Guard-on-Microsoft-Edge-browser
•   Mozilla Firefox: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/malwarebytes/

uBlock Origin

• Google Chrome: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/ublock-origin/cjpalhdlnbpafiamejdnhcphjbkeiagm 
• Microsoft Edge: https://microsoftedge.microsoft.com/addons/detail/ublock-origin/odfafepnkmbhccpbejgmiehpchacaeak 
• Mozilla Firefox: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/ublock-origin

 

Cybersecurity basics & protection
Everything you need to know about cybercrime
https://www.malwarebytes.com/cybersecurity

 

Further reading if you'd like to keep up on the malware threat scene: Malwarebytes Blog  https://blog.malwarebytes.com/

Hopefully, we've been able to assist you with correcting your system issues.

Thank you for using Malwarebytes. Please tell your friends and family if they too need assistance with malware removal

 

[Tambourineman]

Thanks for this and the help on the installation..

Off the top of my head and without reviewing all the info at the many links (THANKS) I would suggest adding some further advice:

Regarding the password manager:  Make the master password (and banking ones) at least 35 characters preferably of a truly random mix of lower  & upper letters, numbers and special characters.  (Unless you are a perfect and fast typist you will need some automated methods of imputing such a password.)  Alternately use a longer one of a sentence or phrases such as sevensillyseaperntssailedswiftlyseaward (but you can do better) perhaps with caps on the first or last letter of each word.

Next do not record the entire password except on paper or in a very safe digital vault, such as Veracrypt.  Leave off the last few digits of the master or important passwords to which will be added additional characters  (peppered) on the end of the copied pasted password and never store this pepper in the same digital place.

Require 2FA/MFA, YubiKey/Fido U2F, biometric, and/or use passkeys.

Setup recovery email accounts that are easily accessible on various/independent devices/methods in case you get locked out of your main account and so you will still have emergency communications.

Use multiple separate and different email address for banking or purchasing and never use these for any other thing, so you will quickly recognize phishing attempts and to minimize selling such addresses.

Use two backup programs: one on a regularly connected device for frequent scheduled backups to protect against electronic failures and one that is not connected manually unless a backup is being made (to protect against ransomware.

Always make the recovery media.  I use AOMEI since that can be built in (much easier than trying to find the one you need in a bunch of SD cards or DVDs and it works unless the drive goes physically south) so mae the recovery media also.  If possible actually do a test restore to make sure this works.

[AdvancedSetup]

Thank you for the feedback. If you follow the links they go over to Bleepingcomputer where there are dozens of pages and pages of how to take care of your system.

Aomei makes some good software and we do list it in our backup software link but it's not necessarily a preferred product but happy you like it.

https://tracxn.com/d/companies/aomei-tech/__vb2goGTnCfhmh6LyYmylsE01k7NBVzLSbKk4rob15tU