Virus and Malware protection
It's been a while now since we had some PC advice, and over a year since we reviewed Virus and Malware/Spyware software on Windows PCs, so we're long overdue for an update.
So how much has changed? If you remember when we looked at this before we split out Virus scanners and Malicious ("Malware") software into two categories, and identified that there were several free offerings which fared better than most paid software. Now however there's a new offering which can protect against both threats - this time from Microsoft, with their Microsoft Security Essentials suite.
Microsoft have had a chequered history in the security industry, but now they have a decent - and free - product which offers active protection against virus and malware threats. You can read more, and download "Microsoft Security Essentials", or simply "MSE" at the homepage; http://www.microsoft.com/security_essentials/, where there is an excellent installation video too.
I've been using and recommending MSE for over 6 months now, and have yet to hear anything bad. It's easy to setup, simple to use, comes well pre-configured, and will not slow your PC down - in fact it's faster than most alternatives.
So if you want to simplify your computers' security, I would advise that you download and install MSE straight away - but don't forget that once it's installed you can remove your old virus and malware products - after all two programs doing the same job will slow your computer down.
Download it here: http://www.microsoft.com/security_essentials/