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Anti-Virus Programs Aren't One-Stop Stoppers

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To Norton 360's credit, it also had the least-intrusive firewall. I never had to change any settings to authorize a legitimate program's online activity. OneCare and McAfee both needed my input before such third-party programs as an Apple CD/DVD-sharing tool would work.

I was least impressed with these programs' anti-spam and anti-phishing tools, which largely duplicated what modern Web browsers and mail programs already include.

If, however, you simply cannot stop yourself from clicking on a Web link, McAfee's SiteAdvisor might be the restraint you need. It not only stops access to many -- but not all -- sites hosting viruses and phishing scams, it also blocks many sites used by spammers.

That brings up a bigger security issue, one ignored by all three suites: the Internet-connected programs on a PC besides your browser and mail software, each of which can be attacked separately. None of these programs warned that the test copies of XP lacked important security fixes for Adobe's Flash plug-in, leaving them open to hijacking by hostile Web sites.

Should that happen, causing your computer to get infected and your data to disappear, McAfee might offer the least security of all. Its clumsy, ugly backup tool's default settings left almost all my data unprotected.

Microsoft and Symantec provided simpler, more capable backup programs. But if you run a non-Microsoft Web browser, photo album or music player, you may need to tinker with their settings.

Is the picture clearing up now? None of these "do it all" programs does it all sufficiently well. You're better off mixing different programs -- for example, pairing the free firewall in XP and Vista with a basic anti-virus program.

Beyond that, the most important security upgrade is in your own head: don't-take-candy-from-strangers skepticism, without which no security program can keep your computer safe.

Living with technology, or trying to? E-mail Rob Pegoraro atrobp@washpost.com. Read more athttp://blog.washingtonpost.com/fasterforward/


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