Kaspersky Internet Security 7.0 3-user [OLD VERSION] Reviews

• Very good security software - fast, easy to use

  
  By A8WEXFRWX1ZHH on 2007-09-11
  Intro: Over the years, I've had several computer security programs... going way back, I started with Mcafee because it was pre-loaded on a computer I bought, but I found it to be too intrusive and too "buggy".... then I went to Norton which I had for several years. Again, bugs abounded and the software really slowed my computer down. After that, I moved to Trend Micro's Internet Security software because I had heard it used less system resources and therefore the computer would run faster. I didn't find this to be true. Trend Micro was OK, but I kept reading stellar reviews of Kaspersky and decided to give it a try when my subscription lapsed.
  
  This is a good suite of software, not perfect, but very good. It installed pretty easily, though during installation the computer rebooted unexpectedly, but no harm seemed to be done. After it completed its initial scans (which did take quite a while), it doesn't seem as intrusive scanning as other programs. It only scans new or changed files, so my computer doesn't seem to be scanning all the time. It also found a couple of Trojan horses that Trend had not discovered.
  
  It comes with "parental control" turned on, which I didn't realize, and it was blocking access to fairly innocuous pages (such as "Excite", which has a provocative name but is anything but Exciting). I turned off the parental control and I again have access.
  
  This software seems to have the smallest footprint of any security software I've used... it doesn't hog system resources, and unlike my old software, I can actually USE the computer while it is scanning.
  
  Kaspersky isn't perfect, but it's the best I've had so far...I'd recommend it.
  
  Pro's:
  
  * Does not drain system resources or significantly decrease response time
  * Easy to use
  * Very thorough - finds viruses etc that other packages do not
  * Good price, especially after the rebates frequently offered!
  
  Con's:
  
  * No telephone support - all support is via "live chat" that never responds. Email support is a 48-72 hour turnaround. Not ideal. But not many of these software firms have telephone support these days; Trend Micro is an exception I believe.
  
  That's the only con I could come up with! And I was trying for at least 2-3.... overall I'm very happy with Kaspersky.
  
  UPDATE ON 9/12: I may have posted the above prematurely. In the past day or two, I have had significant issues with Kaspersky blocking my local network. I cannot print on my local network, nor can the computers "see" each other. Scanning the online help forums, it seems that the firewall function is a bit "buggy" on this new 7.0 release. There are many topics regarding it and several "help" files in the Kaspersky Knowledge Base. I'll update this once I get more info - but for now if you're on a home network, you might want to wait for a few updates to the firewall part of this software.
  Update 9/20: I've gotten all of my problems fixed (well, those related to Kaspersky at least...) I think most of the issues were caused by uninstalling Trend Micro instead of installing Kaspersky. The people on the Kaspersky user forum were very helpful and I'm up and running. I'll continue to recommend this security suite!
  
  

• The best I've tried!

  
  By ACUYXGCMWVF7S on 2007-09-11
  I have become rather cynical and jaded when evaluation new security suites, and I have tried the vast majority of them: Norton, McAfee, TrendMicro, Panda, ZoneAlarm, Windows Live OneCare and more. The ugly reality of the internet age we live in is the need for constant protection(if you can, examine the firewall log for your system, and you're likely to be stunned by the number of intrusion attempts made by trojans and other nasties), but this protection comes with a price: bigger and better software is also bigger and slower and less user-friendly. Most of the major brands are way too resource-hungry, too intrusive or too relaxed, and with a wide range of abilities in terms of virus and spyware hunting. Enter Kaspersky. While this security suite isn't perfect (I'd give it a 4.5 stars), it is by far the best I have ever had on my PC.
  
  PROS: Very, very capable virus and spyware detection, and a strong firewall. Kaspersky has long been one of the best performing suites, and at the end of the day, that's what you get it for- to prevent bugs from getting into your computer in the first place. The interface is also better than a lot of other suites, and while it's not perfect, it's easy enough to navigate and use. The memory footprint is also better than most suites, which is nice. Kaspersky also features the most regularly updated virus and spyware definitions- every couple of hours! The ability to scan all sorts of processes and also scan for rootkits is great to have. It comes with a thorough paper manual.
  
  CONS: The "training mode" for the firewall is a bit arcane and takes some getting used to, and might confuse a lot of users. The only other downside I've noticed is that the startup scans/downloads when you first boot your machine take a little bit longer than I'd like. That said, the performance of this software more than balances the extra few seconds I have to wait when booting up.
  
  Bottom Line: I feel much, much more secure with Kaspersky. It's been called "The experts' antivirus of choice", and I can see why.
  
  

• KIS 7.0: Great for experts - and everyday users

  
  By A2U0EG43Z7IMEE on 2008-01-02
  In March 2007 I tried three leading a/v-firewall suites on the same XP system image: Norton Internet Security 2007, ZoneAlarm Internet Security, and Kaspersky Internet Security 6.0.
  
  I chose Kaspersky, have loved it ever since, and recently upgraded (free) to version 7.0 - an even better product.
  
  
  About my comparative evaluation in March 2007
  ---------------------------------------------
  I was using NIS 2004 (annually renewed, daily updated, fearful to move to a later version due to strongly negative customer reviews). Yet I could not keep it forever, as it lacked malware and root kit support (which I augmented from other sources). Plus (another motivation for upgrade): I grew weary of yet another month of Symantec's "Critical!" failure alarms that announced "in 4 weeks you will expire" - a tremendously bad design choice because you tend to overlook !!RED!! general alarms for several weeks' time, and you could easily overlook a legitimate security problem if one were to occur. (All that, just for Symantec marketing purposes.)
  
  So I needed a vanilla PC platform, stripped of my previous A/V-firewall suite, to make the testing fair. Uninstalling NIS 2004 was a huge ordeal requiring several days of trial and error. (It truly looked like Symantec deliberately designed this to be so daunting that the faint of heart would give up, and stay with Symantec.) Add/Remove Programs doesn't remove the product nor its services, and while there were two tiers of Symantec tech support uninstall tools, the first is hugely ineffective and actually leaves the Symantec service still installed and running - yet the second tool actually strips out much of the operating system, including required support for Virtual PC, MSXML, and BITS (reportedly the solution is to reapply XP's SP2 plus all subsequent hardware and software patches). Sadly, Symantec corporate's "NoNav" removal tool is unavailable for the NIS product line. Ultimately I followed this published third-party tip: use Add/Remove Programs, reboot, then perform a detailed search of the drive and registry for things named "Symantec" and "Norton" - and delete them by hand. I removed about 70 registry references; fortunately I'm experienced with XP's registry and can recognize when to remove a 'value' versus a 'rule.'
  
  
  Evaluation experiences:
  
  Norton Internet Security 2007
  
  ++ Pro:
  * 1. Flashy, fun, highly automated, set and forget it.
  * 2. Highly rated by reviewers.
  
  -- Con:
  * 1. I had become a master at configuring NIS 2004 firewall exception rules, yet I remained completely stumped how to customize NIS 2007 for websites I trust but which NIS 2007 restricts. (Still don't know if such customization is actually available. It must be.)
  * 2. Twice the executable dropped (failed). Symantec said they fixed this error, but only for paying customers, and they wouldn't distribute the fix to trial-download customers. This left me with no possible way to evaluate whether the fix actually worked before buying the product. How dumb. Unacceptable. Dead ended, I moved on.
  
  
  
  ZoneAlarm Internet Security
  
  ++ Pro:
  * 1. Great GUI, nice integration of features, great logging features.
  * 2. Highly rated by reviewers.
  
  -- Con:
  * 1. Unstable operation. Installed twice on top of the same PC image, it behaved differently each time: sometimes it would leave Windows Firewall enabled, sometimes disabled. Sometimes logging would work, sometimes not. That sort of thing.
  * 2. A known corruption in the ZIS database halts event logging, but even when logging worked, log detail was so underreported that I could not gauge product effectiveness.
  * 3. Managing and overriding firewall restrictions on trusted websites was ponderous, requiring multiple tiers of screens for each and every website, including the requirement to perform a visual search against all previously customized websites plus all websites visited during this session - which sadly you cannot sort by timestamp nor by the parent portion of the website name, only by prefix - so good luck finding your website in that growing list!
  * 4. Days into use of the product, when the learning mode switched as predicted to restricted mode, PC operations became seriously bogged down, and stayed that way.
  * 5. The VSMON.exe engine (the main executable of the product) repeatedly failed, stopping the service with a popup memory error alarm. This may or may not drop the firewall protection - I couldn't tell.
  * 6. Scan time is slow.
  
  
  Kaspersky Internet Security
  
  ++ Pro:
  * 1. This product is geared for geeks and gear-heads who want and expect a lot of initial interaction to teach the firewall the rules for operation. And it really performs and excels in that capacity.
  * 2. Yet there is also a "typical" setup mode which I did not try, myself - for less technical users. I can't evaluate it, not having tried this mode.
  * 3. Detailed logs - exhaustive, reliable, searchable by field, selectable between major versus all events, exportable to other formats.
  * 4. Adding websites to the trusted list is a simple, convenient operation.
  * 5. Your custom configuration settngs can then be exported and later imported again.
  * 6. Scan status is a piece of art compared to the competition: Kaspersky shows you the scan percentage completed on the task bar icon, and if you open the scan it shows you the start time and the predicted completion time.
  * 7. If you're not afraid of understanding firewall and antivirus/antispyware product operation, this product is a dream.
  * 8. Flashy, fun, highly automated: configure it, and as it matures with use, you just set and forget it.
  * 9. Web support and web forums are the best, most helpful among these three publishers. Plus the Web forum posts aren't filled with frustrated, tear-my-hair-out complaints (a good sign).
  * 10. Very stable operation. Not seeing bugs! (That's unique among the three.)
  * 11. Highly rated by reviewers.
  
  -- Con:
  * 1. Price is highest of the three.
  * 2. I'm seeing some sluggishness with some of my web use at times. I'll keep watching this. Generally though, among these three products, Kaspersky runs neck and neck with, or slightly behind, Norton Internet Security. And Kaspersky blows the socks off ZoneAlarm.
  
  
  Conclusion:
  Hands down, I was absolutely thrilled with Kaspersky's operation, low resource utilization, terrific logging, extreme ease of customization, and high regard in the industry in terms of its reportedly high level of effectiveness. By day two I was sold - and I ordered it and took advantage of Amazon's rebate to reduce the cost.
  
  Update:
  The above tests pertained to the KIS 6.0 version. Version 7.0 only improves on product features (adding Root Kit scans, a more attractive GUI, and a bit more customization). Highly recommended.
  
  Perfect? No. I experienced one false positive alert that cost me some investigation time; that's not unique to any publisher, in my experience. I just have to disclose it here.
  
  Bottom line: solid, stable, responsive, customizable, and a pleasure to use.
  
  
  
  
  

• Requires patience

  
  By A1XD36N6JT12VW on 2007-12-31
  Kaspersky Internet Security 7.0 is a generally excellent anti-virus program as can be seen by other reviews. It is not entirely perfect, at least in my experience.
  The default setting for the integral firewall is low security. It is perhaps advisable to leave it there. Setting it to medium security places the firewall in "training mode". This renders Kaspersky entirely too obtrusive in my opinion with constant pop-up warnings against even known safe web sites, even those that are visited on a routine basis.
  The registry guard feature sounds well in theory but, again, can lead to excessive pop-up warnings. This can make installing new programs and updating existing programs difficult. The feature can be easily turned off however and, to be fair, Kaspersky is not the only security progam to do this.
  The almost minute-by-minute pop-ups (I confess I exaggerate slightly here but it sure seems like it sometimes) offer quite technical information regarding arcane processes that most users would find baffling and therefore useless. I have found that, in most cases, acceding to Kaspersky's recommendation to deny the process promptly cancels the task you were trying to accomplish like opening a program for example. For the first few weeks, these warnings should be fairly prevalent as you train Kaspersky to your computer's environment but I find them just as frequent after four month's use.
  Less excusably, Kaspersky recently issued an automatic update that tried to quarantine explorer.exe. This is a vital process that Windows needs to run to do pretty much anything. A correction was quickly forthcoming and updates can be rolled back to previous versions if there's a problem but, still, I feel this was a very great blunder for a company of Kaspersky's reputation to make.
  In my opinion, Kaspersky provides rigorous security for your computer but, in return, demands your constant attention.
  
  

• Crashed my computer. Won't go away.

  
  By AV91E5AI0QW0Y on 2007-11-13
  Kaspersky installation crashed and paralyzed my modern computer for hours.
  
  I finally restarted in safe mode, and (being unable to remove applications in that mode) deleted as much as I could. Then I restarted and removed this software. I then tried to delete any remnants of it. Norton then installed easily.
  
  Now, every time I start Outlook, Kaspersky pops-up a window to apparently flaunt its unwanted foothold in my computer, and to demand that I update the (now removed) Kaspersky malware. There is no option to not show the pop-up window again. Nor can the source of this pop-up Kaspersky window be located to rid it from my computer.
  
  Will no one rid me of this infernal software?
  
  Philo Willetts
  
  
• Another One Bites The Dust
  By A3C799LTPL4JXR on 2007-10-16
  In my continuing search for an anti-virus program that doesn't behave like a virus itself, the latest casualty is Kaspersky Internet Security. After purchasing Norton, McAfee, Trend Micro, and ZoneAlarm, only to have each of them slow my PC to a painful c---r---a---w---l, disable my software, and wreak general havoc on my day-to-day computing activities, I decided to try Kaspersky. Fortunately, I downloaded the trial version (rather than throwing money away on yet another "anti-virus"... virus).
  
  Kaspersky behaved itself nicely for the first couple of weeks, then the slowdowns started. I'd be working, and all of the sudden the computer would freeze... for 5 or 10 minutes... few minutes of work... another freeze... and on and on. Infuriating!
  
  Kaspersky includes "anti-spyware", "anti-spam", and "firewall" in it's feature list. After a couple of weeks, I noticed that my PC was riddled with spyware, and when I went to uninstall Kaspersky, I learned (to my horror) that there had been NO firewall protection during the time it was installed. Oh yes, and Kaspersky's "anti-spam" functionality is: it simply labeled EVERY email that came into my inbox as [SPAM]. Well, the slowdowns ceased the moment I uninstalled Kaspersky.
  
  I don't know what kind of monetary deal these vaporware crooks are cutting with magazines and reviewers, but my advice is to RUN FROM THIS PRODUCT AS FAST AND HARD AS YOU CAN.
  
  My next evaluation is AVG Internet Security. It says right on the front of the box: "Iron-clad security that doesn't slow your system down." That's a gutsy statement, so I'll be reporting on that one here as soon as the verdict is in.
  
  
• I can't understand the other users here...
  By A3ES9EU390ZZ5K on 2007-10-25
  This is the best all-in-one security package available today.
  I tried all versions of Norton.
  I tried the latest AVG and Trend Micro.
  All of them do not compare to the slick and easy interface and setup of the Kaspersky package.
  
  The only feature you may want to change from it's default setting is the file scanning feature which you may want to put at maximum if you are prone to attacks.
  
  Please at least install the trial version before believing the other comments posted here.
  
  You will be happy you did.
  
  Also, the price for a 3 user package is very affordable.
  
  
• Fort Knox protection
  By A3TUE4JZMN4HYO on 2007-11-19
  I installed this software on my laptop and my desktop two months ago and am gratefull I have not had any issues. The firewall is solid and the antivirus is excellent with multiple updates each day. I did do a clean install, as every year I reimage my hard drives and that is when I add new software so maybe that is a reason I have had no issues. I have not noticed any slowdowns while working or web surfing. If you need a good firewall/antivirus suite I would recommend this one.
  
  
• Their help-desk totally ignores you
  By A17WCH0HMDP2M4 on 2007-12-20
  There was a problem with their software, which was impossible to resolve because they did not respond to several emails that I sent them. To get help via email you have to follow a convoluted procedure. You, then, receive an automated response that says you will be contacted the next day by a given time, except that the promised response never arrives. One may possibly overlook this fault in other software but, getting email support and having issues resolved is crucial for a security suite. I am looking at other security software that has better quality and more reliable support, even if it may be more expensive.
  
  
• A disaster for both XP and Vista
  By A37P0E2D6WKEJR on 2007-10-17
  I tried the trial version and thought it was fine, so I purchased the full version. Two weeks into it, I have very slooow running computers (laptop is XP and desktop is Vista). Even worse: (apparently) an update around Oct. 12 did both of my computers "in." It completely froze up the Vista OS to the point I could not boot up, so I had to format and reinstall Vista....and all my programs. The XP system (laptop) was hanging up and acting weird, with strange messages about my (other) anti-spyware program, Spyware Doctor. I got the XP computer cleaned up...finally. And guess what...I did NOT reinstall Kaspersky! Kaspersky tech support has not responded to my "help" email of a week ago either. Has anyone else had these problems with Kaspersky?
  At this point, I am totally frustrated on what security system to use since McAfee and Norton are not up there on my list. I do caution potential purchasers of Kaspersky to disregard the high recommendations about Kaspersky and definitely try the trial version first (even though, it didn't clue me in to what I have experienced since installing the purchased version).
  
  
• Powerful yet unforgiving to an almost ridiculous level
  By A57Q87B0TC9IJ on 2008-05-09
  The good: This is probably the most secure antivirus and firewall I have used but don't take my word for it, do a search for av-comparatives and you'll see it ranked among the highest in its class.
  
  The bad: Its aggressiveness is severely marred by the lack of control it gives you. It "protects" you from so many potentially harmful sites, links, and dangerous executables that you'll probably be unable to do anything on your computer. Let me explain.
  
  Kaspersky's installation is straightforward enough until they get to a point where they ask you if you want default protection settings or a more advanced training mode where you literally train the firewall what to do. Being a relatively computer savvy user, I elected the latter. Bad mistake. I now find myself having to approve almost every executable file I run. You'd think I was running Windows Vista. The worst part is it doesn't provide the information we need to make an informed decision. Even listing the directory the file is in or its properties would help us make a decision but instead we're frequently doing a search for this file in our hard drive "just to be safe" then looking it up online and so on.
  
  Now let's get to web surfing. When it's working, there's only a slight reduction in speed. However, the program frequently brings everything to a screeching halt and stops pages from loading. Why, I don't know and their support isn't helpful either. They have a huge list of "blacklisted" sites that include commercial tracking sites and advertising related sites. This can cause havoc if you're in a shopping portal that redirects you to other websites. Plus, I'd notice Kaspersky blocking a website I was trying to visit but at the same time opening 20-30 different port numbers. Why was this happening? Again, their support was of no help. Many competitors have ways to bypass and go directly to a website link such as holding down the shift key before clicking the link or something to that effect. Not Kaspersky. If they block it, you're out of luck unless you shut down their protection completely. That makes you feel secure.
  
  To top it off, I'm frequently annoyed by the interference it causes with online media players, particularly flash media, but other streaming video is affected. I tried resetting everything to default and disabling some of the more aggressive options like anti-banner and anti-popups but it still blocks stuff I know is safe. That, in a nutshell, is Kaspersky's achilles heel. In its zeal to be the most powerful protection against online threats, it left no control to you, the user. I mentioned this to their support staff and they respond as if the thought never crossed their mind.
  
  Personally, I won't be renewing my subscription. Watching it detect and prompt me for everything was impressive at first. Now it's just annoying and time consuming.
  
  Edit: Sept 2008 - I felt I should update this review as the problems of websites being blocked seem to have largely straightened out. I first started noticing these after some Windows Security "updates" were installed and I am assuming one of them caused problems with Kaspersky. Now things seem to be working and I can once again recommend this product. Keep in mind the latest version of Kaspersky has been released and this is now an older version.
  
  
• Excellent Performance and Protection!
  By A25X91T3WR4CPV on 2007-11-14
  I did an upgrade to KIS 7.0 3-user from the 6.0 version for an additional ten dollars from the company. I have had mixed results with Norton, Trend Micro and Zone Alarm Internet Security Suites over the years. My main complaint with these other players has been the drag I have felt on my system resources especially while running the scans while I work online. KIS 7.0 allows for many customization features and different firewall settings. To give me the security I desired, I customized the firewall setting to "training mode" allowing my computer to pass the GRC 'LeakTest' firewall security test. This DOES increase the pop up alerts temporarily for sure, and can be annoying for many, but it is a tradeoff I can live with. I think for many, the default settings are adequate. The virus updates are the most frequent of any software I have seen and this gives me peace of mind. Scans are easy to conduct and for the most part very speedy especially if done regularly. Because the scans have never frozen or glitched out my computer, I am far more compliant about doing scans daily. This for me is where Kaspersky shines. With other security suites, their virus scanning would either slow my PC to a crawl or create glitches. As a result, I would perform scans only a couple times a week rather than everyday. I find KIS 7.0 streamlines well on all my 3 computers along with their various other software applications while it runs seamlessly in the background. After using KIS 7.0 for several months without incident, I am sold. I run KIS on XP Home, XP Pro, and Vista. It has very decent rootkit and spyware filtering too. I no longer run separate antispyware software programs as I tired of the glitches and drag on my system resources. When I have intermittently downloaded a free trial of an antispyware program in order to test KIS 7.0's spyware detection, I have thus far found none. This convinces me that KIS is proactive and effective in protecting my computer from multiple threats. I have no complaints. I have never needed to call customer support so I have no feedback on that enterprise. But I can say without reservation, KIS 7.0 has surpassed my expectations based on the favorable reviews I read beforehand, and there will be no returning to other internet security suites in the future as long as Kaspersky continues to perform at this superior level of performance and protection. I find the attractive interface easy to read, but for some there may be a slight learning curve to get familiar and comfortable with all the options and customization features it offers. But you may be find the effort ultimately well worth it. Since Kaspersky offers a month free trial, a person can experiment with it and sees how it performs on their own individual PC at no cost.This is usually ample time to decide if this particular application meets your security needs and preferences. Kaspersky frequently runs rebate offers that make this security suite a wise and economical investment in your PC's health. It doesn't get much better than this!
  
  
• Excellent Product
  By A2VZK6AF1SVDVM on 2007-11-14
  As a network & information security consultant, I can say with absolute certainty this product is one of the best forms of protection and software packages for anyone's computer. It hands down beats MacAfee, Norton, Trend Micro and many others that I have tested. There is one downside to the product, if you do not know what you are doing, such as not following instructions and the manual you will probably disable features on your PC. There are many easier products to use, however they do not give you the protection that this product does.
  
  
• Every PC on the internet should have this! Works GREAT!
  By A7EJERNB7IK3Z on 2008-03-23
  I had a malicious 'worm' virus attack embed itself in my PC recently, so I had 'Geek Squad' fix the problem after my Windows XP system went 'haywire' and became unusable. I have cable broadband and my 'Norton' anti-virus package let me down. The 'GS' technician highly recommended I delete 'Norton' and go with the 'Kaspersky Internet Security 7.0' package, which offers total protection on so many levels (firewall, anti spyware, anti pop-ups, anti virus). The installation was simple and everything works seamlessly. I even have the 'Kaspersky' software allow advertising banners within websites I frequent, but disallow pop-ups. PERFECT! Moreover, I was told that 'Kaspersky' has been highly touted by all the PC magazines and online review sites, and it's not a 'memory hog' like other packages, thus not slowing down one's online surfing experience. This bears out, since there has been no noticeable slowdown when i'm online. What a relief to now know I have maximum security in place while i'm online, and not even noticing it since it works so seamlessly in the backround! HIGHLY recommended!
  
  ADDENDUM and UPDATE to my review; March 27th: It is a few days after I initially posted my review, and I feel impelled to add to the accolades for this incredible product! My wife's PC has been 'disabled' by viruses, spyware, and pop-ups to the point where it has been unusable for months now. After having good luck with 'Geek Squad' with my PC as described above, we were going to call them and probably spend a few hundred dollars more to get her PC operational. But before we called 'Geek Squad', I thought to myself why not try installing Kaspersky in her computer, and see if I could run a complete system scan to get rid of viruses and spyware that had slowed down her PC to almost a standstill. Amazingly, Kaspersky detected close to almost 300 'infections', and either deleted or quarantined/neutralized ALL OF THEM! This product is utterly AMAZING, and in one simple system scan, FIXED my wife's PC! It now works like new, and we have Kaspersky running to keep things this way. And we saved a good amount of money by not having to call a tech. I cannot say enough GREAT things about this software. It is a GODSEND (and no, I am not affiliated with Kaspersky in any way)!!!
  
  
• Save your money!!
  By A3HXNT0T3MAEEX on 2007-10-21
  This software has created nothing but problems with my computer. It slows everything down and shuts down while your in the middle of tasks. It may be good at preventing internet security issues, but what good is it if it prevents you from functionally using your computer. I have since uninstalled this product after less than 24 hours of use. I would not recommend this product to anyone.
  
  
• Too slow
  By A309KRB8O94RF0 on 2007-11-07
  I bought this recently and installed it on my PC. It slowed my computer right down. After 3 days I uninstalled it. Need I say more???
  
  
• Worst security suite I've ever had
  By A191IB660F6FWW on 2008-04-01
  I purchased KIS due to reviews touting its superiority over Norton IS which I have used in various versions for years. KIS was billed as less resource intensive, user friendly, and with great customer support. Here's what it has done for me so far: I can no longer follow links in email like articles in NY Times or Amazon offers. Sometimes KIS won't allow its own links to tech support forums, etc, to work. I can no longer run add or remove programs from the control panel so I can't uninstall KIS. Scans take upwards of 8 hours, scans that NIS would accomplish in 2. Emails and phone calls to Kaspersky tech support so far have yielded no replies. Their phone support is a call back system: you tell them your problem and they promise to call back which so far has not been the case. I paid for a 3 license version but I will not install it on my other 2 until and unless I can get it to work on this PC. In the meantime the other 2 have expired NIS. I never experienced any problems like this with NIS and I would strongly urge you to ignore the hype and stay away from KIS. In just a few days it has essentially ruined my PC to the point where I may have to wipe it clean and start all over, OS and all.
  
  
• Great All-in-One Security Package
  By A1CZM03804BHXU on 2007-10-16
  I'm a big support of Kaspersky's products, and always recommend them to friends and family who ask about security solutions. It's quality, feature packed product that doesn't bog your system down. It offers file system, mail and web security, as well as firewall and privacy control features. It even has anti-spam and parental control functionality, and an option to block banner advertising in any web browser (IE, Firefox, etc.)
  
  I first purchased Kaspersky as a replacement for my aging Sygate Personal Firewall installation. Sygate was wonderful and used virtually no system resources, so I was looking for a good replacement. Kaspersky has met this criteria very well.
  
  My only complaint with Kaspersky is it's web scanning performance. There is a very noticeable and sometimes frustrating slow down in the time it takes to load a page when Kaspersky is running. The slow down appears to be worse in Firefox than Internet Explorer. I haven't been able to find a reason behind this or a solution.
  
  Even so, Kaspersky is a wonderful suite and I'd recommend it for just about anyone.
  
  
• Hard to use
  By A3H1DDBCRJDWW6 on 2007-10-27
  I got this with high expectations based on other reviews. The installation went easy, but I soon had major problems. Tried to access the internet, no go. Tried to receive and send e-mail the same. I kept lowering the security settings etc and still no luck. Finally had to turn the whole thing off in order to get on line. What good is a security suite if you can't go on line? Ended up uninstalling. Waste of money in my case.
  
  
• Any Good? NYET!!!!!!!
  By A1EBCBDECRBYL1 on 2007-11-03
  You would think Russia won the cold war with all the positive reviews of this product. Think I got a bootleg from one of the Amazon supersellers here. Title of cd "MY CD" Has Kaspersky 6 on it, and 7, with no autorun. Have to dig in the cd to find setup. Thinking of buying the boxed retail version and blowing the whistle on these bootleggers. Besides that, you never know what codes they insert into the program. Your computer could be a clone for attacks. Now onto the product.
  
  I originally bought this as a fix to other programs being system hogs. Its supposed to use alot less system resources. Also, its only supposed to scan "new items" to reduce load. Another lie. The registry scan on startup takes forever on a fast computer, then your held hostage as it does a four point check for updates, etc. Load time to boot to windows ET about 5 minutes. A total waste. Also you have very little control of the program and can not make a whole lot of changes to settings. My guess is that they either dont want you to make changes, or think we are to stupid to do so. Found some interesting files that other programs did not find, but alas, the converse was also true. Ton of websites I couldnt connect to. At least a dozen times when it said the network internet connection wasnt working. I finally had to "uninstall" it to get my internet running again. I put "uninstall" in quotes, because you never quite uninstall it. All the changes Kaspersky made while on your computer stay on there even after uninstalling. Couldnt access websites, etc. Microsoft is constantly putting out new updates for Malicious Software removal tools, but theyre useless. At least McAfee gives you an uninstaller program from their website to remove all traces of previous installations. Like I said, I read a TON of reviews on this product and was so hyped to get it, only ending in total horror. Im skeptical of 5 star reviews, they have the product one day and then write about it the next day without truly experiening it.The McAfee debuted in October, so alot of these people here bought Kaspersky and left reviews before the new McAfee came out. Think Kaspersky came out in April. The McAfee starts up 10x faster than this, and they have Technical Support here in the USA, as opposed to Moscow. From Russia with, umm..............love?
  
  
• Good Antivirus
  By A2X78ZKX7BXQSW on 2007-11-13
  
  We run a computer software company, and need to stay protected because our customers arent and every time we are moving files in USB drives.
  
  In a half of the computers of our small office we use Trend Micro that also slows the computer a lot and every time you open the main window, it opens an advertising window that I dislike.
  
  Finally I installed KIS 7.0 in our first Windows Vista Notebook despite the fact that its very expensive (compared to Trend Micro) but the computer runs fast (yes, with Vista) I haven't had the problems seen by other reviewers.
  
  
  
  
• Not for the average user
  By AR5QTJEBQYE45 on 2007-11-20
  I had hi expectation for this AV Suite. Heard alot of good things about Kaspersky. But this is definetly not for the average user. The small installation size should have been a hint. Requires quite a bit of knowledge of computer lingo and user input. Kaspersky defintitely needs to make this more user friendly. Ended up uninstalling this and going back to my old AV.
  
  THIS IS THE BEST AV SUITE I DON'T KNOW HOW TO USE!
  
  For those who are computer savvy, you will love the freedom to tweak the program behavior settings to your liking.
  
  As a side note, Kaspersky's AV search engine is used extensively in many competitor AV programs. So it's not the program that is the issue, it's the complex user input.
  
  
• By far the worst
  By A3IQ5TNR6LRV5T on 2008-04-26
  I've used Norton, McAfee, Trend Micro, Windows Defender, Spybot, AOL Safety, as well as a few others. I regret to say that Kaspersky, in my experience, is the worst.
  
  Maybe it's just me. I'm not an IT professional, but I'm also not stupid. Nevertheless this thing has certainly got the better of me.
  
  I just can't believe how cumbersome and annoying this program is. It's been nearly two months since I bought this and hardly a day goes by when I'm not handicapped by the use of this software. Yes, I paid good money so I'm reluctant to cut my loses and go back to one of the others.
  
  Safe, familiar internet sites are crashed, mid use. "Training" seems to go on forever, but never seems to stick or be learned. Resources are hijacked. Programs, some which I've used for years, now fail to load. Pop ups appear over and over, the same ones, and don't go away. Why?
  
  I guess I could set security levels lower, given the myriad options which are provided, and that would allow me to operate more smoothly. So then, logically speaking, I should shut off Kaspersky entirely, that would allow me smooth sailing, right? But wouldn't that lower my protection? I guess. I have no idea, the program offers scant little guidance. You're really on your own, just guessing at how to set it up.
  
  I'm assuming that Kaspersky offers "security" and "protection"-- that's what it says on the box-- but so would shutting off my computer entirely. That's logical. And it's also ridiculous. So what am I supposed to do in order to allow the efficient use of my computer and internet serices? Kaspersky is not helpful: the manual is meeger and tech support (email only) is scant and response time is slow.
  
  I'm sure there are some geeks out there who think that Kaspersky is just the best (and not all of them work for them). I'm not one of them. I just like to use my computer, not spend hours a day wrestling with my protection software. If you're like me, this product is not for you.
  
  Not recommended.
  
  
• Shut down my soho!
  By A2FSMH3CAGMF1U on 2007-12-08
  This item shut down my home network and believe me when i say i'm a simple guy. If it's not simple enough out the box to work, it's not worth it and this product is one of them.
  
  I gave this item a try based on the words this guy was saying about this new product he had. It was getting top spots in the computer mags and everything; the comp mags are dead wrong. When i installed this piece of crap, i'd noticed that i was having network problems. My computers weren't seeing each other in the "workgroup" window, and kaspersky's "so-called" zoning window is no help at all and it's hard to configure, not to mention confusing. Why couldn't it be simple like like Norton's Internet Security. Well anyway... i did some troubleshooting and my last resort was to uninstall the crapware. When i did that, i've noticed my computers can see each other (again).
  
  To make a long story short, today was a computer show and i picked up Norton's I.S.. After installation, it saw the computers right away automatically, so i didn't have to do any zoning configurations.
  
  Kaspersky, you did see everything and wiped them right out, but when you knocked out my beautiful network that i worked so hard to get in the first place and then have the nerve to further send my expectations down the hole by having this (crappy) zoning config; well you just asked for it, one star for you mister. Norton's may not work as well, but it's definitely network friendly. YOU'RE NOT WORTH THE HEADACHE!
  
  
• Much, much better than Norton Antivirus!
  By A3IAEMIOKXD0AO on 2007-12-14
  I have been using Kaspersky 7.03 since October 2007 and have had NO problems with it. My computer runs faster now that I've gotten rid of Norton Anti-virus. Before you install Kaspersky go to the Norton site and download the Norton Removal Download to remove all the Norton clutter.
  
  My ISP has an excellent spam filter so I disabled the Kaspersky spam filter.
  
  
• Warning, warning
  By A3VFK3PQF5D9YY on 2008-04-09
  This product is undoubtedly the worst piece of software I have ever come across. Running Windows XP. I installed it and it appeared to go nicely but after restarting, where again all appeared to go well, somewhere near the very end of the restart I came upon the Blue Screen of Death (BSOD). After 6 or 7 trials repeating this behavior I tried to uninstall but couldn't in safe mode. It took five hours of dedicated labor, a non-trivial amount of computer knowledge, and knowledge that the average user just doesn't have to uninstall and remove it from my system. And, of course, there was no on-line help, their knowledge base was useless for this, and an email produced the sound of crickets.
  
  This is no surprise to the vendor because I found several forum threads all over the internet dedicated to just this problem. The bsod error message is DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL and appears to be related to specific drivers. So if you really really want this product hunt around the internet and find out if your drivers are incompatible.
  
  I only wish I could give it a zero.
  
  
• Please do some research before buying - this may do a LOT more harm than good
  By A38RMU1Y5TDP9 on 2008-05-27
  Save yourself a lot of time and headache Once installed you will not be able to use IE or firefox. It is also possible that once you install it the only way to recover access to those services is by reinstalling your OS. My experiences follow and you can find many others via goggle.
  
  I decided to download IS while I was waiting for my purchased copy to arrive from Amazon. It installed fine and made it through the activation process. That was the last time I was able to use a browser to access the Internet. Both Firefox and IE can't get DNS service so nothing gets found. (NSLOOKUP works from a command prompt so I know DNS is working)
  
  I located several articles that described how IS is configured to not let these utilities access the internet and even provided some instructions on how to correct the problem. I deleted and recreated the rules as instructed and things still didn't work. I turned the firewall level all the way down and that didn't help. I disabled all protection and still nothing.
  
  The last thing I tried was to install IS using the option in add/remove programs. The install has been sitting at the same place for about an hour. Hitting the cancel button doesn't do anything.
  
  I had heard this was a good program and have wasted the better part of the evening trying to make it work. Now I'll have to waste even more time trying to find some other way to get this virus off my computer. (assuming the system comes back after I reboot while in the middle of an uninstall.)
  
  
• The Bates Hotel
  By A1Z60E0RV5B1I5 on 2007-10-07
  This program has been a disaster for me. Nothing is intuitive.
  And once installed it is impossible to remove. Customer support must be in Siberia, and I don't speak Russian. You can get in, but you can't get out!
  
  
• Great product, but a little intimidating...
  By ANL719P0R1574 on 2007-10-11
  After a recent virus attacked my computer's main executable file and my version of Norton Anti-virus decided to quarantine it leaving my computer unable to start up at all. My company's IT manager recommended Kaspersy because it updates HOURLY and disinfected this particular virus rather than putting it in quarantine. After having it installed on my computer at home and working out some of the more technical issues of how much security I want and need, it has been great so far. It blocks e-mails, has parental controls, monitors your computers registry and programs... but the coolest thing is it has a built in firewall that shows actual attack attempts to your computer (which is how my virus problem began). You would be amazed at the amount of attacks from various IP addresses you get - most from other computers that have been infected and are carrying out there virus' various wishes. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT, be prepared to do some reading of the manual and a lot of tweaking of it's capabilities, but well worth it.
  
  
• NO MORE TECHNICAL SUPPORT!!!!!!
  By A3ABSAW1O554JM on 2008-01-07
  Kaspersky used to be a good product. They now no longer have any technical support. There is no way to write to a technician and get an answer. There is only a knowledge base. I have the new Internet Security 7.0 and it keeps asking if I will allow it to send Mozilla Thunderbird emails. I keep checking "make rule" and "allow" and it does no good. I have written Kaspersky 4 times and they write back and refer me to knowledge base and no answer and no solution on knowledge base. BUY ZONE ALARM. MUCH BETTER PRODUCT AND THEY ANSWER EMAILS
  
  

• Kaspersky Anti-Virus 7.0 [OLD VERSION]
• Windows Live OneCare 2.0 (Up to 3 Users)
• Kaspersky Internet Security 6.0 [OLD VERSION]
• Trend Micro Internet Security 2008 3-User [OLD VERSION]
• Kaspersky Internet Security 2009