Mc Afee Antivirus 2011
McAfee VirusScan ranks as one of the top commercial antivirus software products. McAfee sells the antivirus application as a part of a number of its software suites. Clients range from individuals to large corporate (enterprise) accounts. VirusScan, McAfee's primary antivirus software, is also bundled with two of McAfee's larger, consumer-level security suites: McAfee Total Protection and McAfee Internet Security.
MCAFEE ANTIVIRUS SOLUTIONS FOR INDIVIDUALS
For the personal user, McAfee offers three separate services that feature antivirus software: McAfee Total Protection, McAfee Internet Security and McAfee VirusScan. The softwares operate on Windows 2000 (Service Pack 4), Windows XP (Service Pack 1) and Windows Vista machines. McAfee antivirus products are also compatible with Windows 7. Each of these products requires an annual subscription in order to upgrade antivirus definitions. The antivirus software quickly becomes useless without updated definitions, as new viruses will not be recognized by the antivirus software.
ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURER (OEM) PARTNERSHIPS
McAfee maintains partnerships with a number of OEM vendors. These vendors incorporate McAfee software features, including antivirus applications, into their business products. McAfee's antivirus partners include enterprise and government secure Internet service providers (Tumbleweed), IBM eServer iSeries and Linux security providers (Bytware), network and email security companies (iPolicy and Infocrossing) and business and trade-specific security management suites (ADP and MX Logic). Although these OEM vendors utilize McAfee antivirus technology, their customers purchase licenses directly through vendors and not McAfee.
ANTIVIRUS ADVICE SECTION
Beyond software, McAfee also maintains a large library of antivirus articles and tips. In the Antivirus Advice Section at the McAfee site, McAfee shares "13 Ways to Protect Your System," "Antivirus Tips," "Virus Hoaxes: Not Just Harmless Pranks" and "How to Protect Your Computer against Virus and Worm Attacks." Although these articles obviously promote McAfee's antivirus software and security suites, they also contain information that may be helpful to Internet security novices and new computer users.
COSTS OF MCAFEE ANTIVIRUS PRODUCTS
McAfee also offers a free antivirus product called FreeScan, which is based on the VirusScan product. FreeScan requires Internet Explorer to function, and it downloads an ActiveX component as part of the software installation. You must be online to use FreeScan, which somewhat limits its value as antivirus software.
SERVICE PROVIDER SOLUTIONS THAT FEATURE ANTIVIRUS COMPONENTS
On October 9, 2009, McAfee and Comcast announced that they had entered into a partnership to release "Constant Guard," which features McAfee antivirus and other security tools.
McAfee licenses service provider solutions to a variety of telecommunications companies. Consumer-focused security packages aim to present a value-added subscription service for Internet service providers. These consumer-targeted security solutions feature the three primary consumer security packages: McAfee Total Protection, McAfee Internet Security and McAfee VirusScan Plus. Each of these software suites include antivirus applications.
