Trend Micro Updates PC-cillin
Security suite PC-cillin 2003 offers virus alerts, improved e-mail, and Web page scanning.Sean Captain, PCWorld.com
Antivirus vendor Trend Micro has updated its desktop security software package, PC-cillin 2003, adding e-mail and Web site scanning functions to its basic combination of antivirus scanner, firewall, and Web site filter. Also new is a rapid alerts function to warn of serious virus outbreaks.
PC-cillin 2003 is available now as a $49.95 download from Trend Micro. Customers can also order a CD version from the Web site or online retailers for the same price, plus shipping charges. In the first half of 2003, Trend expects to offer a boxed version in retail stores. This is a first for Trend, which to date has only sold its product online in the United States (although it sells products in retail stores in Japan).
Along with protecting PCs, the program installs virus scanners for handhelds running the Palm, Pocket PC, or Symbian EPOC operating systems. Only a few PDA viruses have been detected, but major antivirus vendors maintain it's only a matter of time before virus writers target handhelds. Network Associates' competing product McAfee Virus Scan also covers all three handheld operating systems, while rival Symantec's Norton AntiVirus scans Palm devices only.
Minor Additions
While PC-cillin 2003 doesn't include any radical revisions, it provides several new security and convenience features. Besides scanning for viruses, worms, and Trojan horses attached to POP3 e-mail, the update also checks for infected attachments to Web-based e-mail messages from services such as Hotmail and Yahoo, according to Trend representatives. Its scanning of Java Applets and Active X controls on Web pages is also improved to minimize the delay in loading Web pages, the company says.
For notebook users with Wi-Fi (802.11) network cards, PC-cillin 2003 provides a one-click control to boost firewall settings to maximum when the system hops onto an unfamiliar (and potentially insecure) wireless network. The Wi-Fi Protection feature cannot sense the presence of new wireless networks and automatically change settings, however. Users must manually enable the feature when they want extra protection.
Virus Alerts
PC-cillin 2003 also introduces an automated alert system. When checking Trend Micro's servers for virus definition updates, the antivirus scanner also searches for alerts of major outbreaks. When it finds one, the program pops up a warning message and automatically downloads updated virus definitions (if automatic updating is enabled). Users can also completely quarantine the system at any time by clicking the new Halt Internet Traffic button.
Like terror warnings from the government, virus alerts are color-coded by level of severity. Red alerts are triggered when Trend receives several reports of a fast-spreading virus. Yellow alerts are for medium-level risks. Trend representatives say they will be judicious in triggering alerts. That's a good thing, because the program offers no way to turn off the warning mechanism.