One of my current favorites is a freebie from an old friend. Symantec’s Norton Online Family lets you protect all the computers in your house from one convenient web-based control panel. What’s nice about Norton Online Family is that it works with both PC and Mac. First, set up your initial account on the Online Family web site, then add accounts for each child based on age. You’ll receive emails notifying you of any blocked sites or unwanted activity, and as the parental administrator you can permit or deny sites as you prefer. The default settings work great for blocking popups and ads on the sites your kids visit. And did I mention, it’s free?

There are some other freebies available to you if you have Windows 7 or Mac OS X Snow Leopard or Lion. The latest versions of these systems include improved parental control features.

I’m often asked if kids can get past parental controls. Of course they can, if they try hard enough. Using your computer’s built-in features offers resistance to “accidental” attempts to disarm the safeties, but I think a better deterrent is good old-fashioned communication. Even using the term “parental control software” can put your teen into a combative stance. Instead, call it what it is: part of your Internet safety arsenal. There are good reasons to protect kids’ computers that have nothing to do with parental trust. Stuff you don’t want will appear on even the most innocuous sites, or the sites themselves can be redirected somewhere unsavory. With parental control software you have an added level of protection on top of your antivirus software.

Here are some recommendations on security software suites.

• Triona’s Tech Tips: New AVG 2011 And How To Choose Security Software

You’ll notice I didn’t mention Norton. While Norton is adequate, it doesn’t have the best detection rates, and it takes up a significant amount of memory especially on older computers. I wrote several years ago about the reasons why I started recommending alternatives to Norton. Although recent versions of Norton have fixed some of these issues, I still prefer the alternatives.

Here’s my guide to creating secure passwords:

• Triona’s Tech Tips: How To Create Secure Passwords

Plus, an article on what to do if your account is hijacked.

• Triona’s Tech Tips: What To Do If Your Email Account Is Hijacked

I mentioned several utilities that can help you keep your software up to date. For Windows, try Secunia’s Personal Software Inspector. Two possibilities for Mac users are AppFresh and Mac Informer.

If you’re interested I have a number of upcoming seminars including Blogs For Business, Leveraging LinkedIn, Social Networking, Expanding Your Online Presence and more. You can find my upcoming events schedule on my web site, or watch examples of my previous seminars.

For a long time the free version was enough. Then I began to notice a trend. People running AVG were becoming infected with threats not detected by the free version. So I began recommending the paid version of the suite, known as AVG Internet Security. However, after testing AVG 2011, I have some qualms about this new version.

First, AVG 2011 is a memory hog. If you have an older computer it may slow you down, although this could be said of any security program. Reports of bugs in AVG 2011′s LinkScanner also give me pause. This will slow down your computer as well as your network. Not everyone has experienced this, however; PC Magazine reports that their tests showed AVG had a small effect on system performance.

On the plus side, it’s easy to use and offers solid protection. I also like the LinkScanner feature that checks your Facebook posts and marks them as safe. My hope is that AVG will resolve any issues and that AVG 2011 will continue to provide people with strong security software.

What are your alternatives? I still don’t recommend Norton or McAfee because they’re also memory hogs (especially Norton). But, I’d rather have you using one of those than nothing. What I really want is a security suite with a high detection rate and a small impact on system performance. You could try Kapersky Internet Security 2011, although its interface is not as friendly for non-technical users. Trend Micro Titanium Internet Security 2011 is good but scored weak on malware removal. Webroot Internet Security Complete 2011 is another option. The thing I don’t like about it is that its firewall constantly pops up warnings, a big turn-off for most users.

In short, there is no one right answer to security software for Windows. If you have an older computer, you’ll want a solution that doesn’t bog you down. If you have a mobile computer, you’ll want strong WiFi protection. If you don’t do much surfing, a free solution may suffice. The best way to determine your needs is to have a computer professional assess your environment and make a recommendation.

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As I’ve written before, rogue security software pretends to be real antivirus and anti-malware software in order to commandeer your computer. It disables your bona fide protections and claims that you must purchase their super-duper software to save you from invented infections. Now, they’ve added a “support” option as further bait. After all, if the software offers you tech support by live chat and email, it must be legitimate, right? And so much money is being made on this fake software that they can actually afford to hire real people to provide said tech support! It’s a whole new take on social engineering, the unethical art of doing anything and everything to manipulate you.

Remember, rogue security software will not protect you; it will leave you vulnerable. Your best protection is to stick with security programs from known vendors. Norton, McAfee, AVG, Trend Micro, and avast! are all real companies with real products. Although I’m still not enamored of Norton and McAfee (see why), you’re certainly better off with them than a rogue. Become familiar with what your regular antivirus program looks like. If you sit down at your computer one day and see something different, be very suspicious. Also, be careful if you do a web search for antivirus software, because many of the “sponsored links” lead you to fake programs. Once fake security software is on your computer, it’s extremely difficult to remove. And don’t fall for the trick “uninstaller,” which leaves remnants of the rogue to regenerate itself.

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Fake antivirus programs are viruses that purport to be legitimate security software. It can be very difficult to tell the tricksters from the real deal. In this case, if you run across something claiming to be “Security Essentials 2010“, stay far away.

Like other fake antivirus programs, this particular rogue hijacks your computer and prevents you from accessing the web sites of legitimate antivirus vendors. It uses hyperbole to convince you that your computer is infected, then tries to con you into paying for removal. Such tricks are becoming more common. I’ve previously written about the odious Win Antivirus 2010, a rogue that really raised the bar on how far these con artists will go in order to make money at your expense.

By itself, Microsoft Security Essentials (the real one) is not adequate security software. You need something more robust like the free or paid versions of AVG, or Trend Micro or McAfee. I’m still not recommending Norton because it’s such a memory hog, but use it if you must. Also be careful if you look for for antivirus programs via a search engine, as the con artists hijack search results to spread their dangerous look-alikes.

There’s a difference between renewing and upgrading to the latest version. Many antivirus programs allow you to purchase another year’s worth of updates without upgrading the software, but it’s not worth the slight savings. Upgraded software gives better protection.

Antivirus programs use a combination of definitions and heuristics. Definitions look for known virus code. Heuristics look for virus-like behavior, meaning they can detect both known and unknown viruses. When your antivirus software updates itself each day, it’s getting new definitions to protect against newly released viruses. But it doesn’t make sense to wait for a new virus to come out, write new definitions and send them out to millions of machines. With computers these days, by the time you do that it’s already too late. What’s needed is software with better heuristics. The newest antivirus programs have the latest heuristics available to consumers, so you are better off paying that little bit extra to upgrade instead of simply renewing for another year of definitions.

While we’re talking about not renewing your antivirus software, if you Windows users are still running Norton, save yourself a headache and move to something else when your subscription expires. The 2009 versions are better but still memory hogs compared to Trend Micro, the free AVG and others (look under Windows Users in the Tech Tips blog sidebar).

In February I’ll teach you how to Break The Internet Explorer Habit. Don’t forget to subscribe to the email version of Tech Tips for the latest computer news.

• Antivirus software
  You know this; what you may not know is that antivirus alone does not catch every threat.
• Anti-spyware software
  Spyware is software you don’t want, similar to viruses but using different tactics. Adware, malware, keyloggers, Trojan horses, they all fit into the category of spyware.
• Firewall
  Just like a fire door in a hospital, a firewall keeps out Internet nasties that try to sneak under the radar of antivirus and anti-spyware software.
• Regular updates (“patches”)
  Every program has bugs, and these bugs can be used by viruses to manipulate your computer. Harden your security defenses by keeping your software up-to-date.

At home, you’re your own computer security czar. Run a full-fledged security suite, and install a firewall for extra protection. (See the sidebar, right, for suggestions.) Remember, you must purchase security software yearly, and update it every few days. And don’t forget those patches! For Windows I like a combination of Microsoft Update plus Secunia’s Personal Software Inspector. Mac users, be sure to check for new patches via Apple’s Software Updates, Adobe Updater and the other update features of your software.

If you have a company-owned computer, talk to your IT department about the protections that are installed. Find out if your corporate network prevents laptops from logging on unless the laptop has updated security. You can also explore one-time password systems, or biometric options like the fingerprint scanners now built in to most laptops.

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Why should you care? Because SP3 is being installed automatically on consumer computers via Microsoft’s Automatic Updates. If you have AU enabled and you are running a Norton product, your antivirus may become corrupted and unusable.

The fix is to uninstall the Norton product before installing SP3, then reinstall after. Reports indicate you may need to do this for Windows Vista SP1 as well. Or, set your AU to “notify but not install” and bypass the service pack installation until Microsoft and Symantec resolve the conflict.

In my opinion, neither Windows XP SP3 nor Vista SP1 are quite ready for consumers yet. Stay tuned to Triona’s Tech Tips for the latest computer news.

Antivirus? Norton. For many consumers, those words go hand in hand. But us computer folks have sensed a changing tide for a while, and as a result we’ve been drifting from Symantec’s shores. Now the situation has become dire enough that I’ve decided to send up the red flag. Folks, you need to stop using the consumer Norton products until the problems with them are fixed.

Note that I’m talking specifically about the Norton programs intended for home use. Symantec’s corporate products are a cut above their consumer cousins, and I’m still recommending (and using) those. But concerns about the home versions are mounting.

Last year I mentioned some serious conflicts between the new Norton AntiVirus 2007 and Internet Explorer 7. Given that most consumers end up with IE7 via Microsoft’s Automatic Updates, this seems like a crime, or at least a grave oversight. Besides this notable issue, NAV 2007 is also a resource pig, taking up so much memory that all but the newest and fastest machines bog down.

Therefore, a lot of users have decided to skip the upgrade to 2007, in favor of renewing their subscriptions to the 2006 editions. Unfortunately, this isn’t a solid solution, because the spectres of perpetual upgrade work against us. Internet threats get trickier, and the only way to combat them is better protection software. To make matters worse, there are known bugs in Norton 2006 that can leave you open to threats. As we’ve seen, winding up with a zombied computer is no one’s idea of fun. And I have yet to see anything to convince me that 2008 will be a better year.

What are your antivirus alternatives? McAfee is Pepsi to Norton’s Coke, but I don’t always recommend it either because it’s had its own share of problems. (On the other hand, McAfee’s enterprise-level software is stellar.) I prefer Trend Micro Internet Security, ZoneAlarm Internet Security, or the free and paid versions of AVG. Given that Norton has become more trouble than it’s worth, I heartily encourage you to explore these alternatives.

Not to leave out the Mac folks; there are some good non-Norton options for you as well. Try Intego VirusBarrier or MacScan. If you run Windows on your Intel Mac, Intego VirusBarrier DualProtection will give you antivirus on both sides.

As for Norton, Symantec seems to be resting on its laurels. I’ll let you know if the situation improves.