Microsoft will offer free antivirus product
Microsoft Corp. said it will offer free software to protect PCs from viruses, in a move that could pose new challenges for independent makers of security software. The Redmond, Wash., company said it plans to introduce its security software, code-named Morro, during the second half of next year in an effort to persuade more users to secure their PCs against spyware, viruses and other forms of “malware.” Use of antimalware software is far from universal, especially in emerging markets.
There are two primary reasons consumers supply for not protecting their PCs, including a concern that the anti-malware software will bog down their PCs, said Amy Barzdukas, senior director of product management for the online services and Windows division at Microsoft. The other reason is the cost of security software, which can run $75 for the programs plus two years of updates. Morro will replace another security software program Windows Live OneCare, a broader suite of software and services. Microsoft will discontinue retail sales of that software, which costs consumers $49.95 a year, on June 30 of next year. The shift to a free security offering from Microsoft could be a problem for Symantec Corp., McAfee Inc. and other independent security companies that charge consumers for their products.
Source: WSJ
Comments(35)
For thr love of god!!!! this must be the easiest antivirus to bypass!!!!!
cmooonn Users lets see some trojans on every machine!!!!
its Christmas again…good old times with sub7…
about freaking time……
For those who actually use protection such as these, my bet is which ever one is more proficient at finding the viruses and the speed at which it completes the task will be the sole reason consumers use their product.
I know I don’t use these anti virus programs because I don’t like my system bogged down with background programs.
sub7 was awesome
windoze anti-shaite software is not
yeap Chris….sure it was!
especially the open/close cd option …and you remember the “matrix” pop up on the victims screen..dont you?
my god..im touched
well as it seems those days are not gone…they are comming back… hehehehehehe..
long live the microsuckers…sorry the microsoft.
what happend, q alguien traduca pls
RS links plxplox??
…j/k guise.
besides, OneCare isn’t that bad, but it’s still crap compared to the likes of Panda, Kaspersky -n- NOD32…at least in my opinion anyway.
LMAO @ “could be” a problem for Symantec & McAfee, as if even weak ass AVG isn’t better than those two pieces of s#!t.
they´ll just buy a antivirus company and make some buggy bloatware
I think the best one is Kaspersky. and Microsoft is too late. maybe Onecare will be successful after 2-3 years, but not now.
YAY free.. we will finally get what we pay for
Well if Windows Defender is anything to go by, Morro will suck big time. Defender blocks nothing. It sits there, hogging resources and I never hear boo from it. I mean, don’t get me wrong, if it’s free I’ll still use Morro anyway but that doesn’t stop me from venting about Microsoft ;o)
Free software that prevents viruses?
Microsoft is moving into the Linux distribution business?
nod 32 4 me along with super anti spyware pro ccleaner and reg mechanic my comp never gets problems no more
@ Jura – i didnt like kaspersky – i found it difficult to get around and it was actually slow on my computer (AMD Athlon64 Dual Core 4800+, 8GB Ram, NVIDIA GeForce 9500GT 1Gb).
I wont touch McAfee or Norton due to being a pile of crap and seriously bloated. I personally use Bitdefender – works wonderfully, never had any problems and doesnt slow my machine down one bit.
Meh.
Not impressed. I’m suspicious that this is a way to ‘infiltrate’ PCs with bootlegged Windows. Besides, the name’s not convincing. Someone drops an N and it spells stupidity.
I’m not that gullible.
*sigh* big deal
im over microshaft and their antics
glad i moved to linux, best thing i ever did
no more of this garbage abut virus etc
and my pc runs flat chat all the time with out all the resources getting hogged by everything except me!!
*GO LINUX*
I seriously have to try to make the switch to Linux. I hear all this great stuff about it… One day I will get the courage.
As for Microsoft, they can suck a d!ck!! Mozilla & Google are killing them in the “Browser” war. Open Office is pretty damn good & doesn’t cost $400+ [actually it's free]. Avira already offers a great & FREE anti-virus program.
microsoft is late in the game
comodo has already released a free security suite though it is still relatively new so it might have some bugs. should be one of the best in the market once they have time to build up their databases and HIPS alerts
http://www.personalfirewall.comodo.com/index.html
@17 sYgnal
U don’t need courage man! Just go to Ubuntu site & grab their ISO using torrent at MAD speed! Burn it using nerovirus. Pop it in the drive & reboot from the CD! U can check the whole sh!t out even without installing; Untill you decide to install nothing is changed in your system. So if at some point you decide that it prolly is not your game, just reboot & voila you’re back where you were.
Pure bliss, you’re not gonna miss a thing.
@20 surely you mean moron?
wow, a lot of expert comments
still waiting for apple fanboys to contribute though, c’mon hurry!
“The shift to a free security offering from Microsoft could be a problem for Symantec Corp., McAfee Inc. …..”
Why should it be a problem? Are AVGfree or Avast a problem? They’re also free, aren’t they?
@23
maybe because they won’t be able to install trialware on new pcs, microsoft will instead!
@Pisi-Deff
AVGfree nor Avast will ever be pre-installed on a Windows machine. The majority of users who have Norton/McAfee aren’t exactly what you would call tech savy, so do you think they have any clue as how to even go about replacing anti-virus software let alone open Internet Explorer. IMO Microsoft will certainly put some stress on some of these independent companies to step up there game.
yeah, where are the apple fanboys??
i won’t be satisfied until i hear something along the lines of
“Don’t get this just get a mac”
or
“i don’t get viruses because i have a mac”
Well ms already have av/malware out if one cares to extract the server iso.
Microsoft Forefront client security.
imho much better then the others already.
AV companies will be crying out foul. As “unfair competition”. That has stopped MS before and it may do it again.
Rapidshare links?
Hehe x)
After seeing how MS One Care fails to do it’s job properly, I think i am going to give it a miss.
This is definitely raise anti-trust issues. No matter how mediocre another MS anti-malware product, most users who would have turned to another company’s software will more readily start with MS’s. OTOH, there are well-known freebies out there, such as AVG and Comodo, that do very good jobs.
As long as MS don’t “bundle” it with their operating system or other software there’s not really any anti-competitive practices going on. They’re not exactly abusing their market share. The internet is awash with free AV programmes anyway, the only difference with this one is it will be THE single biggest steaming turd of the lot.
Kaspersky for the win. 4 years in, not a single infection, light on the CPU.
most viruses target microsoft, i wonder what will happen with the anti-virus… endless loop maybe?
this is a step in the right direction for pc users of windows.
There are already plenty of free anti-virus/spyware/malware programs out there. Such as AVG and Avast! fo anti-virus. I somehow doubt Microsoft will emerge with a better product…
GET A MAC, nuff said! :-p