Best Internet security suite: ZoneAlarm
Check Point's ZoneAlarm Internet Security Suite 7.0 (*est. $40) was released in January 2007. The new version is reviewed by PC Magazine and CNet.com. Although the other reviews we found are of version 6.5, CNet.com's Robert Vamosi says version 7.0 is not significantly different. The big improvement is a switch to licensing the top-rated antivirus software from Kaspersky Labs -- the antivirus component on ZoneAlarm is actually the same as Kaspersky 5.0 (the latest version of Kaspersky antivirus is version 6.0). ZoneAlarm's suite doesn't just receive favorable reviews; almost every review source we found rates it as the best in its class at the time of review.
CNet.com rates ZoneAlarm as an Editor's Choice among Internet security software suites. CNet's Robert Vamosi says "ZoneAlarm Internet Security Suite 7 provides the perfect balance between best-of-breed security protection and ease of use, providing the home user with superior protection that's light on system resources."
PC Magazine's Neil Rubenking says ZoneAlarm is strong in all areas. A lack of current Vista compatibility and a couple of minor quirks leave ZoneAlarm "very close second" to Norton Internet Security Suite, according to Rubenking. A weakness of the suite is that spyware and virus scans aren't fully integrated, which slows scanning.
In PC Pro's testing, ZoneAlarm detected 96% of spyware and removed 91%. That's good for a suite, but doesn't equal Spyware Doctor, the best standalone anti-spyware software tested by PC Pro. PC Pro's Davey Winder says, "ZoneAlarm… prevents access to known spyware sites, even when any existing spyware tries to contact them."
Except for PC Magazine, all sources that review both programs rate ZoneAlarm over Norton Internet Security 2007. PC Authority says ZoneAlarm is better than Kaspersky Internet Security in all regards (even though both use the same antivirus engine), and ZoneAlarm is has arguably the best firewall in the business. Another plus is that ZoneAlarm doesn't create as much system drag as either Norton or McAfee security suites (though The Washington Post's Rob Pegoraro says it's not that far behind).
Owner reviews of ZoneAlarm are considerably less enthusiastic (on average) than professional reviews, though ZoneAlarm still gets better user reviews than the competition. We read some horror stories about installation, tech support, crashing and booting problems. But to be fair, we read these sorts of user complaints about every brand of security suite, not just ZoneAlarm. In sharp contrast with McAfee Internet Security, a majority of ZoneAlarm users are happy with the program. Some other suites earn equal ratings to ZoneAlarm on some user-review sites, but none score higher.
ZoneAlarm Internet Security Suite's components include antivirus, anti-spyware, network and program firewalls, anti-spam, anti-phishing, privacy protection, IM protection, identity theft protection and game mode. Check Point provides identity theft insurance, even when the incident can't be traced to computer use. A game mode allows the user to turn off program alerts. If the alerts are as frequent as some consumer reviews assert, users may be tempted to use game mode all the time. Check Point claims the new version greatly reduces unnecessary security alerts. The program will run under Windows 2000 Pro and XP. You can sign up to be notified when ZoneAlarm has a Vista compatible version or updates, as well as read Check Point's peevish explanation of why it lags behind competitors in this regard:
http://www.zonelabs.com/store/conten...ucts/vista.jsp
