Microsoft Security Essentials offers effective protection against malware.
Windows 7 has gone further than any previous release of the operating system in terms of providing enhanced security. Microsoft has also taken the extra step of offering its own antivirus product in the form of Security Essentials, and what’s more it’s available to download for free.
Security Essentials goes further than the Windows Defender package that’s supplied along with the operating system. Whilst the latter only guards against spyware, Security Essentials covers a much wider range of threats. Like most anti-malware applications it relies on a threat definition file and it’s important to keep this up to date to ensure that your machine is protected. When you install the program the first thing it will do is download the latest updates. It will then scan your system to check for existing infections.
Once the program is installed and running, the home page is colour-coded to show you the system status. You can opt to do a one-off scan at any time by choosing between Quick, Full and Custom then clicking the Scan Now button over on the right. On the Settings tab you can set up a schedule to run a scan automatically at a selected time. You also have the option to exclude certain files, locations and file types from the scanning process. Make sure that Real-time protection is turned on, which enables the program to monitor your system for suspicious activity and to have it automatically scan downloads and email attachments. On the History tab you can get an overview of the program’s activity.
There are help and how to guides and an installation video on the website to ensure that you get the most from the program. There’s also a community forum where you can ask questions. You can use the package on Windows XP (SP2) and Vista as well as Windows 7.
(For a full guide to Windows 7, order the Essential Windows 7 Handbook, on sale now from newsagents and online.)
