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COPYRIGHT 2006 Consumers Union of the United States, Inc.
Every time you go online, you step into the middle of a heated arms race. On one side, there's an invisible force of virus writers, spyware perpetrators, spammers, and con artists. On your side, an arsenal of software to detect and kill the viruses, spyware, and spam created by those cyber-rogues.
It isn't enough for those programs to merely eliminate familiar viruses and spyware. To provide superior protection, a program must be able to defend against threats it has never seen before.
In addition, Swiss-Army-knife-style suites attempt to protect you from a range of threats at once. (Some, including Microsoft's new Live OneCare, add more than security features; see box below.)
This report provides a seven-step guide to online safety. It includes tests of software: suites, antispyware, antispam, and antivirus. For the last we employed innovative consumer tests in which viruses we created were unleashed under high security on antivirus programs (see From Our Labs, on page 26).
7 STEPS TO SECURITY
1 Enable existing protection. Be sure you're fully utilizing the protection available from your operating system and Internet provider. Start by activating a firewall, which is software or hardware that blocks unauthorized communications between your computer and the Internet. It's especially important to do this if you have high-speed service. Windows XP and Mac OS X have a built-in firewall, although both block only incoming communications. For greater protection, you can also use a firewall that blocks outgoing communications; several antivirus programs listed in the Ratings have one.
Consider other free protection. Microsoft Outlook 2003 and Apple Mail (bundled with new Macs) include spam blockers, as do most large ISPs, such as MSN and EarthLink. Some automatically enable it; others require you to turn it on. AOL, EarthLink, MSN, and Yahoo also offer phishing filters and virus scanning for e-mail at no additional charge. Use them as one layer of a multilayer defense. Even the free e-mail services Hotmail and Gmail provide their own spam protection.
2 Use antivirus software. It actually works and you need it, regardless of other protections you have. As our Ratings indicate, most packages were at least competent at detecting viruses overall, while some were exceptionally effective.
3 Use two antispyware programs. If your computer takes more and more time to start up, generally runs slowly, or you're experiencing unexplained pop-ups, there's a good chance you've got a spyware infection. Given the prevalence of this threat (see "State of the Net," on page 22), we recommend that you install and run antispyware software even if your computer is running fine.
Not all of the dozen products we tested detect the same types of spyware behavior, so it makes sense to run two programs at once--a free one and one for which you paid. See the Ratings for the best performers among those we tested.
4 Add extra spam protection as needed. If spam remains excessive even with your ISP's blocker enabled, consider antispam software. It needn't cost much; the best performer we tested was a free stand-alone program.
5 If simplicity is paramount, consider a suite. While one-stop shopping for online protection has appeal, most of the 10 suites of protection software we tested weren't effective against all threats. But our Quick Picks (see facing page) do identify a suite from Zone Labs that was very good or better against viruses, spyware, and spam. Another, from Trend Micro, provided very good protection against viruses and spam. For antispyware protection, you need to use one of the free programs from the Ratings.
Our Ratings of stand-alone software include some programs that were also included in suites; see the Features column of each Ratings table.
6 Activate all software for automatic updating. Not all programs have auto updates turned on as a default. Check the settings to verify that the feature is enabled, and make sure your intervention isn't required at other times.
7 Be smart online. Download only from trusted sources. Be wary of ad-sponsored or "free" screen savers, games, utilities, videos, toolbars, and music or movie file-sharing programs. Those frequently include spyware that may slow down your PC. Shut off the computer or disconnect the modem when you don't need to use it for an extended period.
Use e-mail cautiously. Never open an attachment that you weren't expecting, even from someone you know. Never respond to e-mailed requests for personal information. Don't reply to spam or click on its "unsubscribe" link; that tells spammers that your e-mail address is valid.
When doing business online, look for secure Web sites. Check your browser's window (not within the Web page itself) for an icon of an unbroken key or a lock that's closed, golden, or...
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