Making the right connections

 

 

AntiSpyWare and AntiVirus Software in One!
  • Virus attacks are one of the most well documented security issues on the web. And every statistic makes for scary reading. According to some reports 2008 was the start of a new period characterized by a rapid increase in the number of Trojan programs designed to steal information, mostly related to bank accounts.
  • One vendor detected 42,520 unique malicious, advertising, and potentially unwanted programs on users’ computers in May 2009. That was just one vendor in 31 days. Throughout 2008 the same vendor reports 23,680,646 attacks in total. The 100 most active malicious programs accounted for 3,513,355 attacks.
  • Perhaps most disturbing is that because new malware is developed to be sold on, it is being tested against established solutions such as Norton before being sent out to wreak havoc.

In 1989 there were about 30 known viruses, today there are over 200,000 with more coming online every day. Protecting your computer against these threats is a real priority, especially if you use your laptop or PC for work.

Key Features:

  • Lean running for better usability - VIPRE is designed to not slow down your computer like older, traditional, antivirus products. Anyone who has worked from home for the past three or four years will be able to sympathise with that – normally security comes at the expense of usability. VIPRE is also designed to be unobtrusive, keeping notification pop-ups and warnings to a minimum.

  • An all in one solution - VIPRE combines antispyware, antivirus, anti-rootkit, and other technologies into a single product that offers you powerful protection against sophisticated malware. At VIPRE’s core is an antivirus and antispyware engine that merges the detection of all types of malware into a single, efficient and powerful system. The technology behind this was developed exclusively by Sunbelt, without building on older generation antivirus engines, helping to avoid the threat of viruses engineered to resist older counter-measures. VIPRE’s anti-rootkit technology finds and disables malicious hidden processes, threats, modules, services, files, Alternate Data Streams (ADS), or registry keys on a user’s system. This is supplemented by VIPRE’s FirstScan™, which runs at the system's boot time. FirstScan bypasses the Windows operating system, to directly scan certain locations of the hard drive for malware, removing infections where found.

  • Real-time monitoring with Active Protection - VIPRE’s Active Protection (AP) delivers real time monitoring and protection against known and unknown malware threats. AP works inside the Windows kernel, watching for malware and stopping it before it has a chance to execute on a user’s system.AP incorporates three methods to protect the user: signature matching, heuristic analysis and behavioral analysis. The combination of these three techniques provides an extraordinarily powerful level of real-time protection to the user.

  • Email protection - VIPRE includes comprehensive protection against email viruses, with direct support for Outlook, Outlook Express, and Windows Mail; and support for any email program that uses POP3 and SMTP.

  • Threat data integration - real-time live threat data information from Sunbelt’s research centre is integrated directly into VIPRE. This feature allows Sunbelt researchers to immediately warn customers of any major security outbreaks and provides users with a fast and simple way to provide feedback.
  • System Tools - In addition to the core antivirus product Vipre offers three utilities to view/amend settings that you don't normally see:-
    • Secure File Eraser - Eliminates traces of files from your computer.
    • History Cleaner - removes browsing and search history.
    • PC Explorer - View PC settings that are normally hidden.

Ease of Use:

VIPRE installation takes a few minutes and does not require a reboot. The install questions tread a good line between being comprehensive without taking too long.

In terms of actual use, the VIPRE interface is very clean and simple - it's intuitive and easy to use. Sunbelt has really gone to town with support for VIPRE a big plus is the contextual Help files - when you are on the Tools page, Help opens to the sections on tools. And if that does not solve the issue, there is also a list of online help URLs, e-mail help addresses, and a telephone number available on every help page.


Product Performance:

Having previously used a very well known brand of AntiVirus product in the past I was aware of how slow my PC was to boot up and how much it slowed down when scheduled scans started.

Vipre delivers everything it claims to in terms of speed of performance. You can view comparison charts of vipre versus other leading antivirus brands here:

 

Free vs. Paid: -

Sunbelt offers the first 15 days for free – that is a complete, fully functioning trial version so you can assess if VIPRE is the right solution for you. In 15 days it is highly likely that VIPRE will have at some point, saved your system from an attack.

VIPRE is the first consumer security product to introduce the concept of “home site licensing”. $49.95 delivers an unlimited home site annual subscription- extending protection throughout the home rather than just one PC. Consider that against the cost of insurance – especially if you are protecting a home that includes a PC or laptop used for business.

For those who prefer a more traditional approach or who only have need of a single user annual subscription, this comes in at $29.95 with a 2-user annual subscription for $39.96.

Personal Experience: -

I've used Sunbelt-Software antivirus and indeed their Counterspy antispyware products for a couple of years now and had no hesitation whatsoever in upgrading to the combined Vipre product when it was released. (I was actually part of the beta testing group).

I have found Vipre to be simple to use and easy to keep up to date. Reassuringly a small window pops up every other day or so saying that it is updating the virus definitions. I've also been amazed at how fast my PC boots up and how little the performance of my PC is impacted when Vipre runs its scheduled scans.

Any files that I download are saved to my desktop. I then right click on the file or folder and use the Vipre inbuilt "Scan with Vipre" feature to ensure the downloaded content is free from viruses or spyware.

Occasionally Sunbelt will update definitions and that generate a "False Positive" on a file. When this happens it can render one of your existing programs inoperable. This has happened to me a couple of times and which has resulted in a support call being logged with Sunbelt. On each occasion their support service is absolutely first class and issues have been resolved promptly.

As I run multiple PCs at home I prefer to benefit from the "Home Site License" option for any Sunbelt software that I purchase.

Incidentally to show my faith in Sunbelt-Software I use their iHateSpam and Personal Firewall products which, together with Vipre, provide me with the highest level of protection and peace of mind.
   

 

 

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