Known for being a power user's anti-malware tool, Kaspersky has quietly developed its internet security suite into a somewhat kinder, gentler application. Kaspersky Internet Security 2011 (£39 for a one-year, one-PC licence) is rather more suitable for the masses.
But the company has not traded down on its well-known rock-solid security. Kaspersky Internet Security 2011's overall performance rating in our tests earned it second place, behind only Norton Internet Security 2011's top ranking.
Across the board, Kaspersky Internet Security 2011's figures were good but not perfect. It blocked 23 out of 25 of real-world attacks. Although this is a very good score, it was behind the leaders. It detected 95.7 percent of known, recently-released malware, which is par for the course. Kaspersky was above average at avoiding false positives, and it was nearly tops at removing malware from an already infected machine. Finally, it earned solid marks for performance in both on-demand and on-access system scanning. The on-access scanner kicks off when you open or save a file to disk; you launch an on-demand scan manually.
Regrettably, installing Kaspersky Internet Security 2011 is a headache. After downloading an initial 100MB file from the company's website, we were prompted midway through the installation to download an update (another 100MB file) via a rather convoluted process. We feel that such updates shouldn't mean downloading an entirely new set of installation files. And Kaspersky won't install at all unless you register your copy with an email address.
Still, we were happy to see a couple of uncommon add-ons. One is a Safe Run for Applications mode, a sandbox system that lets you run potentially dangerous programs without fear of infecting the machine. This isn't the fastest process around; but if it's a tool you think you'll need, it can be a real saviour. A second useful extra feature is Kaspersky Internet Security 2011's Anti-Banner system, which effectively scrubs adverts from your web browser while you surf.
Next page: Our expert verdict >>
See also:
Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2011 review
Symantec Norton Internet Security 2011 review
Comments
Markdarrenhicks said: I have had kaspersky internet for about 3 years. bought a new quad core hp home pc and put kaspersky on straight away to protect the system. It seemed quite slow but due to my lack of knowledge just accepted it. All scans were slow and over time got slower. I updated to 2011 and went from bad to worst. Slow wasnt the word. Full scan was taking 2-3 days in the end and only about 50gb used from the 1tb.Just removed the program and put on a free microsoft version and all pc's are working realy quick and has cleared 4 problems.Why pay for this program. It effected all 3 pc's very badly.I will never buy this again.
margaret ann faulkner said: how to activate when it will not download?
rover3500 said: I have been using kapersky for about 4 years on and off.I always end up uninstalling for another security prog as it is so slow opening files and doing most things.Averages about 5-10 secs to open most files instead of instant like most others.I like bitdefender or avg,have both is suites,much faster and better all round.Is a shame as i've always liked kapersky otherwise,if they could only speed it up alot,but then i suppose detection rates worse
Grada69 said: Have kaspersky 2011 on 4 of my own computors and have loaded it onto 3 others foe friends. Also recommended to about 20 other all using with no problems. Set it up right and it will do the job as well if not better than most