Category: Symantec

While it's not going to win points for a catchy name, Yahoo's new Rich Search Assist will provide some slick new functionality to its users. It's a bit like Google Suggest meets Google Instant Previews. Unlike Instant, however, Yahoo's previews appear in a floating element and only cover the top half of the page. Hover over a suggestion in the left column, and the preview appears on the right. ...

Reports abound this morning that Microsoft may be taking a look at Symantec. After Intel's unexpected purchase of McAfee recently, prevailing sentiment is that other major players may all make similar moves. The rumors stem from analyst Katherine Eggbert's statement that "without a strategic sale or break-up near-term, a high-level management change may perhaps be the next step demanded by anxious ...

False positives aren't all that uncommon -- with so many different antivirus and antimalware products out there, so many threats, and so much untested software, it's to be expected that detection mishaps are going to happen. Mishaps like that little McAfee situation earlier this year... Today's offender is Symantec, whose Antivirus and Internet Security products decided to push the panic ...

In news that makes McAfee's svchost.exe mishap look like a sunny, smiley walk in the park, Symantec and its Norton suite of security tools has found World of Warcraft to be malware. Countless installations of World of Warcraft were destroyed until it was rapidly fixed on Thursday last week. In fairness, it was quite an easy mistake to make: Symantec uses human analysts to flag programs with ...

I spend a lot of time during the work week removing malware from customers' computers. So whenever I happen upon a new malware cleanup app, I make it a point to put it through the paces. Better tools make my job easier, after all. Today I'm checking out Norton Power Eraser -- a free, portable malware cleanup tool from the folks at Symantec. I had tried to test earlier beta versions of NPE, but ...

Don't get me wrong. I don't hate Symantec by any stretch. In fact, I rather like Norton Antivirus 2010 -- it's their second really solid effort in a row after a string of releases I was less than enthusiastic about. What I don't like, however, is their free Security Scan. digg_url = 'http://digg.com/security/Why_does_Security_Scan_behave_like_the_malware_I_remove'; Why? Because it behaves ...

Back in July, a Symantec exec predictably talked down free antivirus apps. This week, the cheeky devils behind Norton Antivirus have turned out a real tour de force. Seriously. It's a flippant look at the old adage "the best things in life are free." The spot starts by mentioning love. Yeah, that's free, right? Sure, except for weddings says the straightman - those could cost as much as *gasp* ...

Little in the Windows world seems to polarize opinion like a Symantec product, and in particular one from the Norton range. Seemingly equally loved and hated by users, Norton products in recent times have grown in both functionality and size, leading many to categorize the applications as 'bloated'. Fanboys and haters sit up and take notice, Symantec have announced the release of their 2010 ...

Last month, Symantec Product Manager David Hall ruffled some feathers when he blasted free antivirus software. Avast's Vincent Steckler has since had a look at the interview, and believes Hall "erroneously concludes that free products cannot be trusted, are not sufficient, etc." He continues, "But then again why should a firm that makes a billion dollars a year off of paid anti-virus conclude ...

In a discussion with tech.blorge.com, David Hall, who is Symantec's Product Manager for Asia-Pacific Consumer Products and Solutions, voices his concerns over the popularity of free antivirus programs. "People tell me, 'oh well look I use free antivirus because it is free and it protects me from everything in those areas,' but when you compare that with what's really going on in the threat ...

One frustrating problem I have to fight with on customer computers is damaged antivirus and internet security program installs. Much of the time there's no simple way to get rid of them once something has gone wrong, and they can cause all kinds of headaches. Fortunately, some of the companies are good enough to provide uninstall tools to help us out. McAfee: MCPR While I was putting this post ...

Symantec has just released a beta version of Norton 360 version 2.0, the latest update of the all-in-one protection suite for the PC. Norton 360 version 2.0 claims a host of new and updated features: Faster performance of virus scans Faster boot times New browser protections New identity protections to manage passwords and sensitive information Support for new backup destinations ...

The FBI and Chinese officials have seized more than 290,000 CDs with pirated software in a crackdown on groups in China and the US who were making and distributing the discs around the world. 25 people were arrested in the sting. The CDs have an estimated value of $500 million, with software titles from companies including Microsoft and Symantec. Of course, if you do the math, officials are ...

A large expense, and head scratching issue many businesses face is data backup. Should they pony up the cash to develop an internal solution, or do they hunt out external solutions. Symantec, the well known protection company, has opened a solution for small to mid-sized businesses. Symantec has released its Online Backup Service for beta testing, with a full release later this year. The system is ...

digg_url = 'http://digg.com/tech_news/Windows_named_most_secure_OS_by_Symantec'; Symantec, usually no fan of Microsoft, recently released their 11th Internet Security Threat Report, in which they found, "Windows had the fewest number of patches and the shortest average patch development time of the five operating systems it monitored in the last six months of 2006." It took Microsoft an ...