Symantec Updates Net Security Suite

Internet security company Symantec has unveiled a consumer security suite that alerts you if someone is poking around in your PC, screens your outgoing data, and helps you hide from hackers.

Norton Internet Security 2001 Version 3.0, priced at $69.95, combines the company's personal firewall and antivirus software. It includes privacy controls that check the data leaving your system to prevent personal information from being sent to Web sites without your knowledge. It also contains a feature that blocks banner advertisements for faster Web page download speeds.

The antivirus software in NIS 3.0 can defeat script-based viruses that arrive by e-mail, without using virus definitions. Recent notable viruses such as "I Love You" and "Anna Kournikova" are script-based viruses, which execute commands using Visual Basic programming language, Symantec personnel explain. Script blocking monitors scripts and halts those that display virus-like behavior, such as raiding e-mail address files.

Norton Internet Security Family Edition Version 3.0, priced at $79.95, adds Norton Parental Control, which allows parents to limit children's access to objectionable Web sites.

Watching for Hackers

The program watches for common hacker intrusion activities, such as port scans and Trojan horse e-mail access attempts. If the software detects such intrusions, it alerts you and can automatically configure the firewall to block all traffic from the attacker for a period of time. It can also put your PC into "stealth mode," which hides the system from hackers.

NIS 3.0 provides continuous notification of security events. The software monitors programs that are attempting to access the Internet, and it screens the data sent or blocks it entirely. Symantec says the security alert function has been redesigned to provide the severity level of the specific intrusion attempt, and it offers quick access to more detailed information about the attack.

You can set the security level. At the low end is a casual defense that reports only serious intrusion attempts. At the most secure is a figurative DefCon 5, with reports on penetration attempts of a lower threat level or lower likelihood. It can be set to report all Internet access events. You can also specifically designate the applications permitted to access the Internet.