Security Essentials – The Free Internet Security Tool from Microsoft

Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE) (previously codenamed Morro) is a free antivirus software created by Microsoft that provides protection against viruses, malware, spyware, adware, scareware, rogue security software, rootkits, keyloggers, dialers, worms and trojans for Windows XP (x86), Windows Vista, and Windows 7 (both x86 and x64).

MSE replaces Windows Live OneCare, a commercial subscription-based antivirus service and the free Windows Defender, which only protected users from adware and spyware. It is geared for consumer use, unlike Microsoft’s upcoming enterprise-oriented product Microsoft Forefront.

(Source: Wiki)

Fine, But Which is the Best Free Internet Security Tool

Independent Security Researcher Team at http://www.av-comparatives.org has been testing and comparing popular Internet Security Software for long. This time they have published a report based upon the testing of popular security suites against new malware and viruses.

They had updated the virus definitions of these software suites with the database updated till February 2010 and tested their efficacy in detecting the malware, which were developed after that. This essentially meant that the definitions didn’t contained the signatures of these malware and these software suites were expected to detect them based upon their heuristic and analytic powers.

The test results show that Microsoft’s Security Essential is rated the best FREE Internet Security Tool in detecting the new malware threats. It is not the absolute best, but Best among the Free Suites.

best free internet security tool

There are lots of other interesting observations as well.

Read the complete report here (pdf).