AntivirusSoftwarePerformance

Alwil Avast 4.7

AVAST 4 Home Edition provides free antivirus protection for Windows XP/2000/NT/ME/98. The scanner installed just under 40MB and 6 running processes to our Windows XP Pentium 4 test system, taking a slightly bigger toll than other free antivirus scanners, but still well suited for older PCs or those with limited system resources.

AVAST 4 Home Edition is a free antivirus scanner. Support options are limited, but this is increasingly the case with even paid-for scanners. Sports standard antivirus features, plus adware and spyware removal. Guide Review - AVAST 4 Home Edition

AVAST 4 Home Edition installs an interface that could be described as either clever or cumbersome, depending on your point of view. Borrowing on the WinAmp-style skins, the look can be changed by downloading a new skin from the vendor's website. Regardless of the skin, however, it's less than intuitive for those who prefer a standard Windows interface with easy-to-browse menus. AVAST 4 Home Edition is the only one of the free scanners to offer scans on bootup. This can greatly increase the chance of removing stubborn infectors, particularly those that use resuscitators to thwart removal attempts. (Each of the free scanners can be run in Safe Mode, however).

AVAST 4 Home Edition provided limited adware and spyware removal, nabbing 33% of the active components we tracked on our test system. Though 33% is certainly a poor removal rate, it is the only one of the free antivirus scanners to offer adware and spyware removal - and is one of the few to do so even among paid-for antivirus scanners. Further, the deficiency appeared to be due to a lack of signatures, rather than any particular struggle to remove infectors. (Indeed, the scan on bootup option virtually ensures AVAST an easier time of removing adware and spyware, provided the appropriate signature is in place).

Alwil Software, makers of AVAST, offers support for the free version via email, online help forums and knowledgebases.

BitDefender Antivirus 2008

BitDefender Antivirus 2008 is perhaps the most improved of the antivirus applications we've seen so far this year. It is fast and light, and like Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7, our current Editor's Choice winner, BitDefender Antivirus 2008 offers hourly updates. However, we'd like more access to configuration options beyond simple enabling and disabling features. Still, for the price, and for the excellent quality of its antivirus protection, BitDefender Antivirus 2008 ranks among our few top contenders for 2008. For a look inside see our BitDefender Antivirus 2008 slideshow.

Setup

BitDefender Antivirus 2008 costs $24.95 for a single license and $29.95 for a three-user license. By comparison, Norton Antivirus 2008 costs $39.95 for a single-user license (there are no three-user versions of NAV 2008). BitDefender Antivirus 2008 runs on Windows 2000, Windows XP, and Windows Vista. BitDefender Antivirus 2008 requires 512MB of RAM and at least 50MB of hard-drive space. The trial version is full-function and runs for 24 days.

We experienced no problems during several installations during the end of August 2007. Installation requires a reboot.

Should you want to uninstall BitDefender Antivirus 2008, the All Programs menu includes an uninstall option. After reboot we could find no traces of BitDefender Antivirus 2008 left on our test system.

Interface

BitDefender Antivirus 2008 opts for a no-nonsense interface. Should there be any security issues, one of the large icons will display red. For remediation there's a large Fix This button, or you can click the specific graphic to see what's wrong. We experienced only minor issues with this approach.

Upon installation, our Identity Privacy icon displayed red. Clicking either the Fix This Issue button or the Identity Privacy icon took us to a rule creation page. Now what? To get the Identity Privacy icon to go green, we either had to create a rule or turn off the feature, yet we were not given enough information to make that choice. Keeping Identity Privacy enabled assumes that you are comfortable providing personal details such as passwords and credit card information. Rather than fill out real information, we created a faux Social Security number of 123-45-6789 to satisfy BitDefender's request without disabling the feature. For the moment, the icon is green, but we're on the fence whether to keep the Identity Privacy feature enabled or disable it completely.

Features

BitDefender Antivirus 2008 covers a lot of ground, protecting your system from viruses, spyware, privacy breaches, phishing attacks, and rootkits. And BitDefender is the only antivirus product we've seen that advertises a Gamer mode, minimizing protection alerts and resources while you're off playing games.

For out-of-the-box protection, for the most part, we agree with BitDefender's default settings. For instance, with antivirus scans, the default setting scans files during boot, recently accessed files, packed files (although not archived files), incoming and outgoing e-mails--so far so good. The only difference with the more aggressive setting available is the addition of scanning activity on port 80 and port 443. BitDefender's HTTP scan blocks malicious ActiveX and JavaScript, and is part of the antivirus and antispyware protection. Do you need that? Again, there is not enough guidance within the program to help users make that decision; most browsers offer add-ons that will also screen for these scripts.

As for the default privacy protection, BitDefender will look for instances of private information leaving the computer and guard against spyware attempting to install on the machine. The more aggressive setting adds cookie control and script protection, which most browsers will also allow you to control. Do you need this protection if your browser already provides similar protection? Again, BitDefender doesn't offer enough guidance within the program to help users make that decision. Most browsers offer free add-ons that will screen for these scripts as well.

Performance

BitDefender Antivirus 2008 scored well in both our CNET Labs' performance tests and in one third-party, independent antivirus test using live viruses. On our iTunes test, BitDefender Antivirus 2008 was tied for first, completing in a fast 270 seconds, just 2 seconds above our test system. On our Microsoft Office test, BitDefender Antivirus 2008 came in near the middle at 1,426 seconds. For scanning a single folder with files, BitDefender Antivirus 2008 came in second requiring 163 seconds. And in boot speed, BitDefender Antivirus 2008 came in first, with a respectable 28 seconds. To find out how we test, see CNET Labs' How we test: software: antivirus page.

In terms of protecting your PC, we cite results from two leading independent antivirus testing organizations. In the latest test results from AV-Comparatives.org, for on-demand scans, the previous version, BitDefender Professional 10+, earned an Advanced (second-highest) rating, catching 96 percent of all malware tested; and for the Retrospective/Proactive test, BitDefender Professional 10+ also earned a Standard (middle) rating, detecting almost half the backdoors, Trojans, and other malware sampled. BitDefender was not tested by CheckVir.com, our second choice for test results.

Support

BitDefender provides a fairly complete package of technical support for its antivirus product. Greatly improved from last year is the built-in help file, although it would be nice if it were also context sensitive so that when we have a question about the Identity Pirvacy feature, the help file opens on that section immediately. BitDefender also offers an online Getting Started document, but we found its intended audience to be the Internet security suite users, not those starting out with just the antivirus product. BitDefender also delivers an adequate online FAQ, and there are several active user forums. Finally, you can e-mail or call a toll-free number, 888-868-1873, for live technical support.

Conclusion

While we like many features of BitDefender Antivirus 2008 and recognize that it has greatly improved since last year, we were disappointed by the overall feeling we get when using the application. In particular, the configuration settings could be more nuanced beyond just enable and disable. And the settings that are available could be better explained. Often we were left changing settings without being given enough context to make the right decisions.

Panda Antivirus 2008

This year, Panda offers two distinct antivirus products. To compare with other products tested and reviewed by CNET this year, we chose the Panda Antivirus 2008. A second product, Panda Antivirus plus Firewall 2008 was not reviewed. The $39.95 price for a three-user license is at the low end, which is good. However, when compared with the also economical BitDefender Antivirus 2008, Panda comes up short, lacking some features and, more importantly, similar test results. Panda is slower and is mostly unrated in independent, third-party antivirus test results. If you're looking for economy, chose BitDefender. If you're looking for the best antivirus product for 2008, we recommend Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2008, our Editors' Choice.

Setup Panda Antivirus 2008 includes three PC licenses for $39.95. By comparison, BitDefender Antivirus offers its three-user license for $29.95. Kaspersky offers a single license at $49.95 and charges $59.95 for its three-user license. Panda Antivirus 2008 runs on Windows 2000, XP, and Vista, while Norton AntiVirus 2008 works only on XP and Vista.

After downloading the 35MB file, Panda performs an initial scan of your system, and in our case, found eight different examples of spyware. Unfortunately, Panda didn't tell us precisely what spyware it found; only that it deleted it. Later, we could find no record of this scan for reference, although we did find subsequent log files of spyware that had been removed. We prefer to have control over what is quarantined or removed from our machine, and wish Panda had provided us with more information.

Should you want to remove Panda Antivirus 2008, there is an uninstall wizard available. Upon reboot, we did not find any traces of Panda left on our machine.

Interface

Compared to the interfaces found with other antivirus products, Panda Antivirus 2008 is simple, even cartoonish: bright, contrasting colors, with basic graphics; as though Fisher-Price made antivirus interfaces for kids. We were, however, pleased to find configuration options within easy reach.

During a manual scan, we were unable to open other features of the program, something we could do in other antivirus apps.

Features

Panda Antivirus 2008 includes TruPrevent, Panda's heuristic engine that proactively blocks viruses. However, it blocks only viruses. The full version of TruPrevent, which blocks other forms of malware as well, is available in the Panda Antivirus and Firewall and Panda Internet Security products.

Antiphishing protection is included with Panda Antivirus, but Panda Antivirus and Firewall and Panda Internet Security products include additional protection from malware lurking on Web pages.

Performance

Panda scored near the middle of the antivirus products in CNET Labs' performance tests. On our iTunes test, Panda was fast at 270 seconds, just 2 seconds more than our test system. On our Microsoft Office test, Panda was solidly in the middle at 1,355 seconds. In a test scanning a single folder with compressed and media files, Panda scored a fast 135 seconds, however, the default setting excludes many of the compressed files used in our test. And in terms of boot speed, Panda came in dead last at 39 seconds. To find out how we test antivirus software, see CNET Labs' How we test: Antivirus software page.

In terms of protecting your PC, we cite results from two leading independent antivirus testing organizations. Panda was not tested by AV-Comparatives.org. CheckVir.com tested Panda Internet Security 2006 and awarded it a Standard rating, meaning it was evaluated only on its ability to search for viruses, but not the removal of them.

Support

Support is extremely light for Panda Antivirus 2008. The built-in Help file lacks significant detail. The Panda Web site includes an interactive troubleshooter, which seems promising until it takes you to the weak knowledgebase section. Other antivirus apps have interactive self-diagnostics, so be careful of this terminology; Panda uses something else. On the Panda knowledgebase page, when you type in a query, the site spits back an FAQ in response. If you want to cut to the chase and see all the preanswered questions in advance, simply click Hot Topics. There is a secondary PDF document; it, too, was light on technical details. Nor could we find a user forum, chat, or telephone support section.

E-mail technical support includes a curious box that says any personal information you send to Panda becomes property of Panda and its business partners. We could not advance our query unless we agreed. When we asked our Panda representatives, they explained that users within the United States should not have seen that box, that it is a requirement only within Europe. After waiting six weeks for Panda to remove this check box, we downloaded a fresh copy of the program and found that it still included the checkbox.

Conclusion

We do not recommend Panda Antivirus 2008. For the price, we think that BitDefender Antivirus 2008 is a better deal in both protection and features. Overall, we recommend Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2008 as the best antivirus product for 2008.

Norton AntiVirus 2008

Having improved a lot last year in Symantec's flagship antivirus product, it makes sense we'd see more modest enhancements for this year's Norton AntiVirus 2008. While Norton AntiVirus 2008's antivirus test results compare favorably to our Editors' Choice winner Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7, it's the user experience that suffers in this release. The final size, a hefty 300MB, makes us wonder what's taking up all that extra space--Norton AntiVirus 2008 is roughly six times the file size as Kaspersky. Unlike Kaspersky, Norton AntiVirus 2008 is only available in a single-user license edition. Unlike Kaspersky, Symantec provides Norton users with little explanation of its features or settings, either in the configuration settings or on its technical support section. Also we don't like Norton's dependency on Internet Explorer to explain Help items or services provided by Symantec (windows pop up in IE even when Firefox is your default browser), or that fee-based services have once again crept into the technical support section. All of these things distract the user and weigh the product down in our minds. Your computer is safe with Norton AntiVirus, it's just, do you really need all that extra stuff installed as well? For a look inside Norton, see our Norton AntiVirus 2008 slide show.

Setup

Norton AntiVirus costs $39.99 for a single license. By comparison, Panda Antivirus offers its three-user license for the same price. While Kaspersky is slightly more expensive, selling its single-user license for $49.95, it offers a three-user license for just $10 more. There are no three-user licenses available for Norton AntiVirus 2008, so, if you have two more computers in your home network, you'll have to pay $40 for each computer.

Norton AntiVirus 2008 runs on Windows XP and Windows Vista, but not Windows 2000 or any earlier version of Windows. Norton AntiVirus 2008 requires at least 256MB of RAM and a whopping 300MB hard drive (consuming roughly six times the space of most of its 2008 competitors). Symantec does offer a full function 15-day trail of Norton AntiVirus 2008.

LiveUpdate, which used to be a separate process, is now integrated into Norton AntiVirus 2008--and about time. Once the product is installed and you're asked to update, everything--program files and signature files--arrive on your desktop together, making the experience smoother and easier. Symantec says this year's LiveUpdate packets are more compressed.

Should you decide to uninstall Norton AntiVirus 2008, there is an uninstall option on the All Programs listing. This, we discovered after contacting Symantec, does little more than what Windows Add/Remove will do for you. In other words, it won't necessarily remove all traces of Norton AntiVirus 2008 from your PC. To do so, you need to use the Norton Removal Tool. According to Symantec, this Norton Removal Tool "uninstalls all Norton 2008/2007/2006/2005/2004/2003 products and Norton 360 from your computer." The difference, we were told, is that "the removal tool will remove shared components, like LiveUpdate, even if other Norton products that depend on the shared component are installed."

Interface

If first impressions are everything, Norton AntiVirus 2008 loses us at "Hello." The new interface design is dark and garish, almost a perverse joke on those seeking reassuring security for their desktop. The use of ominous thick black borders and orange graphics suggests Halloween, a look that could get old by March. Unlike Kaspersky and other antivirus applications, you can't change the look and feel of Norton AntiVirus 2008. The unfriendly look and feel is, perhaps, a deeper metaphor for the overall lack of the configuration settings within Norton AntiVirus 2008.

Our central problem is that Norton offers some wonderful features, but we have no way of tweaking any of them. Drilling down to the configuration settings we see "Turn on Suspicious Activity Monitoring" or "Turn on Bloodhound heuristics"--but do we really need these features? Symantec provides us with very little additional information (for example, the built-in Help file says only "Turn on Bloodhound heuristics," not what it does), continuing with a practice adopted long ago by Symantec of making decisions for the user rather than presenting the user with options. Then there's my favorite "Turn on Advanced Mode" under the Suspicious Activity Monitor--it's not on by default, so should we turn it on? (Apparently the only difference between regular and Advance Mode is that the Suspicious Activity Monitor will log it in regular and alert you in Advanced mode). Again, you have to accept that Norton has your best interests in mind.

Kaspersky also uses similar enable/disable options--that's really not at issue here. The difference between the products is that Kaspersky offers a thorough 323 page user's manual explaining your choices where Norton does not. Unless you are fluent in Symantec speak, configuration options such as Bloodhound, Browser Defender, and SONAR are meaningless. Nor can you truly customize these in any meaningful way, with few options to provide unique rules.

Symantec limits (if not removes) a user's ability to customize and tweak individual settings throughout Norton AntiVirus 2008; for example, there's no quick way to set Norton to only scan new or recently modified files. Head-to-head, Kaspersky gives users more enable/disable options.

We're also not keen on Symantec's use of a large yellow block in the task tray that says Norton all the time. While other vendors have discrete icons, even icons that rotate or blink, we found the constant advertisement in the lower-right-hand corner visually distracting and unnecessary. Norton AntiVirus 2008's popup alerts were no bigger or smaller than its competitors.

Features

While there are few new features within Norton AntiVirus 2008, most of Symantec's new protection features are again reserved for the Norton Internet Security 2008 release.

One significant new feature shared across both products is network monitoring. Following advances made by Trend Micro and others in past years, Norton AntiVirus 2008 now creates one licensed user to be the local network security administrator, allowing that user to monitor the security of other computers on the network, and, if necessary, run scans and updates on those other computers. The caveat here is that the other computers must also be running Norton AntiVirus 2008 or Norton Internet Security 2008.

Also new is Browser Defender. Like SONAR, a behavior-monitoring and blocking feature acquired last year from a company called Whole Security, Browser Defender, formerly known as Canary, is a proactive heuristic layer that specifically identifies signatures of known Internet Explorer browser vulnerabilities and will block any Symantec-known exploits. The idea behind Browser Defender is that vulnerable browsers are the first point of entry for many Web threats known as "drive by" downloads, and that IE has a number of outstanding public vulnerabilities. Problem is that Browser Defender doesn't work for other browsers. Firefox users are still out in the cold, despite occupying up to 20 percent of the browser market. In our informal tests, using only Internet Explorer, one porn site in particular we use for testing was flagged by other browser defenders as containing several iframe referrers, but Norton did not so much as peep about the Web Attacker content on that site. While this is not an exhaustive test, it does suggest that free browser scanners might be used in addition to Norton. For Firefox (and even Internet Explorer) users, we recommend the free download of LinkScanner Lite as a second option on malicious Web sites.

Another feature that's important today keeps malware sent via IM from infecting your PC. Norton AntiVirus 2008 does that, but only if you have Microsoft (6.0 or higher) or Trillian (3.1 or higher). If you have older versions of the most popular IMs, AOL (4.7 to 5.9), Yahoo (5.x and 6.x), you're golden, but both of these products have updated significantly in recent months. To test this, we installed Yahoo Instant Messenger 8.1 and sure enough, Norton AntiVirus 2008 reported that we did not have any instant messengers installed. Given that both AOL and Yahoo have suffered large-scale attacks in recent months, it's odd that Norton doesn't yet support the latest versions of these.

What's missing? Symantec beta tested another product this summer, however, Norton Anti-Bot is not available in any of the traditional 2008 Norton security products. At $29.99, Norton Anti-Bot, which simply provides signature and heuristic protection against botnets taking residence on your desktop computer, is almost the price of Norton AntiVirus 2008, and, as such, simply is not worth it is a standalone product. We look forward to Symantec including its anti-bot technology in next year's release of Norton AntiVirus.

Performance

Norton AntiVirus 2008 scored well in both our CNET Labs' Windows XP performance tests and in third-party, independent antivirus tests using live viruses. On our iTunes test, Norton AntiVirus 2008 was in the middle of the pack, just 3 seconds above our test system. On our Microsoft Office test, Norton AntiVirus 2008 came in near the middle at 1,459 seconds. For scanning a single folder with files, Norton AntiVirus 2008 came in near the middle with 173 seconds. And in boot speed, Norton AntiVirus 2008 came in last place, with a sluggish 40 seconds. To find out how we test, see CNET Labs' How we test: software: antivirus page.

In terms of protecting your PC, we cite results from two leading independent antivirus testing organizations. In the latest test results from AV-Comparatives.org, for on-demand scans the previous version Norton AntiVirus 2007 earned an Advanced + (the highest) rating, catching 98 percent of all malware tested; and for the Retrospective/Proactive test, the previous version of Norton AntiVirus 2007 earned an Advanced (second-highest) rating, detecting almost half the backdoors, Trojans, and other malware sampled. Norton AntiVirus 2007 received a Standard rating from CheckVir.com, meaning only the virus searching capability was examined.

CNET Labs will be testing the antispyware in Norton AntiVirus 2008 separately, in October. Our suspicion is that Norton AntiVirus 2008 will match last year's results and finish fairly high in our ranking.

Support

While Symantec continues to improve its technical support experience, Norton AntiVirus 2008 reverts to its old ways. Symantec provides a fairly light 13-page user's manual that mostly addresses how to install the product, not use it. Like last year, Symantec's support options include an automatic diagnostic tool for the program. It's worth noting that one of the comments it made is: "Your computer runs slowly after installing Norton AntiVirus 2008," which leads us to believe that many people experience this condition. There's also free chat, free e-mail, and telephone service.

After an absence of one or two years, advertising once again creeps back into the Symantec's technical support section in the guise of "Expert Services" and "PC Tune Up." Both are paid consulting services that, if you're not careful, could cost you up to $69.95 (that's a flat fee) per call. In the PC Tune Up scenario, you call up, are charged, and a Symantec technician remotely accesses your PC to resolve any problems you might be having at that time. Some might find that comforting, but at $70 you can probably find free help by doing a Google search for your error message or problem, since Symantec doesn't yet maintain a user's forum.

Conclusion

Although the antivirus protection is similar between Norton AntiVirus and Karspersky, we give the nod to Kaspersky again this year in part because of its superior user experience. Symantec, despite its efforts, still feels heavy, burdened by its own corporate legacy and dependency on other Symantec products. Also, it is not always clear what you are enabling or disabling, clever way to keep users from controlling the application themselves. And finally, watch out for fee-based "premium" help and technical support which once again finds its way back into the product.

McAfee VirusScan Plus 2008

Many of improvements within McAfee VirusScan Plus 2008 are in the code, which is where you want them to be. McAfee has gone ahead with a silly marketing campaign emphasizing that it alone will protect your desktop, protect your Web browsing with Site Advisor, and will also protect your mobile phone for one price. Which makes us suspicious--why tack on the extras? Two of three "triple play" protections were actually offered last year, and, at the time of this writing, the mobile component still wasn't available for testing. Instead of repackaging itself, McAfee should have pared down the system resources it uses, enhanced its firewall more, tweaked last year's interface, and switched to a more streamlined download and installation process. As it stands Mcafee VirusScan 2008 looks and feels like warmed-over last year's product, with too few "must haves." Bottom line, for solid, award-winning antivirus protection, without the gimmicks and the ever present up sale to more expensive suites, Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2008 remains our Editors' Choice for 2007.

Setup

McAfee VirusScan Plus 2008 includes one PC license at $39.95, but McAfee also offers three-user licenses for $59.95, and additional licenses for a mere $10 each. By comparison, BitDefender Antivirus offers its three-user license for $29.95. Kaspersky offers its single license at $49.95, but matches McAfee on its three-user price. McAfee VirusScan 2008 runs on Windows 2000, XP, and Vista, while Norton AntiVirus 2008 only works on XP and Vista.

McAfee continues to use a bootstrap method of downloading code to your machine, and then installing it module by module. This year the process was much faster in our informal tests. There's the security center, which you download first, then, depending on the product you purchased, the product itself is downloaded from McAfee to your computer. McAfee claims it can offer the latest build; the alternative is to install the product, then immediately update. What's curious is that McAfee didn't scan our computer (which other AV products have also stopped doing) yet VirusScan Plus insisted our computer was secure on first load (other AV products prompted us to initiate a scan right away). This may be an interface bug or perhaps reflect McAfee's overenthusiasm for its proactive, real-time anti-malware heuristics. It would be nice if it prompted us to run a scan.

Should you want to remove McAfee VirusScan Plus, unlike most antivirus products we've seen this year, there is no uninstall option for McAfee in the Windows All Programs listing. Instead, you'll need to use the Windows Control Panel Add/Remove Software option. Unlike last year--when McAfee left a mess--after our reboot, we were pleased to find no evidence left on our machine. In comparison, Norton AntiVirus 2008 leaves behind registry files and some system files.

Interface

The McAfee Protection Center interface has not changed since last year. It still offers a left-hand navigation for all tools, with a right-hand window pane for system status. Unlike Norton, which uses individual tabs for products such as Norton AntiVirus, McAfee's has fully integrated its Security Center. We like this better. There are two tables of contents: One lists basic features while a second lists more advanced tools.

We do like that McAfee has blended its various tools--security, utility, networking--together so that the overall product feels more integrated and whole. Norton still feels like several standalone applications repackaged. This year McAfee VirusScan Plus appears to have rewritten some of its code; it doesn't feel as heavy and clunky as last year's edition. That said, in our performance testing, McAfee remains in the middle of this year's pack of products in terms of overall performance.

One additional quibble is that by using the same interface for all its products, McAfee will list Attention under some of the nonused subheadings such as Parental Controls. To turn on Content Blocking, for example, we're told we'll need to buy McAfee Internet Security or McAfee Total Protection. This kind of up sale is unnecessary, and somewhat deceptive (maybe we don't want content blocking, or have it from another product). If you just want an antivirus product, you should be able to buy just an antivirus product.

Features

McAfee bills VirusScan Plus 2008 as its six-in-one security solution. Included within are many interesting tools such as the system diagnostic tools to shred deleted files and defragment your hard drive; various network monitoring tools; and McAfee's own antisphishing tool, SiteAdvisor. Although SiteAdvisor was included last year, it lacked the antiphishing component.

New this year is a free McAfee Virtual Technician an optional plug-in which, when downloaded, will diagnose the state of your McAfee product and computer health and then make recommendations how to fix it--for free. It seems unnecessary, but then again you can't argue with the price. Symantec offers a Norton equivalent, but it'll cost you $69.95 per use.

New is the ability for McAfee to scan links within IM messages and rate them. We found that this feature works with latest versions of AOL IM and Yahoo Messenger, two of the most popular IMs today; Norton offers similar protection but only for older builds of Yahoo and AOL.

Also new is a feature McAfee calls "State Aware," in which movies, slide shows, and even games play uninterrupted by security alerts or scans whenever you're in full-screen mode. It's a feature we've seen in other antivirus products this year; Norton doesn't offer this.

Enhanced over last year is the integration of antivirus, antispyware, firewall, and antiphishing. The heuristics, or System Guards, have also been improved.

Missing are more frequent updates of signature files and programs. Kaspersky updates hourly, while McAfee promises only daily updates (although it might, in an emergency, deliver more frequently).

Performance

McAfee VirusScan Plus stays in the middle of the pack, sometimes trending toward the upper end of the middle. On our iTunes test, VirusScan Plus placed solidly in the middle of the pack at 271 seconds. In our Microsoft Office test, VirusScan Plus trended toward the high end, taking home the second-longest score at 1,519 seconds. In a test scanning a single folder with compressed and media files, McAfee scored 446 seconds, again, toward the high end of our middle group. And in terms of boot speed, McAfee was third-longest at 38 seconds. To find out how we test antivirus software, see CNET Labs' How we test: Antivirus software page.

In terms of whether or not McAfee VirusScan Plus 2008 will protect your PC, we cite results from two leading independent antivirus testing organizations. In the latest test results from AV-Comparatives.org, for on-demand scans McAfee VirusScan Plus 2008 earned an Advanced (second-highest) rating, catching 93 percent of all malware tested and tying with Norton AntiVirus 2007. For the Retrospective/Proactive test, McAfee VirusScan Plus 2008 also earned an Advanced (second-highest) rating (PDF). From CheckVir.com, McAfee VirusScan Enterprisewas earned an Advanced rating, which includes both search and antivirus removal.

For antispyware protection, we anticipate that McAfee VirusScan Plus will score above average in our CNET Labs tests as it did last year. Check back in November for those results.

Support

McAfee has improved its technical support over last year but still doesn't offer context-sensitive help like Kaspersky or Trend Micro, meaning you will have to search for specific help. McAfee Virtual Technician is the product's first line of defense. If it can't help, then you'll be directed toward the online FAQ, and, finally, chat or e-mail. If you try to jump ahead to chat or e-mail, you'll be directed back to the Virtual Technician first. It's as though McAfee doesn't want you to contact it directly. Missing is telephone support. Or, rather, telephone support is listed under Fee Based Support, with a variety of per-minute or per-incident plans starting at $2.95 a minute or $39 per incident. There is no tutorial, online manual, or user forums with McAfee. By comparison, Kaspersky offers a complete 321-page manual, a robust user forum, and toll-free telephone support.

Conclusion

McAfee VirusScan 2008 and other McAfee products are bundled with various hardware systems; for the purposes of protecting your PC, they'll do just that. Plus you'll get the manufacturer's technical support. But for the discerning user looking to get the best protection, we suggest you try another product. The lack of a quality technical support from McAfee is stunning given that smaller antivirus companies do a much better job supporting their customers than this venerable giant in the industry. Rather than putting its energy into marketing gimmicks like "triple play," it would be nice to see McAfee take the lead next year and offer a truly solid antivirus product like Kaspersky or even Norton.

Trend Micro Antivirus plus Antispyware 2008

Trend Micro Antivirus and Antispyware has made gains since last year, introducing a number of features in its 2008 model that are useful in both the home and small office. Aside from the intuitive interface, Trend Micro provides a number of configuration options that allow the user to control the application, something we faulted Norton Antivirus 2008 for not providing. And Trend Micro Antivirus and Antispyware 2008 also supports the current releases of AOL's and Yahoo's instant messengers, again something that Norton Antivirus 2008 doesn't provide. But on the critical question of protecting your PC, we could find no independent data comparing Trend Micro Antivirus plus Antispyware with our Editors' Choice, Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7. Thus, we cannot, at this time, rank the latest offering from Trend Micro. Check back in a few weeks to see any updates to this review. For a look inside, see our Trend Micro Antivirus plus Antispyware 2008 slide show.

Setup

We installed Trend Micro Antivirus plus Antispyware 2008 without incident. It requires 100MB for installation and 256MB of RAM for operation, and it runs under all versions of Windows, from 2000 through Vista. Trend Micro AV AS supports both Internet Explorer and Firefox. It will scan e-mail for Outlook, Outlook Express, Windows Mail (Vista), and Mozilla Thunderbird, but not Qualcomm Eudora. It will monitor or scan current IM releases from Yahoo, Microsoft, ICQ, and AOL. Trend Micro Antivirus plus Antispyware 2008 includes only one PC license at $39.95. By comparison, Panda Antivirus offers its three-user license for the same price. Kaspersky is slightly more expensive, selling its single-user license for $49.95; it offers a three-user license for just $10 more. Should you decide to remove Trend Micro Antivirus plus Antispyware 2008, the program includes its own uninstall icon.

Interface

The interface is a simplified version of the one used in Trend Micro Internet Security 2008. Still, compared with the brooding, overbearing look and feel of Norton Antivirus 2008, we really like it. Features are accessed along the left-hand margin, while the large right window is used for detail. Configuration options occasionally pop up additional windows, but never more than one.

We really like the configuration option that allows us to control the level of alerts--either it will show us all the possible alerts, or it groups them and only occasionally displays a message. We think that's great, since more advanced users might not want to be informed of everything, where casual users will appreciate the application's attention to detail.

Features

Trend Micro continues to streamline its scanning process, this year combining antivirus, antispyware, and antirootkit scans into one engine. When the scans are complete, Trend Micro Antivirus plus Antispyware 2008 displays information about each threat. This is also true in the Changes scan, which can review changes that are made to your system registry or other key program files. By highlighting each change, the right-hand column provides additional details without having to access the Internet and go to the Trend Micro site.

Like Kaspersky and Norton, Trend Micro includes enhanced heuristics. Trend Micro's Proactive Intrusion Blocking feature is a part of the Enhanced Behavior Monitoring module and part of a company initiative to provide Host Intrusion Prevention (HIP) to all the Trend Micro 2008 security products, both enterprise and consumer. What that means for you is that emerging threats are blocked proactively by a constantly updated rules set. In addition, Trend Micro is able to trace the source of various changes in your system registry, your Windows folder, and instead of producing dozens of alerts, simply presents one unified alert.

One very cool feature is the ability to clean up various files, be it the cache of the browser, or the last-viewed files in Word. This one-stop cleaning is an important security feature, especially if you share your computer with others.

Another feature we like is the ability for Trend Micro to erase the log files and other security entrapments created by using AOL and Yahoo instant messengers. Unlike Norton Antivirus 2008, which does not support the latest versions of these popular IMs, Trend Micro offers configuration settings for AOL and Yahoo, allowing you to keep the logs if you so desire.

What's missing is a personal firewall; having that would make this product pretty invincible. Also missing are the hourly updates, such as those from Kaspersky. While Trend Micro does issue regular updates, it does so only every three hours. During those three hours, you'll be dependent on the program's heuristics.

Performance

The antispyware portion of last year's edition of Trend Micro Antivirus and Antispyware was excellent, fast at scanning, but it often didn't give us the choice of whether or not to remove something--it did it for us. In exclusive testing by CNET Labs, Trend Micro's active shields identified and blocked seven out of eight spyware samples we attempted to install, the best results out of 10 antispyware products tested.

To determine how well a product will protect your PC, we refer to test results from leading independent antivirus testing organizations. Only CheckVir.com ranked Trend Micro PC-Cillin Internet Security 2007 as one of four products to earn its Advanced rating, which means the product was tested on finding and removing antivirus threats. Trend Micro has not been reviewed by AV-Comparatives.org. The lack of independent testing makes it hard for us to say definitively how good Trend Micro's antivirus protection really is.

Support

Trend Micro Antivirus and Antispyware 2008 provides pretty decent contextual help, meaning that on each configuration screen, you can click Help and quickly find definitions for all the terms used on a given page. This is something that Norton Antivirus 2008 lacks, and it puzzles us why Symantec can't deliver on this feature. Trend Micro is also one of the few security vendors to offer free telephone and Internet chat support for its products. That's good because the online technical support information for Trend Micro Antivirus plus Antispyware 2008 still is not that good. Not only does Trend Micro lack a Getting Started PDF, but there is no manual. Kaspersky provides a 323-page manual that covers everything within its product. We also found the Trend Micro FAQ to be lacking information. This product lacks a tutorial for the standalone antivirus application. We'd really like to see improvements in this section next year.

Conclusion

Without testing data, it is hard to say conclusively whether or not Trend Micro Antivirus plus Antispyware 2008 is a good investment. On the issue of ease of use, Trend Micro has made considerable improvements over last year's version, and, for the price, it includes a number of worthwhile features that are useful in both the home and small office.

Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7

Last year's CNET Editors' Choice award winner Kaspersky returns with another winner. Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7 features a new interface and new protection. But, unlike last year, the competition for Editors' Choice in this space was fierce with several worthy contenders all bunching toward the top of the scale. For example, BitDefender Antivirus 2008 is perhaps the most improved product of the year, nipping at the heals of Kaspersky. What makes Kaspersky Anti-Virus continue to outshine its competition is its ease of use combined with thorough antivirus protection. No firewall, no gimmicks, just straight AV protection. Kaspersky also makes an Internet security suite, yet Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7 feels complete as a standalone product and not, like Norton Antivirus 2008, a cog in larger family of products. That said, there is no firewall protection within Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2008, leaving you to choose your own firewall protection. Once again, Kaspersky requires considerably less disk space than Norton. The only real negative here is the list price, which can be $10 to $20 more than the competition, depending where you purchase it. Still, Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7 provides the most complete antivirus production on the market today and deserves our Editors' Choice for best antivirus product for 2008. For a look inside, see our slide show.

Setup

Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7 costs $59.95 for a single license and $69.95 for a three-user license. By comparison, Norton Antivirus 2008 costs $39.95 for a single-user license (there are no three-user versions of NAV 2008). Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7 runs on Windows 2000, Windows XP, and Windows Vista, where Norton Antivirus runs only on Windows XP and Windows Vista. Kaspersky requires 512 RAM and at least 50MB of hard drive space (Norton requires 300 MB of hard drive space). A full-function 30-day trial version of Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7 is available.

We experienced no problems with several different installations during the month of August. After installation, the system requires a reboot for full protection.

Should you want to remove Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7, the product includes an uninstall option in the All Programs menu. Once we uninstalled the product and rebooted, we found no lingering evidence of Kaspersky remaining on our machine.

Interface

Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7 sports a cleaner, more sophisticated interface than last year's. We like it best among the 2008 antivirus applications we've seen. Immediately our eye was drawn to the red banner with text that told us our signature files were out of date. This is visually very effective and efficient, whereas a simple Fix It button to the side is not always informative. Also, unlike Norton's morbid, black border, we like the open, bright, and colorful interface of Kaspersky that is skinnable to suite your own tastes.

Another interface feature we like is the left navigation. Within seconds, we were able to find the configuration settings we wanted to tweak.

In addition to antivirus and antispyware protection, Kaspersky offers antirootkit protection as well. We like the built-in System Restore, so that should your computer ever become infected, Kaspersky will roll back any registry changes to a time prior to the infection. This is effective against spyware and rootkits.

Features

Not only is the malware protection within Kaspersky proactive, with top-of-the-line heuristics to identify newly created malware, and, like BitDefender Antivirus 2008, Kaspersky's traditional signature-based protection is updated hourly, along with any available program updates. We like this approach, as Kaspersky seems to have figured out what Norton has not: how to deliver small file updates. Plus, Kaspersky has consistently demonstrated the shortest response time to breaking new malware threats.

Kaspersky still provides users with the process of creating a rescue disk, something that many antivirus products no longer offer. And, Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7 includes a process so that the operating system can revert back to a time just before an infection. Like Norton, Kaspersky can also throttle back on system resources, depending on user activity. Unlike Norton, Kaspersky can, by default, scan only recently changed files, greatly shortening the overall scan time considerably.

Performance

Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7 scored well in CNET Labs' performance tests and in third-party, independent antivirus testing using live viruses, although not always the top position. On the CNET iTunes test, Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7 came in just 4 seconds above the test system at 272 seconds. On the CNET Microsoft Office test, Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7 finished in 1,518 seconds. In a test scanning a single folder with compressed and media files, Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7 completed it in 521 seconds. And in boot speed, Kaspersky came in second, with a fast 29.77 seconds. To find out how we test antivirus software , see CNET Labs' How we test: Antivirus software page.

In terms of whether or not Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7 will protect your PC, we cite results from two leading independent antivirus testing organizations. In the latest test results from AV-Comparatives.org, for on-demand scans Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7 earned an Advanced + (highest) rating, catching 98 percent of all malware tested and tying with Norton Antivirus 2007. However, for the Retrospective/Proactive test, Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7 earned an Advanced (second-highest) rating, although Kaspersky produced very few false positives compared with other antivirus apps in the same test. From CheckVir.com, there is no data. Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7 was not included in recent tests, however, when it was last tested, Kaspersky Anti-Virus 6 earned a Standard rating when only the ability to search is tested, not antivirus removal.

Support

Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7 provides an excellent context-sensitive, in-program help file. For example, if you are on the Data Files page and you click Help, you're taken to the entry for Data Files within the Help file. It's a small touch, but one we don't see often enough. Kaspersky offers a robust 321-page PDF manual (the most complete of any antivirus application we've seen); it includes just about everything--except for an index, although the table of contents is richly detailed. Kaspersky also delivers excellent online FAQ and knowledge base. There are also active user forums. Finally, you can e-mail or call a toll-free number for live technical support.

Conclusion

If you're looking for an antivirus application that's good, fast, and light on system resources, Kaspersky is the one. We found this antivirus application easy enough for beginners, with customization features that will please more-advanced users, as well. But, with the competition gaining, by no means was this a knockout; this year's Editors' Choice race was tighter than ever.

CA Antivirus plus CA Antispyware 2008

CA Anti-Virus Plus CA Anti-Spyware 2008 holds the middle ground, neither improving nor declining with this year's offering. The code is leaner, resulting in faster scans; however, there are too few features here to warrant much excitement. Also, this is the only antivirus product we tested that attempted to download a third-party toolbar during installation. And we are puzzled why a major security company like CA doesn't provide more technical support for its consumer products. If you're looking for economy, choose BitDefender Antivirus 2008. If you're looking the best antivirus product for 2008, we recommend Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2008, our Editors' Choice.

Setup

CA Anti-Virus Plus CA Anti-Spyware 2008 includes three PC licenses at $49.95. By comparison, BitDefender Antivirus offers its three-user license for $29.95. Kaspersky offers its single license at $49.95, and charges $59.95 for its three-user license. CA Anti-Virus Plus CA Anti-Spyware 2008 runs on Windows 2000, XP, and Vista, while Norton AntiVirus 2008 only works on XP and Vista.

There is a very good reason not to blow through the installation of CA Anti-Virus Plus CA Anti-Spyware 2008 without reading each screen carefully. One thing we always hate to find is the Yahoo toolbar hiding within any installation, and it's lurking here. By all means, uncheck the box asking you to install it along with CA Anti-Virus Plus CA Anti-Spyware 2008. Worse, Yahoo also asks permission to make it your search engine by default. We prefer the freedom to choose our own search engines, thank you. CA is the only antivirus vendor we reviewed that included third-party piggyback applications within its install.

Also, we were unable to continue with our CA installation without registering. Other antivirus vendors allow you to skip registration or, in the case with Symantec, click Next three times to continue. Not with CA. Although the information collected is negligible, given the Yahoo toolbar lurking in the installer package, we didn't like handing over any additional information.

Should you want to remove CA Anti-Virus Plus CA Anti-Spyware 2008, there is no All Programs option to uninstall. You will need to use Windows Add/Remove Software. In doing so, a CA uninstall wizard will then ask if you want to remove the antivirus, the antispyware, or both from your machine. After reboot, we found no traces of CA products on our machine.

However, if you installed the Yahoo toolbar or made it your default search engine, you'll need to remove these separately. Removing CA alone will not change the status of these Yahoo applications.

Interface

CA uses a consistent interface for all its offerings. While we like this, we don't like the confusing up-sell that goes along with this implementation. For example, after finding out that you don't have a firewall, instead of offering to turn on the free Windows Firewall, CA takes you to a Web page that talks about why you should upgrade and install the CA Firewall. The page is dry, no graphics, no sales pitch, but might cause people to think that it's an FAQ page. It's not.

Features

With CA Anti-Virus Plus CA Anti-Spyware 2008, that's what you get; no firewall, no antiphishing tools, no extras.

Within the antivirus protection, the scans are faster than last year. The features touted in marketing materials--real-time scanning, advanced heuristic scanning, and automatic e-mail scanning--are standard and do not stand out from the competition.

Same with the antispyware protection. CA, which bought PestPatrol many years ago, now includes more information about the specific spyware found on your machine rather than requiring you to click to a Web site for more information. Again, none of the features--real-time protection, automatic updates, and custom scans--are standard and do not stand out from the competition.

Performance

CA Anti-Virus Plus CA Anti-Spyware 2008 stays in the middle of the pack, sometimes trending toward the lower, faster end of the middle in our test results. On our iTunes test, CA Anti-Virus Plus CA Anti-Spyware 2008 took the longest, at 273 seconds to complete. In our Microsoft Office test, CA Anti-Virus Plus CA Anti-Spyware 2008 completed the fastest, at 1,191 seconds. In a test scanning a single folder with compressed and media files, CA scored 187 seconds, again, toward the faster end of our middle group. And in terms of boot speed, CA was in the middle at 36 seconds. To find out how we test antivirus software, see CNET Labs' How we test: Antivirus software page.

In terms of whether or not CA Anti-Virus Plus CA Anti-Spyware 2008 will protect your PC, CNET uses results from two leading independent antivirus testing organizations. CA Anti-Virus Plus CA Anti-Spyware 2008 was not included in the latest test results from AV-Comparatives.org, for on-demand scans and retrospective/proactive tests. CA Anti-Virus Plus CA Anti-Spyware 2008 was included in the latest test results from CheckVir.com and earned a Standard rating, which means it was tested on finding but not removing viruses.

For antispyware protection, check back in November for these results.

Support

Once again, we were disappointed by CA's lack of technical support shown for its products. The built-in help file is light on details, and there is no manual. There is no online chat service nor online forums. In fact, finding the online technical support for this product is not easy (the CA Web site is primarily designed for corporate customers, not consumers). The online FAQ (once found) contains information for the 2007 version, not the current 2008 edition. And if you want to talk to someone about the product, that costs $19.95 per incident, although live telephone tech support is available 24-7.

Conclusion

Call us crabby, but CA still isn't up to speed with the competition on its consumer antivirus and antispyware offerings and thus not yet up to our standards. CA is known for its enterprise security and has over the years tried to break into the consumer market with limited success. This year's offering is a solid base, but that's it. In the future, we'd really like to see CA challenge Trend Micro, McAfee, and Symantec. We know CA has the corporate security tools, so how about bringing some of them down to the consumer level?