AVG

AVG is an umbrella term for a range of anti-virus and internet security software for the Microsoft Windows, Linux, and FreeBSD computing platforms, developed by AVG Technologies, a privately held Czech company formerly known as Grisoft.

Versions for Windows desktop clients

AVG Technologies provides a number of products from the AVG range, suitable for Windows 2000 onwards. In addition to this, AVG Technologies also provides Linux and FreeBSD versions of the software. AVG Anti-Virus is available in both a free and commercial editions. For desktop protection of PCs running Windows, the AVG solutions include:
AVG Internet Security 8.5 is a full suite which brings together the AVG Anti-Virus, Anti-Spyware, LinkScanner, Anti-Rootkit, Web Shield, Security Toolbar, Firewall, Anti-Spam, Identity Protection and System Tools protection components.
AVG Identity Protection 8.5 provides protection against identity theft and unknown malware threats using behavioral monitoring.
AVG Anti-Virus plus Firewall 8.5 provides the Anti-Virus, Anti-Spyware, LinkScanner, Anti-Rootkit, Web Shield, Security Toolbar and Firewall protection components.
AVG Anti-spyware was a rebranded version of ewido Anti-Spyware, that was integrated into AVG Anti-Virus as of version 8.0. A free version was also available, having now been merged into AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition
AVG Anti-Rootkit was a free anti-Rootkit program that was discontinued as of late 2006. Like AVG Anti-Spyware, it has now been merged into AVG Anti-Virus
AVGADMIN is a remote administration tool, which allows the software to be managed centrally on networks.[citation needed]
AVG Anti-Virus 8.5 provides the Anti-Virus, Anti-Spyware, LinkScanner, Anti-Rootkit, Web Shield, and Security Toolbar protection components.
AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition 8.5 provides basic Anti-Virus and Anti-Spyware protection, plus the full AVG LinkScanner safe search and surf technology. There are some limitations with AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition 8.5 compared to the commercial versions of AVG products. These limitations include:
Less protection – AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition 8.5 provides the same anti-virus and anti-spyware scanning engine as the commercial product; however, it lacks anti-rootkit. The older 7.5 Free Edition is perfectly capable of finding and disabling rootkits based on signatures, but cannot scan for rootkit-like activity. The 8.5 version of AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition version lacks any anti-rootkit capability. While there is no official protection for files from messaging sources, the Resident Shield component automatically scans files before they are opened or copied.
Infrequent updates – AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition 8.5 receives updates via a lower priority service. Priority updating via high-speed servers is only available for the commercial versions of AVG products.
No telephone or e-mail technical support – There is no telephone or e-mail technical support provided by AVG for users of AVG Free Edition products anywhere in the world. AVG Free Edition users have access to support via the self-help AVG Free Forum.
Less customization – Scheduling options in AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition 8.5 are very limited (only one scheduled update per day, one scheduled scan per day etc.). However, the AVG Resident Shield configuration allows exclusions. The on-demand/scheduled scanner allows advanced testing options such as heuristics and reporting of password-protected archives reporting. Process priority for on-demand/scheduled scans can be dynamically adjusted over three different configurations.
No server support – AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition 8.5 cannot be installed on server operating systems (such as Windows Server 2003), nor can it be used for the scanning of network drives.
AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition 8.5 is only licensed for home and non-commercial use on a single computer.
AVG Free Edition has previously been responsible for popup ads advertising the non-free versions of AVG Anti-Virus 8.0 and AVG Internet Security 8.0, which claim to provide more comprehensive levels of protection.[6][7] AVG Anti-Virus 8.5 Free Edition users are now also subject to a daily pop-up advertising campaign for a "recommended upgrade" to AVG Internet Security. A "manager" on the AVG free version forum states that this advertisement appears once per day for one month each year.

ESET

ESET NOD32 Antivirus and ESET Smart Security, commonly known as NOD32, are antivirus packages made by the Slovak company ESET. The following operating systems are supported by different ESET products: Microsoft Windows, Linux, FreeBSD, Novell NetWare, Solaris, Windows Mobile platform, and others. ESET NOD32 Antivirus and ESET Smart Security are each sold in two editions, Home Edition and Business Edition. The Business Edition packages add ESET Remote Administrator allowing for server deployment and management, mirroring of threat signature database updates and the ability to install on Microsoft Windows Server operating systems.

Norton AntiVirus

Norton AntiVirus, developed and distributed by Symantec Corporation, provides malware prevention and removal during a subscription period. It uses signatures and heuristics to identify viruses. Other features include e-mail spam filtering and phishing protection.
Symantec distributes the product as a download, a box copy, and as OEM software. Norton AntiVirus and Norton Internet Security, a related product, held a 61% antivirus market share as of 2007. Competitors, in terms of market share, include antivirus products from CA, Trend Micro, and Kaspersky Lab.
Norton AntiVirus runs on Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X. Version 16.5.0.135 is the latest Windows build. Windows 7 support is in development for versions 2006 through 2009. Version 2010 will natively support Windows 7, without needing an update. Version 11.0 is the latest Mac build.

Kaspersky

Kaspersky Lab (pronounced /kæˈspɜrski/; Russian: Лаборатория Касперского, Laboratoriya Kasperskovo) is a computer security company, co-founded by Natalia Kasperskaya and Eugene Kaspersky in 1997, offering anti-virus, anti-spyware, anti-spam, and anti-intrusion products. Kaspersky Lab is a privately held company headquartered in Moscow, Russia with regional offices in Germany, France, the Netherlands, the UK, Poland, Romania, Sweden, Japan, China, Korea and the USA.
In 2005, Red Herring magazine listed Kaspersky among "Red Herring 100 Europe", a selection of the 100 private companies in Europe and Israel that it considered to play a leading role in innovation and technology.
The Kaspersky Anti-Virus engine also powers products or solutions by other security vendors, such as Check Point, Bluecoat, Juniper Networks, Sybari (now acquired by Microsoft), Netintelligence, GFI Software, F-Secure, Borderware, FrontBridge, G-Data, Netasq, and others. Altogether, more than 120 companies are licensing technology from Kaspersky.

Products

The current line of Kaspersky home-user products consists of Kaspersky Internet Security (KIS) 2010, Kaspersky Anti-Virus (KAV) 2010, and Kaspersky Mobile Security (KMS). Kaspersky products are widely used throughout Europe and Asia.
Kaspersky Lab products are available via retail stores such as Best-Buy, PC-World, Currys and online through the official Kaspersky eStore or Amazon.com and other retailers.
The latest 2009 line of Kaspersky products are certified for Windows Vista and are multi-core optimized.