Norton AntiVirus 2010 17.0

Symantec has been listening to its users, and this year the company delivers a slimmed-down and faster Norton AntiVirus 2009. Almost all the security vendors this year have recognized the changing threat landscape and have rethought traditional protection. Norton Antivirus 2009 is available as a full-function download, free for 15 days.

We especially like the Insight feature, which identifies "trusted" files and applications and doesn't waste time rescanning them unless there's been a change. No other product does this. The redesigned logic behind Norton AntiVirus 2009 clearly shows in CNET performance testing: it is faster and considerably lighter than last year's version. Norton continues to win awards in third-party effectiveness testing. Lagging behind, though, is Symantec's technical support. While Norton users now have free telephone support, Symantec still doesn't provide enough of a knowledge base, or even an adequate user's manual.

Once again, this year it emphasizes its premium services a bit too much. That said, Norton AntiVirus 2009 presents a remarkable transformation of a product and is worth a second look. Download Now

Norton AntiVirus 2010 defends your PC against viruses, spyware, bots, worms, and more without slowing you down or getting in your way. Intelligence-driven technology identifies and targets only files at risk, for faster, less frequent scans. Vulnerability Protection prevents threats from exploiting security holes in your PC's software. Pulse Updates every 5 to 15 minutes and real-time online security checks help ensure continuous, up-to-the-minute protection against the latest threats.

Plus, unlike other antivirus solutions, Norton AntiVirus provides easy-to-understand threat explanations and information about CPU and memory resource usage to help you prevent future infections and keep your PC running fast.