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Antivirus Suite Reviews
| Platinum Internet Security | BitDefender Internet Security | eTrust Internet Security | Mcafee Internet Security |
Review : Panda's Platinum Internet Security
| Reviewer : | Paul Stuart |
| Date : | Oct 2005 |
| Vendor : | Panda Software |
| Vendor's Website : | www.pandasecurity.com |
What's in it?
Platinum is a truly comprehensive all-in-one internet security suite. It includes antispyware, antispam, and a personal firewall for maximum security. There is also an anti-dialer and anti-phishing module.
Effectiveness
Panda Software's Platinum Internet Security 2005 provides excellent protection against both known and unknown viruses. To detect viruses, most Antivirus software uses virus definitions which are kept in Virus Signature Files. These Signature Files must be updated regularly to provide maximum protection. Panda provides daily updates for their virus definitions, which is good news. What's even better however is their TruPrevent technology, which detects new viruses even if they're not in the virus definition files.
Those who can remember the Zotob Internet worm outbreak may recall that Panda was one of only a few antivirus products which could detect the worm - even without signature updates.
Panda's TruPrevent Technology has also been tested by both ICSA Labs and AV-Test.org - both confirming how effect it is.
Spam protection from Platinum is less effective. In our tests so far, it has detected about 50% of incoming spam as spam. No real mail has been mis-classified as spam, however.
Platinum is also very good at detecting and removing spyware. In our tests it stopped 90% of spyware/adware.
Panda's Platinum also comes with a built in firewall, and family controls. You can control access based on user accounts, although the accounts are not actually tied to Windows accounts. You can also block individual web sites.
Performance
Platinum is nice and light. In our tests, Platinum had virtually no impact on system performance.Summary
What we love about Platinum :
- World-class virus detection and removal
- Peace of mind! With Platinum the Virus Signatures are updated at least daily, sometimes twice or more. You don't have to worry about whether your antivirus is up to date!
- Platinum is smart. It's TruPrevent technology prevents new viruses, even without an updated Virus Definition File. How cool is that?
- Excellent spyware detection too.
- Solid firewall and parental controls.
Not so great :
- Antispam product could use some improvement.
- Support is only via Internet and email.
- At 28 Mbytes, this is one of the largest suites to download.
Conclusion
Panda software has worked hard over the past couple of years to make Platinum Internet Security a world-class security suite. For sheer peace of mind, this comes highly recommended.Click here to purchase Platinum Internet Security directly from Panda.
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