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Filed under: Security, Windows, Freeware, Windows x64

Panda CEO and CTO talk Cloud Antivirus 1.0 as download link goes live

Panda Cloud Antivirus is one of the more talked about releases of 2009. Its new spin on the traditional antivirus model -- like many new programs which embrace cloud computing -- has been met with both praise and criticism. Panda themselves are bullish on Cloud AV, and I was fortunate enough to speak about it with CEO Juan Santana and Senior Research Advisor Pedro Bustamante.

To Santana and Bustamante, Panda's beta testing period was huge success. One way they measured is by taking a look at what Collective Intelligence -- the remote muscle powering Cloud AV -- has processed so far. "Right now, there is about 25 terabytes of data in the Collective Intelligence database," said Santana.

"About 60% of that," he continued, "is malware. We're receiving about 120,000 new files a day, of which 60-70,000 are malicious." In total, Collective Intelligence has processed more than 80 million files so far and generates about 150 gigabytes of log files per day.

On top of that, Cloud AV scored an impressive 99.4% detection rate in a recent round of testing. That figure put it ahead of free favorites like Avira, Avast, AVG, and even Microsoft's new Security Essentials.

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Filed under: Security, Utilities, Windows, Microsoft, Freeware, Windows x64

Microsoft Security Essentials rated best free antivirus for Windows

Thousands of downloads. Countless positive reviews on software blogs around the Internet. It's been quite a ride so far for Microsoft Security Essentials.

In AV Comparative's most recent report on malware removal, MSE was the only free antivirus rated Advanced+. That ranking placed it alongside big names like Norton, Kaspersky, and F-Secure. Security Essentials also beat out technician favorite ESET, which managed only an Advanced rating.

It's also worth noting that only three antivirus apps - Norton 2010, eScan, and Security Essentials - scored marks of good or better in removal of malware and removal of leftovers. So not only has MSE beaten free competitors like AVG (version 8.5 tested, not 9.0), Avira, and Avast, it also posted test scores equal to or better than a dozen antivirus programs you'd have to pay for.

Well done, Microsoft!

[via Ars Technica]

Filed under: Security, Windows, Freeware

Six free antivirus programs made for your Windows 7 system


Yesterday, I showed you a pain-free way to get rid of excess software that comes bundled on new systems and replace it with high-quality free programs. Those of you who want a bit more choice than what Ninite offers will probably do your installs manually -- so let's take a look at some antivirus options for your Windows 7 system.

There are plenty of pay-for programs you probably already about, like Norton, McAfee, Kaspersky and Trend Micro. I'm going to focus on the free options -- of which there are many!

Hey, you just paid for an OS or a whole new computer -- why not save a few bucks if you can?

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Filed under: Security, Windows, Microsoft, Freeware, Windows x64

Microsoft Security Essentials enjoys warm reception in first week

I'm a huge fan of Security Essentials (and Windows 7, and a number of other MS products, but I digress). It's quickly become my recommended free antivirus app of choice and protects all three of the laptops in my house. And I've got plenty of company.

The Microsoft Malware Protection Center blog has posted some interesting numbers. After its first week, Security Essentials has already been installed more than 1.5 million times. From the approximately 535,000 machines reporting statistics, MSE has logged over 4 million detections.

44% of MSE users are already running Windows 7 with XP following at 33% and the remaining 23% on Vista. The number of detections per OS is also interesting. 52% of the 4 million reported were found on Windows XP systems compared to only 32% on Vista.

Windows 7 users fared even better. Though they represent the largest group of MSE users, only 16% of detections came from systems running Microsoft's latest OS. The post also reports 1/3 of these machines are using the 64-bit version, which "is even more resistant to malware than 32-bit due to PatchGuard," states Microsoft's Joe Faulhaber.

Security Essentials is a free download, and is available directly from Microsoft.

Filed under: Security, Utilities, Windows, Microsoft, Freeware, Windows x64

Microsoft Security Essentials leaves beta, available for download 9/29/2009


We knew it was coming soon, and now we know when: tomorrow, or - depending on whether you read this post before midnight - today.

Yes, Microsoft Security Essentials is set to shed the beta tag and will be available for public download starting September 29, 2009.

Many of our readers have been using the successor to Live OneCare since it first appeared as a leaked (and then official) beta build back in June of this year. Reviews have generally been very favorable. MSE has been praised for its good detection rates, infrequent false positives, scanning performance, and minimal resource utilization.

Once the download is live, you'll be able get Security Essentials right from Microsoft's web site. Chances are good that you will also be able to get your hands on the final version from Softpedia - just in case you need a backup plan.

MSE will be offered to users in 19 countries including Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States.

If you've used the MSE beta, share your experience in the comments!

Featured Time Waster

The World's Hardest Game 2.0 - Time Waster

So, just how good at time waster games are you? Think you've got the stuff? Well, The World's Hardest Game 2.0 doesn't think you do. Yes, amazingly, it's possible to have a sequel to a game called "The World's Hardest Game". It doesn't seem logically possible, since if the first one was actually the world's hardest, how could another one come along and share the moniker? It made me doubt the name in the first place. That is, until I tried the game. The mechanics of the game are very simple. You are a small red square, ...

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