How to Scan a USB Flash Drive With Norton 360

To scan a USB flash drive with Norton 360 on a Windows PC, plug in the drive, open Norton, and click Security. In the Scans tile, click Open, click Start next to Targeted Scan, select the flash drive, and click OK. Norton checks only that drive and tells you if anything needs attention.

A Targeted Scan is Norton’s name for a scan of only the files, folders, or drives you choose. It is much faster than scanning the whole computer, which makes it the right tool for a flash drive that has been in someone else’s computer, a drive you found in a drawer, or one you are about to copy files from.

What You Need Before You Start

These steps follow Norton’s current support documentation for the Norton 360 app on Windows, where the main window has a left pane with a Security option. Norton changed the app’s layout in version 24, so older versions look different. If your window does not match, see the troubleshooting section below.

• Norton 360 installed and running. The scan options live inside the Norton app, which Norton’s help pages call your Norton device security product.
• The flash drive plugged into the computer. Norton can only scan a drive that Windows has detected and given a drive letter, such as E: or F:.
• A few minutes. Scan time depends on how many files are on the drive and how large they are. A drive full of compressed files, such as ZIP archives, can take longer.

If Windows shows an AutoPlay window when you plug in the drive, close it. Do not open files on the drive until the scan is done, especially programs, installers, and Office documents from a source you do not know.

How to Scan a USB Flash Drive With a Targeted Scan (Windows)

This is the method Norton documents for scanning a removable drive.

1. Plug the USB flash drive into a USB port on your computer and wait for Windows to recognize it.
2. Open Norton 360. You can search for Norton from the Start menu or use the Norton icon in the notification area near the clock.
3. In the left pane, click Security.
4. On the Security dashboard, find the Scans tile and click Open. The Scans window opens on the Preset Scans tab.
5. In the Targeted Scan row, click Start.
6. In the window that appears, browse to your flash drive, select it, and click OK. Selecting the drive itself scans everything on it. You can also pick a single folder or file if that is all you need to check.
7. Wait for the scan to complete, then click Finish.

You can stop a scan that is in progress if you need the computer for something else. Norton’s full instructions are on its Scan a specific file, folder, or drive support page.

How to Read the Results

When the scan ends, Norton shows whether it found anything. If it reports no threats, the files that were scanned did not match anything Norton recognizes as malicious. No antivirus program catches everything, so stay careful with files from an unknown source even after a clean scan.

If there are items that require attention, review each one and act on it from the results screen. What Norton does with a detected file depends on the scan’s settings. The recommended setting, Fix automatically, tries to repair the file. If the repair fails, Norton moves the file to Quarantine, and if that also fails, the file is deleted.

Quarantine is a holding area that isolates a file from the rest of the computer so it cannot spread or run. A quarantined file is no longer on the flash drive in usable form, so do not be surprised if a file you expected is missing after a scan that found threats. Our guide on how to view quarantined files in Norton 360 shows where to look.

To confirm that a scan ran, open Norton, click Security, and then click Security History. That window lists recent security events, and its drop-down list includes a Quarantine category. For a wider summary, you can view the details of your Norton 360 protection status and Report Card.

Create a Custom Scan for a Drive You Use Often

If you check the same flash drive or external hard drive regularly, a custom scan saves you from browsing to it each time. A custom scan is a saved scan with a name, a list of items to check, and an optional schedule.

1. Plug in the drive, open Norton 360, and click Security.
2. In the Scans tile, click Open.
3. Click the Custom scans tab, then click Create Scan.
4. Under Scan name, type a name you will recognize, such as USB drive check.
5. Under Schedule your scan, choose how often it should run. For a drive that is not always connected, running it manually makes the most sense.
6. Under Files or folders to scan, click Add, then select the flash drive or the folders on it.
7. Adjust any other scan settings you want, then click Create.

To run it later, go back to the Custom scans tab and click the start icon next to the scan. To rename it, change its schedule, or delete it, click the menu icon next to the scan and choose Edit or Delete.

There are two limits to know about. You cannot add files or folders to a custom scan after it has been created, so if you need to include something new, create another custom scan. A saved scan also points at a specific location, and Windows does not always give a flash drive the same drive letter. If the scan cannot find the drive, use a Targeted Scan instead.

Scan Settings Worth Checking First

Each Norton scan has its own settings. In the Scans window, on the Preset Scans tab, click the settings icon next to Targeted Scan to see them. Not every setting appears for every scan.

Setting	What it does	Why it matters for a USB drive
Installers and archives	Chooses between scanning only common installers, scanning all archives, or not scanning archives	Scanning all archives checks inside compressed files but can increase the scan time
Perform automatic actions during this scan	Sets what Norton does with a detected threat: fix automatically, move to Quarantine, delete, or do nothing	Controls whether an infected file is repaired, isolated, or removed from the drive
Scan priority	Sets the scan to high, medium, or low priority compared with other programs	A lower priority keeps the computer more responsive during a long scan
Generate report file	Saves a report of the scan	Gives you a record of what was scanned and found

Warning: Be careful with the Delete action. Norton states that it permanently removes the file, and that a file can occasionally be flagged by mistake, which is called a false positive. If the flash drive holds the only copy of something important, the default Fix automatically or Move to Quarantine is the safer choice. Click Save after making changes.

Other Ways Norton Can Check a USB Drive

The right-click menu in File Explorer

Older versions of Norton 360 added a Norton 360 entry with a Scan Now option to the menu that appears when you right-click a drive in Windows. Norton’s current support pages describe the Targeted Scan route instead and do not list the right-click wording, so it may be different or absent on your computer. If you right-click the flash drive in File Explorer under This PC and see a Norton scan option, it is a quick shortcut to the same kind of scan. On Windows 11 you may need to click Show more options first to see entries added by installed programs.

A Full Scan

Norton describes a Full Scan as a complete scan of your entire computer, including storage drives and running processes. It may take several hours, so it is a slow way to check one small drive. It is useful when a flash drive that turned out to be infected has already been opened on the computer and you want to check the PC itself.

Scanning one file

If you only care about a single download or document on the drive, select that file instead of the whole drive in the Targeted Scan window. We cover that in more detail in our guide on how to scan an individual file with Norton 360.

How to Scan a USB Drive With Norton on a Mac

Norton’s Mac app uses a similar layout, and Norton says its Targeted Scan on Mac scans specific folders or any external drives connected to the Mac.

1. Connect the flash drive to your Mac.
2. Open your Norton app and click Security in the left pane.
3. In the Scans tile, click Open.
4. On the Preset scans tab, click Start next to Targeted Scan.
5. Select the flash drive or the folders on it, then click Open.

When the scan is complete, Norton shows a summary. By default it quarantines suspicious files, and you can click Resolve All to deal with everything it found. The Mac scan settings, opened with the gear icon next to a scan, also include a Scan external drives option that covers all external drives connected to the Mac. The steps are on Norton’s Run Norton scans to check for threats on Mac page.

Troubleshooting

I do not see Security or a Scans tile

You are probably using an older version of Norton 360 with a different main window. Update Norton to the current version, or look for a Scans option in your version’s Security area and choose the option that lets you pick a drive. The names in older versions were different, so go by what your screen shows.

The flash drive is not in the list

Norton can only offer drives that Windows can see. Open File Explorer and check whether the drive appears under This PC. If it does not, try a different USB port, or plug the drive directly into the computer instead of a hub. If you would rather wipe the drive than rescue what is on it, see our guide on how to erase everything on a flash drive.

The scan is taking a long time

Large drives and drives with many compressed files take longer. Check the Installers and archives setting if you do not need Norton to look inside every archive, and consider lowering Scan priority so you can keep working. You can also stop the scan and scan a single folder instead.

Norton skipped or could not open some files

Files that are password protected or encrypted cannot be read by a scanner until they are unlocked. Treat those files with caution and scan them again after you open or extract them.

A file I trust was removed

Check Quarantine before assuming the file is gone. Norton’s Quarantine options include Restore as, Create exception & restore, and Send for analysis. Norton warns that restoring files from Quarantine poses a high security risk and is meant for specific situations, so only restore a file when you are confident it is safe.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Norton 360 scan a USB drive automatically when I plug it in?

It depends on the version. Older versions of Norton 360 had a USB drive scan setting that could start a scan or ask you when a drive was connected. Norton’s current support pages for the Windows app do not describe that setting, so do not assume a drive was scanned just because you plugged it in. Running a Targeted Scan yourself is the reliable way to know.

Will scanning delete the files on my flash drive?

A scan does not erase the drive. It only acts on files it identifies as threats. With the recommended setting, Norton first tries to repair a detected file, then quarantines it, and deletes it only if both of those fail. Clean files are left alone.

Can I scan an external hard drive or memory card the same way?

Yes. A Targeted Scan works on any file, folder, or drive you can select in the browse window, so the same steps apply to external hard drives and memory cards that Windows shows as a drive. Larger drives take longer.

What is the difference between a Quick Scan and a Targeted Scan?

Norton describes a Quick Scan as a predefined scan of the computer’s system drive. It is not aimed at your flash drive. A Targeted Scan checks only what you select, so it is the one to use for removable drives.

Is it safe to use the drive after a clean scan?

A clean scan lowers the risk but does not remove it. Keep Norton up to date, and be cautious about running programs from a drive whose owner or history you do not know.

Can I schedule a scan of a USB drive?

Yes, by creating a custom scan and choosing a schedule. The computer has to be turned on at the scheduled time, and the drive needs to be connected for Norton to scan it.

Next Step

Once the flash drive checks out, copy the files you need and eject the drive from Windows before unplugging it. If scheduled scans tend to start while you are busy, our guide on how to temporarily disable the Norton 360 background scan explains how to hold them off until later.