AVG Enhances Internet Security Business Edition

Security and antivirus software specialist AVG Technology has improved protection and performance of Internet Security Business Edition and AVG Anti-Virus Business Edition, aimed at small to medium-size businesses.

The two updated solutions are available online and through resellers; multipacks are offered in five-seat increments. Pricing for a one-year, five-seat license for Internet Security Business Edition 9.0 starts at $247.99, and a one-year, five-seat license for Anti-Virus Business Edition 9.0 starts at $159.99.

Specific to Internet Security Business Edition 9.0 is the addition of data protection functionality gained through AVG’s acquisition of Sana Security earlier this year. The behavioral technology learns the DNA of a business’s network so that it can recognize anomalies and block malicious processes. The new functionality in Identity Protection (IDP) helps to catch malicious software trying to hijack a system before it is able to cause damage. To improve ease of use and administrator experience, AVG has made IDP manageable from the administrator’s console or it can be completely silent.

In addition, the new client e-mail scanner in Anti-Virus Business Edition 9.0 cleans the e-mail system of harmful message attachments and links, and the enhanced anti-spam filter helps prevent phishers, scammers and spammers from clogging workstations and mail servers. Web shielding technology also helps minimize the risk of virus and other rogue software infections when downloading and exchanging files.

“AVG’s 9.0 small business solutions provide businesses with more powerful and streamlined protection that deliver improved administration, more robust protection and faster performance—all without getting in the way of business,” said AVG Technologies CEO J.R. Smith, noting the offerings incorporate cloning technology into the deployment process, simplifying and shortening installation time. “This generation of products is taking AVG back to its core strength of low-impact, high-performance security, and adds substantially to the portfolio of measures available to small businesses, and their employees, in working safe from cyber-threats.”

AVG 9.0 also adds behavioral, in-the-cloud and white-listing technologies, building on a foundation of signature-based protection to deal with known threats. The AVG Internet Security offerings also aid integration between the Resident Shield, firewall and data protection modules, enabling modules to share malware information and remove most malicious types of malware, rootkits and other threats for which signatures have not yet been issued.

Additionally, the new Linux-based rescue CD restores the network in the event an existing infection renders systems unbootable, and the company said it has made it significantly easier to detect and remove any third-party security product that could cause conflicts and interfere with the user’s level of protection.