Review: How The Latest Security Suites Stack Up

It's not as though there aren't applications out there for them. Recently, three of the most well-known security software suites -- McAfee, Norton, and Trend Micro -- have been upgraded. Each of these packages offers a variety of common features such as firewall, virus protection, and automatic updates to keep virus definitions current; some provide spam protection or other tools such as cache cleaners.

To help choose which application is best for nontechnical users, I looked at the basics that these suites offer, with an eye toward ease of installation and use, and how complicated they are to understand. I also looked at the type of alarms and error messages they use -- when a user gets a message asking if an IP address is illegitimate, or claiming that the PC is in deep trouble if a certain feature isn't turned on, it's the support person who is going to have to figure things out.

For this purpose, I used a reasonable -- but not high-end -- system that is typical of many users: a Dell Dimension 4600 with a 3.06-GHz Pentium 4 processor and 512 Mbytes RAM.

An interesting note: One of the ways that companies are beginning to compete is with the three-PC license, where purchasing one package enables you to protect up to three computers -- which, considering that many households have at least two or three PCs, is a great marketing tool. In this case, both Trend Micro and Norton included a three-machine license with their basic product; McAfee asks for an additional $20 for its three-PC product. McAfee Total Protection Suite 2007
McAfee is without a doubt the most comprehensive package of the three, offering not just firewall, antivirus, and spyware protection, but ad blocking, Web site access controls, file backup, cache cleaning, and more. What's more, parents can even set time limits on when children can use the Internet (mighty handy if you have a teenager at home). It also includes a graphical network monitor, which is much easier to understand than the similar tool in Trend Micro.

McAfee Total Protection offers a wide variety of features, including a graphically-based (and easy to read) network monitor.
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Yet even with all these tools, the program has some strange quirks, and not everything worked as advertised during testing. McAfee has taken pains to reduce the number of messages a user sees in this version, but even so, some messages weren't always clear or intuitive. The program provides easy-to-understand configuration but doesn't provide the higher level of control that's available in the Norton product.

Installation
Like Norton, McAfee offers an option to check if Web sites are legitimate. I installed this option and found it worked with both Firefox and Internet Explorer (but not with Opera). As expected, McAfee performed an initial scan before installation. You also get prompts asking you if you wish to send data for "optimizing McAfee" back to the company. I declined, not wanting to grant the keeper of the keys to my computer permission to phone home.

After installing and rebooting, I received an immediate pop-up message from McAfee asking if my network IP address was legitimate. Inexperienced users could easily stumble at this point, and McAfee should take care to provide more comprehensive instructions.

Under The Hood
Unlike Norton, which provides some fairly sophisticated configuration options, McAfee has chosen to keep things fairly simple. You simply click links to access basic configuration pages -- even the Advanced settings don't seem intimidating.

For network configuration, you get a picture of your setup identifying your PC, the router, and any other PCs on the system. You can't just accept machines, however. You need to load a small program called the McAfee agent on the other PCs on your network, so that McAfee recognizes them as legitimate. It's probably a good thing it's being careful in this manner, but it also adds an unnecessary layer of complexity to the process -- and not everyone will like having an agent on their machine.

I tested the configuration process by turning off the spam blocker (which a user might do if they already had a spam blocker in place). McAfee placed a yellow warning icon with an exclamation point in my system tray and kept sending messages that my system wasn't fully protected. I had to go into the configuration interface and click a link to ignore the problem before the program stopped bothering me with the warning icon. Again, inexperienced users might be understandably confused by this message, especially after choosing to change the configuration.

Running Day To Day
McAfee's boot time is really slow, but when the system does a system-wide virus check, it runs in the background and was the best at allowing me to continue working while it went through its paces. Other features didn't run so smoothly. There was considerable delay when selecting configuration options, and the backup utility took quite some to open -- but once open, it lets you know which files have changed and have yet to be archived. It's not a feature you normally see in a security program, but having a backup is in some ways your greatest security.

Other issues included overly frequent updates which sometimes required a reboot. You expect these programs to update regularly, but McAfee sometimes prompts for updates several times a day. The program comes with an ad blocker as a bonus. When an application tries to access the Internet, it displays a box in the System Tray, allowing you to decide which programs to grant access.

McAfee provides a great set of tools and clearly outpaces its competitors with the breadth of its features, but it needs to work a little harder at implementation to make sure all of these tools are working correctly.

Norton Internet Security 2007
Norton provides a more sophisticated feature set for a bit more money. For $69.95 you also get a three-PC license and a free upgrade when Microsoft Vista is released.

Norton Internet Security offers comprehensive safety, but can be a bit alarming.
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Overall, this package gives you comprehensive coverage. Symantec claims it requires less memory, scans and boots faster, and has a faster user interface response than the previous version, but I found it still bogged down my system more than its competitors. Norton does provide far more configuration control than PC-cillin or McAfee -- users with a high computer aptitude will like this, but others may find it intimidating.

Installation
Before installing, Norton scanned the PC for viruses and then installed the program without a hitch. I expected the system to reboot, but Norton intelligently waits until it updates the software before requiring you to reboot, saving you the time of rebooting twice (no small task with Windows). The update took upwards of 30 minutes to complete on a broadband connection, which seems like an overly long time for an update.

After rebooting, I opened the application and was greeted by a big Red X with the melodramatic warning that my system was "At Risk" simply because I hadn't run a scan yet (and this after it ran an initial scan during installation). This type of message could scare less-experienced users, and Norton should tone it down.

Inside The Application
The Norton user interface consists of two tabs. The first tab provides you with a snapshot of your computer's security with one of two messages on the left side. If the program feels your system is vulnerable to security breaches, it displays the aforementioned red "At Risk" message. If the machine is secure, you see a green check mark with a "Secure" message.

The other tab enables you to configure the different tools in Norton Internet Security Suite 2007 and make changes to the default settings. You can click a configuration link to access a straightforward form where you simply check or uncheck the settings you want -- however, there are additional settings that are more complex.

For example, Norton also enables users to define their own rules on how individual programs behave when they access the Internet. Users can change these settings, although altering them could have an undesirable effect (so you want to watch what an inexperienced user does with this). More on-screen help at the page level would help alleviate anxiety, but experienced users should be pleased to have this level of control.

Running Day To Day
Norton was slow to start during boot-up, adding to an already seemingly endless Windows boot-up sequence. It checks incoming and outgoing mail, which is certainly comforting, but the machine has to wait for the process to complete. The lag isn't huge, but it is noticeable. Norton also checks programs such as Word when they open, which also can result in a slight lag while Norton does its business.

Norton warns you when programs try to access the Internet, runs regular updates to keep your virus database up to date, and runs a regular full scan of your computer. As with other security programs, you can define how often and when the full scan runs.

For many users, Norton Internet Security Suite 2007 strikes a nice balance between ease of use and control, and more sophisticated users will appreciate the high level of control. But Norton's protection comes at a steep performance price.

Trend Micro Internet Security 2007
Trend Micro has taken the application formerly known as PC-cillin (at least, formerly known on the Web site; the application still calls itself PC-cillin) and put together a comprehensive protection package at a great price. Among other small but useful services, it guarantees a free upgrade when Microsoft Vista comes out and offer free unlimited phone, e-mail, and chat support, something you don't see very often anymore -- and something very handy for nervous newbies. If that's not enough, your license includes access to online TrendSecure services, which provide additional remote protection.

Trend Micro Internet Security offers an easy-to-understand interface and TrendSecure services.
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The package is aimed clearly at the beginner to intermediate computer user. After you install it, you basically set it and forget. Although there is room for some configuration, the controls aren't as granular as the other products -- great for a beginner or intermediate audience, but a possible source of frustration for more experienced users who want greater control over the settings.

Installation
By default, Trend Micro turns on a Web site filter and malicious software checker during installation. I was concerned these would be intrusive or block Web sites I wanted to visit, but each stayed in the background and didn't affect performance adversely (so far as I could tell). In order to get regular program and virus updates, you need to register (which involves only providing a name and e-mail address), after which the program provides automatic updates.

Under The Hood
Of the three programs, Trend Micro offered the simplest program configuration. It includes a panel for accessing some additional Web-based services, including a nifty feature that enables you to lock files remotely should your laptop be lost or stolen. For each setting type in the main program -- firewall, e-mail protection, etc. -- you can turn settings on or off with a few additional options available from a more detailed Settings window.

The suite includes firewall, virus, and spyware protection; e-mail protection; and an interesting feature that allows you to monitor for unauthorized users who may be accessing your wireless network. Unfortunately, it only lists IP addresses, which might make it difficult for some users, especially beginners, to know which IP address is a real threat. (McAfee offers a similar feature and uses a much clearer graphical view to display connections.)

Trend Micro also offers a data-theft protection feature, which is supposed to protect your valuable information such as credit card numbers from being sent over the Internet without your permission. This is off by default because it requires you to enter the information you want to protect before using it.

Running Day To Day
Once configured, the program was quite unobtrusive, although (like other security software) it does warn you when a program is trying to access the Internet. If you want the program to always have permission, you simply click a check box. Like most virus checkers, it provides regular updates and a user-defined periodic full system check. When the virus checkers runs, it pretty much takes over the machine, making it very difficult to do anything else because of the resource requirements of checking the entire machine. Because of this, it's best to run the full check at the end of the day or overnight when you won't be using the machine.

To its credit, Trend Micro doesn't display overly alarming messages when it finds a minor security risk (such as tracking cookies). This is an easy-to-use package that provides a decent level of protection and automatic updates. For many users, that's all you'll need.