Review: F-Secure Internet Security 2007 internet security suite

F-Secure is a no-nonsense internet security suite. It comprises the core facilities of anti-virus, firewall, anti-spyware, anti-spam and parental control but, in the 2007 suite, also includes Deepguard for monitoring suspicious program behaviour and stopping dodgy programs from running.

Installation is simple enough and suggests just one option; including parental control or not.
The initial scan performed by F-Secure Internet Security Suite 2007 takes a good while and after that, there's some obvious PC slow-down, particularly if it's more than a few years old. We found that loading the computer took between 30 seconds and a minute longer than usual.

The occasional query will also pop up in the bottom right-hand corner of the screen, checking on software that's attempting to make system changes or accessing the internet. Many of these actions are quite legitimate, of course, as most software will look for updates and installs them automatically. However, after a week of use, the number of alerts drops as F-Secure knows what and what no to flag up.

The program is particularly easy to control, with a logically laid-out interface. This simplicity is reflected both in the control panel and pop-up alerts that appear, proffering options such as ‘I trust this software. Allow’, which is easy to understand.

In use, the suite managed to spot most spam and malware. One morning, it popped up with a ‘Radar Alert’, warning of a new piece of active malware, but reassuring us that our computer was protected. Anti-virus and anti-spyware files are updated on a daily basis.

F-Secure Internet Security 2007 can be paid for in one of three ways. A basic one-year single-user licence costs £35, with an extra fiver extending the licenc e to three years. A three-user licence for two years costs £60.

Also consider
AVG Internet Security 7.5
The best-known free anti-virus supplier offers more features in its paid-for internet security suite

Norton Internet Security 2007
Anti-phishing and anti-spyware, but no anti-spam. Does it matter?

McAfee Internet Security Suite
All round internet protection

Panda Internet Security 2007
Complete but idiosyncratic security software

Tesco Internet Security
The supermarket giant’s budget security package helps to protect against a wide range of threats

All internet security suite reviews

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