Antivirus software comes in different forms. Some downloads just remove worms and trojan horses. Others remove spyware, adware and rootkits. But what about the quality of virus detection and removal? Herein lies the rub!

Every month about 40,000 new viruses are detected by antivirus software companies. There are between 300,000 and 1 million crawling around people's computers and the average Micorost Windows user has been infected by more than ten. If you didn't notice that you were infected that's not a good thing. Often viruses wait a while before doing anything noticeable.

Conficker was a worm virus that gained infamy on the back of widespread media coverage in April 2009. After years of relative indolence it was set to make its payload on April 1st but much like Y2K it went by without a whimper. But Y2K has finished whereas Conficker has only just started.

Conficker has pulled a classic virus technique and pretends it is actually an antivirus software called Spyware Protect 2009. It takes users to a website and asks for $50 to download a program, from which it steals your credit card, sells the details, installs the full blown worm and adds your computer to a botnet from which it will send spam and spread the worm.

One provider estimates that 11% of the World's computers are infected by viruses and 23% of home computers are part of a botnet. With viruses being so prevalent it's a good idea to get your head around antivirus software so you can make informed decisions. Here's some general advice on choosing the best antivirus software:

1. Some antivirus software programs are actually viruses. A good rule of thumb is to trust the brands you have heard of.
2. Don't rely on a Google search - many of the advertised virus removers are built over a weekend and can't be trusted.
3. Look for genuine awards that have been won by the antivirus vendors. PC Magazine and Download.com's awards are the industry Oscars.
4. Don't try and fix your own computer unless you really know what you are doing. More often than not your attempts, particularly any instructions you get over the internet, will no longer work by the time you try.
5. Make the investment, upgrade your old antivirus with a new version that causes less strain on your PC and includes antispyware software and Firewall sytem.
6. Renew your antivirus product when it expires. If in doubt check what version you have according to these directions:

Norton 2009: The product name will be displayed at the top-left hand corner.
Norton 2008: The Home tab is next to the product tab near the top of the window.
Norton 2007: The Norton Protection Center is next to the Norton product tab.
Norton 2006 or previous years: The version is displayed to the right of the product name.




Choose from these award-winning Norton Antivirus downloads to protect you and your computer.

Norton Antivirus 2009	Norton Internet Security 2009	Norton 360