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With Norton Antivirus 2004, Symantec has managed to improve its already-effective virus protection software.
Released last month, the $50 NAV 2004 provides improved Trojan horse and virus detection and removal capabilities, instant messaging threat detection, and a new ability to scan compressed Windows 2000 and XP file archives before they are opened. NAV 2004 can also detect some nonvirus threats, such as spyware and keystroke-logging programs.
When I tested NAV 2004, I was pleased to see that it identified and blocked security and privacy threats by scanning IM attachments—something many organizations will need as IM gains ground in corporate environments.
As in previous editions, the user interface makes it easy to customize which files should be scanned and when. When in doubt, NAV suggests settings for the best protection.
As with competitors such as McAfees VirusScan, NAV lets users password-protect settings.
NAV 2004 provides multilayered protection, as with previous editions. If real-time scans are disabled, for example, NAV will continue to protect e-mail and IM attachments.
Symantecs NAV 2004 Professional edition, priced at $70, has a handy data recovery capability that will restore files that are damaged or accidentally deleted.
Symantec touts NAV 2004s new ability to detect spyware and keystroke-logging programs, but the software did not detect that eBlaster 3.1, a spyware program, was running on my test computer. However, this oversight is not egregious enough to overlook NAV 2004.
NAV 2004 and the Professional edition include a one-year subscription to Symantecs protection updates. Additional information can be found at www.symantec.com