What’s NisSrv.exe (Microsoft Network Realtime Inspection Service)? Is it safe or a virus?

We at SpyShelter know that monitoring the network for threats can be important, and that's what Microsoft's NisSrv.exe does for all Windows users. This important security feature, also known as the "Network Realtime Inspection Service" is built-in to Windows Security (formerly known as Defender).

From what we've read about this process it appears NisSrv.exe can quickly help, in case a new type of network exploit is discovered. If NisSrv.exe picks up a new type of network-based exploit, it can quickly add protection for Windows Security users, before a security patch can be put in place.

We recommend using Windows Security (Defender) with our SpyShelter antispyware software, and NisSrv.exe is an important component of Windows Security. Especially since SpyShelter has no network monitoring functionality.

Microsoft has also written about this common Windows executable NisSrv.exe. In an October 16, 2018 Blog post at Microsoft.com, Yvette O'Meally wrote that "when a new zero-day unpatched vulnerability is widely found that affects Microsoft products, we can release a NIS signature to block that exploit on any machine with NIS enabled. This activates NIS to do synchronous inspection. After the vulnerability is patched, we can de-activate the signature, which ensures deterministic exploit coverage and performance control without leaving administrators and users wondering whether they are protected."

It sounds like NisSrv.exe is important to leave running on your PC, just make sure it's signed by Microsoft and you should be safe!

Researched by Jon @ SpyShelter Labs