McAfee Releases Major Upgrade to Its Award-Winning 2010 Consumer Products

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--McAfee, Inc. (NYSE:MFE), the world’s largest dedicated security company, today unveiled major enhancements to its 2010 consumer product line, delivering its fastest, lightest and most effective consumer PC protection in the company’s history. McAfee has been recognized with numerous industry honors for product performance since its 2009 release, including top awards from AV-Comparatives.org, AV-Test.org and Virus Bulletin.

“Every feature of this release is best-of-breed”

For 2010, McAfee sets a new standard in consumer PC security with:

Expanded threat protection. McAfee was repeatedly ranked the leading vendor in threat detection¹ in 2009. With the 2010 upgrade, McAfee has enhanced its Web protection to alert and block consumers from dangerous downloads and Web pages before they access them.
Enhanced performance features more than 325% faster scans² and updates are only initiated when the PC is idle.
The easiest to use interface in McAfee history, simplifying security for novices and experts alike.

“Every feature of this release is best-of-breed,” said Javed Hasan, vice president of product management for the McAfee consumer product group. “The new enhancements for this 2010 Q1 release offer consumers what they want: strong and unobtrusive protection with market-leading performance. With McAfee, consumers are protected by the same intelligence and technology used to defend governments and Fortune 500 companies around the world.”

Thanks to the McAfee software-as-a-service model, customers with a current McAfee product subscription will automatically receive the new upgrade free of charge for their subscribed product. McAfee® Total Protection™, McAfee® Internet Security and McAfee® AntiVirus Plus software products are available for download today in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia, with worldwide availability quickly following. Consumers can learn more at www.knowbetterprotection.com.

#1 in Threat Detection

Since the release of its 2009 consumer products, McAfee has consistently been recognized for threat detection, including receipt of the Gold Award from NSS Labs for 100% perfect attack detection rates. The unique McAfee Global Threat Intelligence technology employs millions of sensors spanning both the Internet and the globe. By gathering threat intelligence across all geographies and in every corner of the Internet—as it occurs—McAfee can provide consumers with new standards in threat protection.

Using McAfee® SiteAdvisor® technology, the upgraded 2010 products now also offer:

Web download protection, which scans downloads to warn about threats before they reach the hard drive.
URL reputation ratings, which alert consumers about individual Web pages and IP addresses that may have been recently compromised.

Unsurpassed Performance

With the 2010 update, McAfee products are faster, lighter and more convenient than ever²:

Scans are up to eight times faster, and with the new McAfee smart timer, updates and scheduled scans are postponed until a customer’s PC is idle. McAfee Active Protection™ technology ensures that customers still receive up-to-date protection even if an update is temporarily postponed.
The products boast the fastest installation to date.
During scans, memory usage has been reduced by 50 percent so there are fewer interruptions in PC activity.
McAfee software for 2010 requires less space on a user’s hard drive and utilizes fewer processes.

Easiest to Use

For 2010, McAfee software is easier than ever for novices and experts alike to check status, perform scans and customize settings:

Includes detailed reporting about key recent events, for instance the number of threats blocked, and shows immediate information about recent scans and activity
Offers simple “on” and “off” options for major features
More technical consumers can dive deep into a rich selection of settings
During a scan, progress can now be easily followed, and consumers can select to automatically have the computer shut down if no issues are detected
McAfee software for 2010 now automatically adjusts to smaller screen sizes such as netbook PCs

Additional Useful Features for Today’s Digital Consumer

Online Backup: New to the 2010 products, customers can automatically back up photos, videos and files to an online service for free for the length of the subscription. McAfee Internet Security software users are entitled to 1GB of free storage space, while McAfee Total Protection software customers enjoy 2GB of free storage.

Parental Controls: McAfee has improved its parental controls in the 2010 update offering parents pre-defined age groups, filters on 18 different content categories and age-appropriate search.

Protected Home Networks: The McAfee Home Network Defense feature in the McAfee Total Protection product now helps users identify and block intruders from accessing the PC on their home network.

McAfee Consumer Products for the 2010 Q1 Release Include:

McAfee Total Protection software, $79.99 for a 3-user license, is McAfee’s most comprehensive security suite, and provides families with the ultimate protection for their PCs, online activities, personal files and home network. It offers antivirus, anti-spyware, anti-spam, anti-phishing and two-way firewall, in addition to parental controls and identity protection. It includes SiteAdvisor Plus, a powerful Web site safety advisor, 2GB of online backup and bonus McAfee Anti-Theft File Protection software to secure valuable files.

McAfee Internet Security software, $69.99 for a 3-user license, provides comprehensive PC and identity protection to keep users safe from online threats, and also shields them from risky Web sites. It offers antivirus, anti-spyware, anti-phishing and two-way firewall protection. Additionally, it includes anti-spam, parental controls, 1 GB of online backup and SiteAdvisor, a powerful Web site safety advisor so consumers can safely surf the Web.

McAfee AntiVirus Plus software, $59.99 for a 3-user license, offers essential security for PCs and helps keep consumers safe online, protecting them from viruses, spyware and hackers. It provides antivirus, anti-spyware and two-way firewall protection. Additionally, McAfee AntiVirus Plus software incorporates anti-phishing technology and SiteAdvisor, a powerful Web site safety advisor so users can safely surf the Web.

¹ AV-Test.org malware detection results published in ComputerBild magazine (Issues 18-23, August 17 – October 26, 2009; Issue 26, December 5, 2009)

² Based on McAfee internal performance tests between McAfee 2009 and 2010 suites

About McAfee, Inc.

McAfee, Inc., headquartered in Santa Clara, California, is the world's largest dedicated security technology company. McAfee is committed to relentlessly tackling the world's toughest security challenges. The company delivers proactive and proven solutions and services that help secure systems and networks around the world, allowing users to safely connect to the Internet, browse and shop the web more securely. Backed by an award-winning research team, McAfee creates innovative products that empower home users, businesses, the public sector and service providers by enabling them to prove compliance with regulations, protect data, prevent disruptions, identify vulnerabilities, and continuously monitor and improve their security. http://www.mcafee.com

McAfee, SiteAdvisor, Active Protection, McAfee Total Protection, McAfee Internet Security, McAfee AntiVirus Plus and/or other noted McAfee related product are registered trademarks or trademarks of McAfee, Inc., or its subsidiaries in the United States and other countries. Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others. The product plans, specifications and descriptions herein are provided for information only, subject to change without notice, and without warranty of any kind, express or implied. © 2008 McAfee, Inc. All rights reserved.