symantec

"Most impressive" is one way to describe the latest Norton updates from Symantec. After three years of progressively better versions and significant improvements, Norton Internet Security 2011 and Norton AntiVirus 2011 look incredibly sharp. Gone are the days of crippling system behavior and debatable security efficacy.

Instead, Norton gives people blazing installs and quick scans, useful system-managing tools and security extras like the capability to scan your Facebook wall for malicious links, and most importantly, extremely high ratings in threat detection and prevention. With a 30-day trial that has no other restrictions, anybody who's willing to pay … Read more

Norton Power Eraser is a new tool from Symantec that the company says is the home user's last, best hope for eradicating an aggressive malware infection. Power Eraser is free, and one component of the update to Norton Internet Security 2011 and Norton AntiVirus 2011.

By making Power Eraser free, the company hopes to draw in users who have been scared off by years of bad experiences and who haven't given the Norton suites a chance since the programs' turnaround in the 2009 versions. Although Power Eraser represents an aggressive approach towards helping infected consumers, the suites have … Read more

About two-thirds of Internet users globally and nearly three-quarters of Web surfers in the U.S. have been victims of online crime, according to a study to be released on Wednesday.

The top countries as far as reported victims are China, Brazil and India tied for second, and then the U.S., according to the findings of the study, titled "Norton Cybercrime Report: The Human Impact." More than 7,000 adults in 14 countries were interviewed for the study.

While one-quarter of respondents said they expect to be victimized by online crime, only half said they would change … Read more

Hi, it's me again, Catherine Hwang, a partner manager with CNET Downloads, where I work with our developer community to bring you some great deals. We are starting what we call an Indian summer here in San Francisco, but as it is back to school time everywhere else, we asked our users what kind of deals would be pertinent to their needs this month. You've all spoken and we heard loud and clear that security was your top concern, so today, we bring you a special offer from Symantec on its All-In-One security solution, Norton Internet Security 2010.… Read more

A worm that targets critical infrastructure companies doesn't just steal data, it leaves a back door that could be used to remotely and secretly control plant operations, a Symantec researcher said on Thursday.

The Stuxnet worm infected industrial control system companies around the world, particularly in Iran and India but also companies in the U.S. energy industry, Liam O'Murchu, manager of operations for Symantec Security Response, told CNET. He declined to say how may companies may have been infected or to identify any of them.

"This is quite a serious development in the threat landscape," … Read more

Former security company Finjan has filed a lawsuit against five companies--McAfee, Symantec, Webroot Software, Websense, and Sophos--claiming they are in violation of its patents.

Finjan is asking for financial damages and an injunction to stop the five security companies from selling software allegedly tied to the patents.

The lawsuit, filed Monday in U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, targets two patents.

The first, Patent No. 6,092,194, is for a "system and method for protecting a computer and a network from hostile downloadables" and covers both an interface and a security policy to determine … Read more

Symantec has introduced an initiative called Norton Everywhere, designed to expand the company's security technology to safeguard smartphones, handle DNS-based Web filtering, and even protect connected devices such as digital picture frames.

The initial products, announced Thursday, include a beta version of security software for Android and Apple smartphones and a beta of Norton DNS.

The upcoming Norton Everywhere products will draw on Symantec's own consumer security, backup, and infrastructure technologies, as well as those of partners such as smartphone manufacturer HTC, Symantec said in its announcement. The products will be aimed at consumers as well as businesses. … Read more

With its acquisition of VeriSign's authentication business, Symantec is making a big play for a piece of the market for services that validate the identity of users and content on the Web.

The $1.28 billion cash deal--the third encryption-related purchase for Symantec in three weeks--would seem to be a natural extension of its desktop and server security offerings, several analysts said. But other observers question how well suited one of the leading antivirus providers really is to become the identity broker for the Internet.

"Where's the synergy?" wondered Avivah Litan, an analyst at Gartner, … Read more

Symantec on Wednesday said it will buy VeriSign's security business and take a majority stake in VeriSign Japan for about $1.28 billion in cash, in the hopes of becoming a leader in the growing market for authenticating people and servers on the Internet.

Under the agreement, Symantec will acquire VeriSign's identity and authentication business, including the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) certificate, Public Key Infrastructure (PKI), and VeriSign Trust and VeriSign Identity Protection Authentication services.

"The acquisition creates the most trusted brand for protecting information and identities online," Enrique Salem, president and chief executive at Symantec, … Read more