Comes with features such as the ability to remotely lock files on a stolen laptop

An anti-virus suite that does everything you could expect or want

Hardcore software for the technically literate. Not for the faint-hearted

BullGuard has basic graphics, but it offers good value and online backup

Webroot update their antivirus suite for 2011 - but can it compete with the likes of Norton?

Norton updates its antivirus suite for 2011

Vipre Antivirus 2010 bites back against malware

Panda Cloud Antivirus approaches virus protection from a different angle

The power of two products in one package – but to what end?

Panda upgrades its internet security software for the first-time user

The latest heuristic techniques have been used but it's not quite the complete package

BitDefender upgrades their antivirus suite to the 2010 package

Norton updates it's anti-virus solution for another years cover

New Mac offering from the established anti-malware name

Is Microsoft's free anti-virus package really essential software for your PC?

AVG 8.0 includes all of the core elements you'd expect, including anti-virus, anti-spyware, firewall and anti-spam. Taking things up a notch, the suite now includes root-kit scanning, as well as instant messaging and Web surfing protection features. Is it enough to keep your PC protected?

Take one look at the box and you might think that Christmas has come early. Not only does CA Internet Security Suite Plus contain just about every type of security software you think you might need, it works on three PCs and promises to pay you up to £2,500 for any damage that’s caused through virus infection after it’s been installed.

Norton Internet Security 2007 offers a comprehensive range of features, in a familiar interface to other Norton products. After installing the software, you'll be required to activate it online.

Billed by Agnitum as “proactive protection for intelligent Internet users”, Outpost Security Suite Pro 2008 has been reworked to include all the tools required to ensure a high degree of safety

While most suites pile on as many features as they can, Symantec is going back to basics: anti-spam, parental controls, pop-up blocking and privacy protection are all available only in an add-on pack

Symantec's security products have attracted criticism for extending too many tentacles into their host systems. Complaints include causing conflicts with other applications, being overly large and cumbersome, and having parts that just don't work

If your laptop connects to the internet, then you need an online security suite. There are is ever-growing choice available offering the same sort of tools, ranging from antivirus, spam, spyware and phishing protection, to firewall, parental tools and even privacy protection.

Since the dawn of the Internet, security suites have been a necessary evil to fend off the growing threat of spyware, malware, viruses, crackers and spoofing.

The sophisticated nature of Internet security suites today means that you don't need a separate spyware scanner. At least, that's what the security vendors would like us to believe.

Load up some malware and it's eminently possible that it'll do its best to wreak as much havoc with your PC as it was designed to. Often, a double-click will be all such a piece of software needs - once executed, your PC and its many files are fair game.