The following links point to antivirus software programs that can be downloaded as trial versions. These trial versions can be used for either 30 days or 90 days without payment.

Which antivirus software developers are offering 90 day trials?

• McAfee VirusScan Plus [link]
• McAfee Internet Security [link]
• McAfee Total Protection [link]
• Norton Antivirus [link]
• Norton 360 [link]

Which antivirus software developers are offering 30 day trials?

• Kaspersky Antivirus [link]
• Kaspersky Internet Security [link]
• Bitdefender Antivirus [link]
• Bitdefender Total Security [link]
• Bitdefender Internet Security [link]
• ESET Smart Security [link]
• ESET Nod32 Antivirus [link]
• Trend Micro Internet Security Pro [link]
• Trend Micro Internet Security [link]
• Panda Security Antivirus [link]
• Panda Antivirus Pro [link]
• F-Secure Internet Security [link]
• F-Secure Antivirus [link]

Please let us know in the comments if we have missed a product.

Some notes: This article does not rate the antivirus software programs. There might be free programs out there that are comparable to the listed antivirus products. The only problem with this method is that users need to install different antivirus software regularly. This not only means more work for the user but also the requirement to get used to new software products.

Many antivirus companies are running promotions every now and then that offer longer trial versions for download. This will obviously help tremendously.

Any thoughts or ideas?

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Today it is BitDefender time here at Ghacks. The guys at BitDefender are donating one copy of Total Security 2009, two copies of Internet Security 2009 and another two copies of Antivirus 2009. One of the first questions that comes to mind is about the differences between those products. We would like to address them briefly in the beginning and concentrate afterwards on BitDefender Total Security 2009 as it makes use of all features including those of the two other products.

BitDefender Antivirus 2009 is a antivirus software program that combines a signature based and heuristic approach. It also incorporates protection against phishing, identity theft and provides instant messaging encryption.

Bitdefender Internet Security 2009 adds a firewall, parental controls and a file vault on top of that.

BitDefender Total Security 2009 finally introduces a backup module and a system cleaner in addition to all the features of the other two clients.

The choice of product depends obviously on the needs of the user. A user with a working software firewall might be inclined to pass on the two security suites that add a firewall to his system while someone without any protection might be inclined to grab the top product.

All three software programs can be downloaded as trial versions to make sure that they are compatible with the system’s software and hardware. This is also an excellent way of verifying that you can handle the software and do not encounter to many difficulties during usage. As an example, a software firewall that would throw cryptic error messages at the user might be the dream of every computer freak but a regular user would surely be swamped.

The installation requires a reboot of the system in the end. One of the first windows that a user will come in contact with is the Configuration Wizard which will walk the user through the steps to configure the product accordingly. Experts can skip the wizard but need to configure the modules manually in the main interface then.

The wizard will – among other things – update the product over the Internet and perform an antivirus scan on the system to make sure that it has not been infected already with a computer virus. It does not take to long on the other hand even if you read thoroughly.

The Bitdefender firewall is quite adaptive and let me connect with various programs to the Internet without bringing up “Do you want to allow” messages. Email and web browsers for example where working without difficulties right of the box.

The main interface is divided into a basic and advanced view. The basic view has been designed for inexperienced users while the advanced view provides access to in depth statistics and settings that would frustrate the inexperienced users.

The Dashboard is the central hub of the software program. It displays statistics and provides a quick overview of so called System Information. This gives access to to all kind of system related settings like startup items, services, hosts or processes.

The different modules of the security software are easily accessible on the menu on the left side. A click on the antispam module loads the settings of that module giving the user options to disable or enable the module, to change the level of protection or to manage whitelists and blacklists.

The layout of most modules is similar to the one above. Every module can be disabled and configured separately. One interesting module is the Vulnerability module that will query Windows Updates for updates and patches and makes it possible to install them directly in BitDefender.

The same menu will also check a few applications, in this case Skype and Firefox, for updates with options to download and install them automatically as well.

The program has been designed very carefully with the user in mind. The two modes make it a great choice for all kinds of users and the protections are extensive.

BitDefender has also created a community called Malware City which provides information and tips not only for BitDefender users but for everyone.

You can win one copy of BitDefender Total Security 2009, two copies of BitDefender Internet Security 2009 and another two copies of BitDefender Antivirus 2009 if you reply in the comments. Let us know what software you are currently running to protect your computer system.

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It is apparently an Italian promotion, at least the website of it is in Italian. It’s however not that hard to fill out. Simply enter your first name, last name, email and verification code and select the product that you want to test for 180 days. BitDefender Antivirus 2008 is included in Internet security 2008 which again is part of Bitdefender Total security 2008.

If you want to test it all get the Total Security 2008 product. A comparison of the different products is available at the Bitdefender homepage. You can basically say that BitDefender Antivirus 2008 protects the computer from viruses, trojans, rootkits and the like. Bitdefender Internet security 2008 adds a Firewall, Phishing protection, access limits and network protections.

All of this is included in Bitdefender Total security 2008 with the addition of data backup possibilities, tune-up and clean-up functions. Just visit the promotional (via Techtrends) website and select the product that you want to test. The registration code will be send to the email that you enter in the form. The applications can be downloaded from the Bitdefender homepage directly.

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