Jennifer has been reading reviews of virus software and has the following question:  “What is your opinion of Norton Internet Security 2010 vs. some of the free virus software?”  Jennifer, if you’re a regular follower of any of my articles then you know I am a believer in some of the free software on the market.  However, Norton has done a great job this year with Internet Security 2010 and it is considered the best in a recent article by PC World.

Reading the reviews compelled me to run my own tests at the shop and compare the process we currently use to remove viruses with an installation of the Norton product.  I used a customer’s machine that came to us loaded with viruses and made a duplicate of the drive prior to performing any removal so I could accurately test the software.

Installing Norton on the infected machine was a task in itself.  I had to disable several pieces of software on the target machine before it would start.  In other words, I had to know what to turn off prior to running Internet Security – which I am assuming most users wouldn’t be able to do.  Once on the system, Norton did find most of the junk and removed it successfully.

For the second part of the test I installed Avira anti-virus software (rated number one free product by Consumer Reports) along with a standard suite of software we use at the store.  I did not have to modify any of the software on the drive in order to make it run.  Our standard suite of software performed better than the pay-for Norton product.

I’m sure there will be a handful of readers who write me to say that my test was neither complete enough or scientific enough to be conclusive.  For me and my needs, this simple test proved paying for virus software is not always the best solution.  Against my opinions of Norton, it is a good product and seems to be fairly fast.  I still believe a good arsenal of free software is adequate to combat current threats.

Comcast customers should make a note that the free Norton product offered as part of their service contract is not the same product I’m mentioning here.  The free version offered on the Comcast website is a de-featured version of another product.  If I were to make a choice between the Comcast version and the free Avira software I would definitely choose the latter.

As the owner of a PC you need to understand how some of the current viruses work which may make it easier to understand why I suggest free suites.   Spyware and malware are the current threats seen ‘in the wild.’  It is rare that a true virus lurks on the internet.  I read a statistic recently that there were more instances of malware written in 2009 than in the last 20 years combined – which is a scary number.  Most of these are designed to pilfer you of money in one way or another.

Once you stumble onto one of these viruses you are given no choice but to install the malicious code to your computer.  The culprits engineer the software so it immediately disables your anti-virus software:  it doesn’t make a difference if you have Norton, McAfee, AVG or Avira.  Modern malware is designed to shut down your software so it can do its job and get your credit card number.

I’ve talked a lot about how viruses work, free vs. pay, and hopefully have offered some good information.  My advice is pretty simple:  stay with the free Avira or AVG product and use the internet normally.  Something may get around your software and may infect your machine no matter what you use.  Unfortunately, many customers expect the $60.00 or so they spend to keep ptotected.  Save your money and get adequate protection with one of the free titles.

Most carriers either supply a CD with the phone or provide a download location where the correct software can be freely acquired.  Even novice users can connect with the provided software and Tech-Tip of the week:  You should disinfect your computer prior to installing and running any financial software to keep your personal data private.

(Jeromy Patriquin is the President of Laptop & Computer Repair, Inc. located at 509 Main St. in Gardner.  You can e-mail him at Jeromy@LocalComputerWiz.com or call him directly at (978) 919-8059.)