Virus-Spyware-Tools

1. Effective detection of viruses - obvious point but ou need to fell confident that your software will catch a vast majority of the virus threats including worm, and Trojans. Visit Online websites like PC World or CNet for trusted reviews.
2. Value for money - a lot of the software vendors offer internet security suites which offer the anti virus software with other security tools including firewall software and spam filters. Typically these all-in-one packages offer better value for money than buying a stand-alone AntiVirus Software. At a minimum it is important to  consider buying  a package which includes a decent firewall which monitors both incoming and outgoing internet traffic in your computer. The standard windows XP Firewall only monitors incoming traffic.
3. Virus Definition Update - The best computer anti Virus software offers automatic updates which ensure the best protection for your computer. New virus threats emerge almost daily so it is critical your antivirus software's virus definition database is refreshed frequently.
4. User Interface - needs to be easy to use so that you can configure the required setting without requiring any technical knowledge. It also needs to convey information in plain english  for the home use with easy-to-follow instructions.
5. Integrates with Windows XP security centre - this allows you to make the most of a useful feature of your operating system. The security centre monitors the security software on your computer to make sure it is work properly. The last thing you want is continuous error messages from windows.
6. Technical Support - This is really important. The best packages offer free technical support. You will be surprised how many vendors actually charge for this - sometimes the charges per  incident can be very high.

Google's plan for a new PC operating system is its most ambitious assault against Microsoft, but it is a gamble that may not pay off for several years.

The rivals have spent years attacking each other, with Google claiming a clear victory for its search engine but not making much of a dent in Microsoft's IE internet browser and Office programs.

Google announced on Tuesday it is developing a new operating system for personal computers, a month after Microsoft launched Bing, its first search engine to gain ground on Google after more than a decade of misses, according to early data.

The Chrome Operating System will initially be available on low-cost netbooks designed for internet surfing and running web-based software, starting in the second half of 2010.

Google said on Wednesday it will not charge for the software, which could pressure Microsoft to cut prices on its Windows, eroding earnings from the profitable system found on nine out of every 10 PCs.

"On a scale of one to 10, I'd say the threat to Microsoft is a three," said Howard Anderson, a lecturer at the MIT Entrepreneurship Centre and former CEO of the Yankee Group.

He estimated that about 2 per cent of PC users will try Chrome OS in the first year. If the software gets good reviews from early adopters, Chrome's market share could swell to 10 per cent by the end of the second year, he said.

"While people love to bitch about Windows, the user community is used to it," Anderson said.

One major challenge that could delay adoption is getting makers of printers, networking gear, cameras and other devices to develop software that lets their equipment work with the new Google system. There are more than 2 million software drivers that connect devices to Windows PCs.

Google also needs to resolves bugs that will inevitably turn up, as well as arrange technical support for customers.

"Who will support it? It's a big ambition," said Jefferies & Co analyst Katherine Egbert.

Google said it is working with large technology companies on the project, including PC makers Acer, Asustek, Hewlett-Packard and Lenovo, and chipmakers Qualcomm and Texas Instruments.

The new operating system is based on a product from Google that has had limited success: the Chrome browser. As of February, it claimed 1.2 per cent market share, compared to nearly 70 per cent for Microsoft's browser, according to researcher Net Applications.

Google said Chrome OS will be fast and lightweight, letting users access the web just a few seconds after turning on their PCs. But it did not provide much information about the product, making it hard for analysts to judge long-term prospects.

"There is a lot of spade work to be done before this is a viable alternative to Windows," said Roger Kay, an analyst with Endpoint Technologies.

The release schedule would keep Chrome OS from interfering with the October debut of Microsoft's highly anticipated Windows 7 - an operating system that has won praise from reviewers who tested early copies of the software. Wall Street analysts have high hopes for the product, which replaces the widely maligned Windows Vista.

Microsoft declined to comment on Google's challenge, though it announced a new president for the Windows division, Steven Sinofsky, on Wednesday.

"I don't think it will hurt Microsoft in the short run because you have no alternative. Where it will hurt Microsoft is that there is suddenly a viable alternative," said Roger Entner, a technology analyst with Nielsen Co.

"If Microsoft doesn't watch out it will turn into a lethal threat," he said.

Analysts also had a warning for Google, cautioning the company's executives against letting their foray into the PC desktop distract them from the company's core search and advertising business, where Microsoft is making progress.

Bing, launched by Microsoft on June 3 to generally positive reviews, handled 8.23 per cent of US web searches in June, up from 7.21 per cent for Microsoft search in April, according to internet data firm StatCounter.

"They have been making all these attempts at Microsoft. They have been doing nothing with their search," said Fred Hickey, editor of the High-Tech Strategist Newsletter.

source:smh.com.au

The riddle of a malicious software program that has spread throughout the Internet deepened Thursday as security researchers examined a new version of the software that they said made it more difficult to eradicate the program.

The program, known as Conficker, targets versions of Microsoft’s Windows operating system and has now been distributed in four versions, computer security specialists said.

Several of the groups monitoring the program said the most recent version, which began to appear Tuesday, appeared to be targeted at improving a peer-to-peer communications system between computers that are infected and hardening the system by making infected machines more resistant to anti-virus software.

Several researchers also said there might be a connection between the authors of Conficker and of another program known as Waladec, a malware program that has been used to distribute fraudulent advertisements through e-mail spam. They also noted that the Conficker authors have switched strategies and are using the program’s peer-to-peer mechanism to update the system. Originally, they had appeared to plan to download instructions to Conficker by generating new Internet addresses that infected machines could download instructions from.

An earlier version of the program had been set to begin contacting servers on April 1, raising widespread concern about the authors’ intent. Now, however, the system for programming Conficker uses a peer-to-peer mechanism that can be initiated from any one of millions of infected systems.

The consensus within the computer security industry is that although there are now some indications that Conficker’s authors are intent on building a giant spam system, there is no hard evidence.