Best Internet Security Suites

Which Internet security software offers the best protection?

Norton Internet Security 2012 (*Est. $70) is the favorite among the latest crop of Internet security suites thanks to its all-around excellence. It earns dozens of recommendations from technology experts, including an Editors' Choice award from PCMag.com, a Kick Ass award from Maximum PC and perfect ratings from the editors at Download.com and Computeractive magazine. Norton Internet Security 2012 includes a complete collection of software, including antivirus, anti-spyware, anti-phishing and anti-spam.

The Norton Internet Security 2012 suite also includes identity theft protection, password management and Norton Safe Web, which alerts you to suspicious URLs on websites, emails, instant messages and social networks like Facebook. Other features include free phone support, automatic updates, ratings that show how likely it is that a program will crash, a Startup Manager that allows you to choose which programs boot with your PC and a gaming mode that won't interrupt you when you're playing games or watching movies.

Norton Internet Security 2012 earns high marks for its excellent protection against malware. The program stopped about 95 percent of installed malware in evaluations at AV-Test.org and AV-Comparatives.org, two well-respected independent labs. It posts similar malware-removal results in PCMag.com's tests. "While Norton didn't have the highest detection rate, it scored higher for malware removal than any other product tested with the current set of samples," reviewer Neil J. Rubenking writes.

When it comes to malware blocking -- stopping viruses from being downloaded to your computer -- the results are even better. Norton Internet Security 2012 stops every single piece of unrecognized and widely recognized malware AV-Test.org throws at it, and the software posts the second-best blocking scores in PCMag.com's testing.

That strength is also Norton's weakness, however; the SONAR behavioral protection that is so effective at protecting against unknown attacks also flags lots of obscure yet totally safe processes as being malware. PCMag.com's Rubenking runs into the issue in his testing, and he  isn't worried about it -- "Most users won't encounter this problem, and whitelisting guarantees that SONAR won't mistakenly block a significant program," he writes. But a whopping 57 false positives in AV-Comparatives.org's evaluation is enough to cost Norton an Advanced+ certification, despite its good malware removal results.

Norton's Internet security suite gets high marks for its robust firewall, which prevents all malicious intrusions in several tests, and it does an excellent job of detecting phishing attacks. Reviews say it's relatively hassle-free. The suite also aces an anti-spyware test conducted by NotebookReview.com.

Although it isn't the lightest suite around, Norton Internet Security 2012 runs much faster than previous versions, especially with scan times. Reviewers say that Norton Internet Security 2011 is easy to install -- even on infected systems -- and the program runs unobtrusively without major disruptions. Parental controls rate highly as well, but they aren't included by default; you'll need to install the optional but free Norton Online Family extension if you want to use them.

Complaints about previous versions have been addressed, experts say. PC Pro's Darien Graham-Smith called the previous interface "dauntingly labyrinthine;" Norton Internet Security 2012 streamlined things so that the main page only displays options for scanning and updating, which the company has identified as the two things users do most. All other options have been moved to an Advanced menu. Anti-spam was another weak spot in the older versions, but this iteration of Norton allowed only 6.1 percent of spam in Rubenking's inbox and didn't mistakenly identify a single piece of valid mail as junk. "No other recent suite has approached this level of accuracy," he writes.

Kaspersky Internet Security 2012

Although reviewers say Norton Internet Security 2012 is the Internet security suite to beat, Kaspersky Internet Security 2012 (*Est. $80) comes in a close second. Like the Symantec software, Kaspersky Internet Security protects against a wide range of threats, including viruses, spyware, Trojans, worms, phishing attacks and spam. Kaspersky Internet Security 2012 also includes parental controls, identity theft protection, a two-way firewall and free phone support. A gaming mode prevents interruptions during games and movies, and the online banking feature automatically creates extra protection around financial websites. 

Norton Internet Security 2012 has excellent malware protection, but experts say Kaspersky Internet Security 2012 outshines it. The software's malware blocking and removal capabilities get top of the class scores from the independent labs, earning numerous certifications from AV-Test.org, AV-Comparatives.org and Virus Bulletin across numerous operating systems. Kaspersky was the only antivirus to earn the highest Advanced+ certification from AV-Comparatives.org in every evaluation conducted in 2012. Additionally, Kaspersky's false positive numbers are very low.

Technology experts also appreciate the strong antivirus capabilities. Kaspersky blocks every bit of malware NotebookReview.com, Expert Reviews and Maximum PC send its way, often refusing to let reviewers download infected files. PCMag.com got different results, however -- Kaspersky detected only 76 percent of Neil J. Rubenking's threats, making it the only review in which Kaspersky's antivirus earns negative marks. Rubenking does, however, say he appreciates the Safe Run features that test suspicious applications and websites in a virtual environment, making it difficult for them to harm your computer.

Kaspersky Internet Security 2012's firewall earns praise as well. The software turns in strong results in expert testing, rejecting every exploit NotebookReview.com throws at it and excelling in PCMag.com's various tests. The firewall is resilient, too, stonewalling Rubenking's attempts to disable the software using malicious methods. The anti-spyware component is similarly hardy, and the program's powerful parental controls and slick design win over critics.

However, the software trips up on a few other fronts, experts say. Rubenking had trouble setting up the anti-spam software; in his first testing attempt, the software failed to scan incoming emails. After fiddling with settings, he got the feature working, but it still allowed 44 percent of spam to find its way into his inbox. "That's not good at all," Rubenking grumbles. He also found that the anti-phishing functions are worse than the ones built into Windows' default Internet Explorer browser. Additionally, Download.com says Kaspersky Internet Security 2012's "Boot-time impact was atrocious," a comment echoed by others. Scan times are slow as well. Critics say the program won't bog down PC performance, however.

Overall, reviewers say that despite Kaspersky Internet Security 2012's excellent firewall and antivirus capabilities, those negatives push it to second place behind Norton Internet Security 2012.

Bitdefender Internet Security 2012

Bitdefender Internet Security 2012 (*Est. $40) doesn't earn as many recommendations as Norton Internet Security 2012, but this Internet security suite is considerably cheaper than Norton and boasts very good overall performance. It exceeds Symantec's test scores in some areas. In a test at PCMag.com, Bitdefender blocks more phishing attacks than any other Internet security software, including Norton. Like Kaspersky, Bitdefender's antivirus draws constant praise (and certifications) from all the major independent testing labs -- something Norton can't claim. False positives are rare.

Technology experts don't necessarily receive the same excellent results, however. While Bitdefender eventually scrubbed the malware off of Paul Lilly's desktop at Maximum PC, it was only on the desktop because Bitdefender allowed him to download it in the first place. "Bitdefender didn't always stop dirty downloads from reaching the desktop, nor did it block us from pulling foul files off our USB flash drive," he writes. And although it stops the vast majority of the scareware in PCMag.com's tests, Bitdefender struggles against active threats, stopping only 82 percent of that type of malware. PCMag.com's Neil J. Rubenking also found that the program allowed a quarter of all spam into his inbox, although it didn't mislabel any wanted email as junk.

Most critics love Bitdefender Internet Security 2012's new AutoPilot mode, though. Download.com's Seth Rosenblatt sums AutoPilot up as "a smart system that sets most notifications to silent, automatically deals with most threats encountered, and basically ensures that your security is running but not bothering you." The program does its thing and rarely prompts you for a decision, and because it's a fairly intelligent program, it gets the appreciation of experts overall.

The parental controls and interface get the job done, but critics say Kaspersky's and Norton's are slicker and more powerful. Likewise with system performance; PCMag.com and Download.com test performance-related metrics and find Bitdefender's impact on PCs good but not great. A  handful of Walmart.com users say Bitdefender slows their computer down.

Other notable Internet security suites

F-Secure Internet Security 2012 (*Est. $60) earns some decent accolades, including a perfect rating from Expert Reviews and a Top Rated award from AV-Comparatives.org, which is only awarded to antivirus programs that earn at least five Advanced+ certifications and have high detection rates. However, removal rates at PCMag.com were lackluster. Additionally, PCMag.com reports trouble installing F-Secure on virus-ridden systems, and F-Secure had a high number of false positives.

Webroot SecureAnywhere Complete (*Est. $80) is an interesting program that some experts love and others hate. Rather than storing virus definitions locally on your PC, it connects to Webroot's servers when scanning for malware, which gives it a very small impact and footprint on computers.

Theoretically, the software is constantly up-to-date because the Webroot servers identify new malware as soon as a user's version reports it. For some experts, this is true -- Maximum PC, Computeractive magazine, Download.com and PCMag.com love Webroot, showering it with high ratings and in the case of PCMag.com, a share of the Editors' Choice award. Other reports aren't quite as rosy. AV-Comparatives.org has issues with the cloud functionality, which results in Webroot being disqualified in the lab's comparative testing. Virus Bulletin fails the software in a December 2011 test after it flagged 2787 safe files as malware. Expert Reviews assigns it a 1-star rating after Webroot fails to identify 41 percent of malware in the site's test. While Webroot Secure Anywhere Complete includes features like free online file storage, protection for mobile devices and a password manager, it also draws criticism for what it doesn't include --  parental controls and anti-spam or email scanning capabilities.

ESET Smart Security 5 (*Est. $60) and AVG Internet Security 2012 (*Est. $55) earn a few critical nods of their own, but testing by independent labs shows that their effectiveness in stopping malware isn't on par with the Best Reviewed options. Additionally, experts say their interface and feature sets aren't as polished as the competition's.