Panda Internet Security 2009

Panda Internet Security 2009 has done a good job at reinventing itself this year. Previous efforts were not up to speed with other antivirus and total security software suites.

This year however, Panda Internet Security 2009 offers a host of extras including antivirus, firewall, parental controls, as well as backup & restore functions.

The antivirus software is still on the sluggish side, and can eat up system resources when in scan mode. Plus, the price is a bit hefty considering there are better alternatives on the market. But overall, Panda Internet Security 2009 has done a fine job bringing the goods to the table.

Editor's Overview

• Good antivirus protection
• Solid antispyware and anti-malware
• Average personal firewall
• Inbound email scanning
• Average parental controls
• Restore and backup
• Easy to install
• Easy to use
• Good IM scanning
• TruPrevent Technologies
• Average identity theft protection
• Average anti-phishing
• A bit expensive

What Does Panda Internet Security 2009 Do Right?

For one thing, they've beefed up their overall protection to really put the clampdown on viruses, trojans, rootkits, keyloggers, and all forms of malware attacking your PC.

Independent testing shows that scanning and removal are thorough, but could be much better. The firewall is secure, but can be cumbersome to configure.

The install is a snap, and the interface is logical and easy to navigate. A big plus from last year's antivirus and Internet security suites.

A nice bonus is the backup and restore feature. However, they make it more confusing than it needs to be. You need to backup to your hard drive first, then to a disk. It would make more sense to copy straight to a disk. The reason Panda does this is so you have the option to save to a disk or save to an online storage source. 1GB of free online storage space comes with the purchase. Not much, but it's a start.

The parental controls are average, but usable. The settings are simple: Kid, Teen, Employee, or Default. Panda Internet Security 2009 allows you to set more detailed settings to block specific content if you want to. The down side is that the software doesn't integrate with your default Windows account settings. You'll need to use a separate password to use the Parental controls feature.

Internet Security Features

• Antivirus & anti-malware protection
• Scans files in real-time or on-demand
• Email scanning
• Instant message monitoring
• Genetic heuristic engine
• TruPrevent Technologies 2.0
• Personal firewall
• WiFi monitor
• Identity theft protection
• Anti-phishing filter
• Anti-banking trojan engine
• Anti-rootkit technology
• Safe internet browsing
• Scans internet traffic
• Smart auto-configuration
• Anti-spam filter
• Parental control
• Web filter
• Personal information filter
• Backup & restore

What's the Downside of Panda Internet Security 2009?

As mentioned above, the biggest downside is the fact that all of these features come with a price: high system resource usage. If you set the options to scan regularly, or engage TruPrevent, Panda becomes a bit of a resource hog slowing down your PC considerably. Other antivirus and Internet security software applications have managed a good balance between speed and power, but Panda Internet Security 2009 still needs to work on this.

Another downside is the fact that the email scanning only supports Outlook and Outlook Express. This leaves other email clients like Thunderbird, Hotmail, and Yahoo out in the cold. If you use Outlook, great! If not, the email and anti-spam feature isn't going to do you any good.

Support

Technical support is still an issue with Panda Internet Security 2009. You can find the usual sources like a FAQ page and knowledge base, but phone support will cost you extra. They do offer email support…which is a step in the right direction…but there's really no substitute for person-to-person phone support.

If you purchase multiple licenses, phone support is included, but this leaves out the little guy with only one license: the bread and butter of their customer base. Maybe next year they'll get this one right.

Conclusion

Panda Internet Security 2009 is a giant leap in the right direction. Not only does Panda provide solid antivirus protection, anti-phishing, anti-malware, anti-keylogger, antispyware, firewall, backup & restore, but they've integrated it all quite nicely this year. If you can put up with a sluggish system, and you don't think you'll need phone support, Panda Internet Security 2009 might be a good option for you.

*System Requirements

Operating System:

• Windows XP 32 and 64-bit
• Windows Vista 32 and 64-bit

Processor: Pentium 300 MHz or faster
RAM:

• 128 MB without TruPrevent
• 512 MB with TruPrevent (1 GB recommended)

Hard Disk: 275 MB free space
MS Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher
CD-ROM drive

$79.95