Microsoft's free security tool gets the thumbs up
/v3-uk/blog-post/2015176/microsofts-free-security-tool-thumbs
19 Aug 2010, Daniel Robinson , V3
Some good news for Windows users for a change; Microsoft's free-to-download Security Essentials tool has been certified by anti-virus research organisation AV-Test as part of an in-depth study of 19 security products.
Security Essentials was launched last year as a replacement for the scrapped Windows Live OneCare subscription service, and is a free download for consumers running Windows 7, Windows Vista and Windows XP SP2 or higher.
At the time, questions were raised about whether a free security product could really prove effective in protecting Windows computers, especially when compared against full-blown security suites from established vendors such as Symantec and McAfee.
However, Security Essentials seems to have fared well in AV-Test's study, especially in the usability category which examines how much a particular tool impacts on the performance of the computer it is running on.
This tallies with feedback from reviewers and testers, who have previously praised the tool for its unobtrusive operation. Some security suites can slow down a PC alarmingly.
In terms of protection, Security Essentials was still rated as less effective than Symantec's Norton Internet Security 2010 or AVG: Internet Security 9.0, both of which are paid-for suites, but Microsoft has always maintained that the product is aimed at those users who would otherwise have no protection at all, rather than at taking market share from other security vendors.
Security Essentials was launched last year as a replacement for the scrapped Windows Live OneCare subscription service, and is a free download for consumers running Windows 7, Windows Vista and Windows XP SP2 or higher.
At the time, questions were raised about whether a free security product could really prove effective in protecting Windows computers, especially when compared against full-blown security suites from established vendors such as Symantec and McAfee.
However, Security Essentials seems to have fared well in AV-Test's study, especially in the usability category which examines how much a particular tool impacts on the performance of the computer it is running on.
This tallies with feedback from reviewers and testers, who have previously praised the tool for its unobtrusive operation. Some security suites can slow down a PC alarmingly.
In terms of protection, Security Essentials was still rated as less effective than Symantec's Norton Internet Security 2010 or AVG: Internet Security 9.0, both of which are paid-for suites, but Microsoft has always maintained that the product is aimed at those users who would otherwise have no protection at all, rather than at taking market share from other security vendors.
© Incisive Media Investments Limited 2010, Published by Incisive Financial Publishing Limited, Haymarket House, 28-29 Haymarket, London SW1Y 4RX, are companies registered in England and Wales with company registration numbers 04252091 & 04252093
Do you agree?
Hello,
I would strongly suggest that there is a problem here. You are NOT comparing like for like products. Norton security 2010 & AVG are nothing like Microsoft's security essentials. Norton & AVG are way way more complicated products with many many more features. Actually Microsoft security essentials is a very good product specifically because its NOT an over stuffed doe-nut and doesn't have over the top features. The best software remain dedicated tools for dedicated tasks IMO based on many years of IT & computing.
Posted by Ivan Ratoyevsky, 20 Aug 2010