Phishing attacks boosted by smarter malware

Online attacks will be dominated by smarter malware aimed at users ranging from gamers to the elderly. That's according to IT management software company CA which has released its CA Internet Security Suite Plus 2009.

"Families should feel safe and secure when they are online," said Brian Grayek, vice president of product management for CA. "However, there are more online threats than ever before. While it's important for parents to practise general PC safety practices like not placing a PC in a child's room and monitoring social networking profiles, parental control software provides an added layer of protection and additional peace of mind."

"Each element of the suite, which includes a personal firewall, anti-virus, anti-spyware, anti-spam and anti-phishing software has been enhanced to provide even stronger protection against a wide range of emerging online threats," said the software company.

The software is in a single console and is easy to use and install, allowing users to monitor the security status of all of the licensed PCs on their home networks, said CA. Other features of the suite include integrated parental controls that help protect children from inappropriate web content and enable parents to monitor Internet activity. The company also claimed that the suite would help users back up and restore their important data and PC settings or transfer them to a new PC.

Grayek continued: "Historically, high-performance users, like gamers, turn off security features because it either slows down their PCs or they get pop-ups that interfere with their experience. This is a huge risk to their PC security. We've focused on developing a product that runs quietly in the background for uninterrupted gaming and movie watching, while keeping the PC secure."

CA Internet Security Suite Plus 2009 is currently available from CA for US$79.99(£49), with a one-year subscription for up to five PCs in the household.