Security firm develops new PDA protection

Security vendor Network Associates (NAI) has unveiled an antivirus application designed to run on forthcoming wireless handheld devices that use Wi-Fi and Bluetooth technology.

The company's McAfee VirusScan personal digital assistant (PDA) has been developed for handhelds running Microsoft's new mobile operating system, Windows Mobile 2003.

According to NAI, Dell will be the first company to offer a specially customised version of the antivirus product, with its Axim X5 handheld computer.

"Both individual users and companies looking to empower their employees with Windows Mobile-based Pocket PCs will find VirusScan PDA a powerful tool to ensure both their devices and corporate networks are safe and secure against threats such as viruses," said Mark Spain, director of the Mobile Devices Division at Microsoft.

McAfee VirusScan PDA features real-time, on-device scanning, automatic or scheduled updating, and scanning during synchronisation with the user's PC.

"This partnership is an important step to ensuring that mobile users have the same level of protection from viruses on handheld devices as they do on their desktop or laptop," said Todd Gebhart, vice president of managed services at Network Associates.