Recently I was considering renewing my subscription to Kaspersky’s Internet Security Software after getting a freebie year on a promo disc. I had been happy with the protection I got. Prior to that I had used Zonelabs’ Internet Security Suite for a number of years. A friend uses Norton by Symantec but I always suspected it was a resource hog and I hate the way it occasionally blocks software that it shouldn’t (Internet Explorer/Google Chrome) so I was reluctant to take advantage of her offer to use one of her 3 licenses.
I was just about ready to drop $100+ on a 2-3 year package when I became aware that Microsoft was quietly introducing a free anti-virus security suite called “Microsoft Security Essentials.” I downloaded it and have been using it for a number of weeks. I suspect it’s probably quite capable but I’ve noticed it doesn’t automatically update its definitions, so I’m now in the habit of manually updating when I go online. Apparently Microsoft is also introducing a free version of Office (perhaps to compete with Google Docs?).
Google also recently got into the game with an anti-virus and security program in its software bundle. If you read reviews you can see advantages and disadvantages and overall, plenty of debate. Another consideration is the free offering from both Avast and AVG—which are products that have been around, and free, for quite some time. In the end some will consider paying for “Internet Security” packages that include the basics of anti-virus, and anti-spyware, and also include firewall, anti-phishing and identity protection. For the moment, I’m a careful surfer and downloader and I backup all my important docs regularly. I feel content to continue with the Microsoft product. If you have any comments feel free to share them—particularly if you have seen comparisons that chart all the free offerings at once.
http://www.pcpro.co.uk/reviews/software/352417/microsoft-security-essentials
http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/security/354553/could-microsoft-kill-the-antivirus-industry
