Everything you need to stay safe and secure

Kaspersky Lab, a leading developer of secure content management solutions, announces the release of the latest versions of its flagship consumer products – Kaspersky Internet Security 2011 and Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2011.

The new products take full advantage of the most innovative cutting-edge technologies to provide more accurate detection and an even faster response to any IT threats.

Says Vasily Dyagilev, Head of Regional Retail Sales at Kaspersky Lab: ‚These new products will not just sit idle until your PC becomes infected, rather, the new versions provide real-time proactive protection ‚ constantly monitoring your system to detect any type of potential threats and prevent any destructive activity – everything you need to stay safe and secure while you surf the Internet.‚

The solutions provide reliable isolation of untrusted Internet resources, giving the user full reassurance that their digital environment is clean, safe and free from digital threats and unwanted intrusion ‚ without limiting what the user can do. On the contrary, it ensures protection for all types of data and communications. The system operates in background mode and does not make constant demands on the user to do its job efficiently. Kaspersky Internet Security 2011 and Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2011 incorporate a full range of new and improved technologies, many of which are unique to Kaspersky Lab products.

The newly-implemented System Watcher technology monitors all system events in full ‚ creation and modification of files, system calls and changes to the system registry. Thanks to constant monitoring of a program’s behavior, Kaspersky Lab’s protection solutions detect any type of malicious programs, both known and new. The majority of unwanted changes to the system made by malicious programs can be rolled back with just a few mouse clicks.

The new solutions also incorporate reputation rating services, whereby information about a known object is received in real-time without the need for it to be scanned locally. The information is sourced from Kaspersky Lab’s databases that are constantly updated by the company’s experts. Both products include improved proactive protection from new, as yet unknown threats based on scanning for typical threat symptoms. Importantly, all the main modules are updateable, which means that should completely new types of threats emerge, the products’ features can be updated without having to reinstall the solution from scratch.

Kaspersky Internet Security 2011 and Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2011 incorporate the new Windows Gadget feature. This is an element of the interface located on the Windows Desktop in Windows Vista and Windows 7 which offers quick access to the product’s main features. Windows Gadget displays the computer’s security status, allows a file to be scanned with a single mouse click and enables an application to be launched in Safe Run mode.

One brand new feature is the ability to use the product installation disk as a rescue disk which contains a range of utilities for scanning or treating an infected computer without the necessity of downloading a bootable operating system. Another important and innovative feature of Kaspersky Internet Security 2011 and Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2011 is their ability to be installed on a machine that has already been infected by such sophisticated threats as rootkits that generally try to combat the deployment of antivirus solutions.

Continues Dyagilev: ‚Kaspersky Internet Security 2011 incorporates additional new and updated functions that allow a user to stay safe and secure while they surf the Web. It provides protection for applications and data and allows parental control over children’s Internet activities. The unique Safe Surf mode allows scanning of each Internet connection and will automatically block access to Web sites containing malicious links and codes.‚

Furthermore, the sandbox technology first introduced into the 2010 product line has been further developed. Safe Run for Web sites mode lets you run Web sites in a safe virtual browser while suspicious applications and Web sites can both be launched in Safe Run for Applications. Both modes provide restricted access to the computer’s resources. In the new version, the Safe Run for Applications feature allows users to create a separate Safe Desktop for all applications or run a specific application in Safe Run mode using the context menu.

Kaspersky Internet Security 2011 contains a significantly improved Parental Control module that restricts a child‚s access to social networking sites, instant messaging (ICQ, MSN) and specific programs on the computer. It can also control the downloading of files and the transfer of personal data.

‚We saw really good growth with the 2010 range of Kaspersky products, with sales increasing by up to 300% year-on-year. We are confident that the high quality of the 2011 products will ensure further growth and that Kaspersky will remain the number one selling security protection in South Africa,‚ says Simon Campbell-Young, CEO of local distributor Phoenix Software. ‚In fact, Kaspersky is not merely the number one selling security software in South Africa, it’s the best selling software in South Africa, and the new features in the 2011 range will provide further incentive for local consumers to purchase Kaspersky products.‚

‚By releasing the new 2011 versions, our company has improved an already great product range still further, bringing the user a host of effective new technologies designed to protect their computers,‚ concludes Dyagilev. ‚It’s nice to see we have achieved our goals. Now, thanks to such modules as System Watcher, Safe Surf and our fully redesigned Safe Run module, our customers will be provided with an unprecedented level of control over the processes running on their computers, providing them with the security they need while working with important personal data.‚