CA Technologies Vet Anti-Virus

Computer Associates Vet Anti-Virus 2006 is a simple and very easy to use program which takes up minimal space on your PC, but if you're after advanced options, then perhaps it would be wise to look elsewhere.

The most impressive feature of Vet Anti-Virus is without doubt its simplicity and ease of use and this begins right from installation. The program took no less than 10 seconds to install on our PC and after a quick reboot, we were ready to go. Vet Anti-Virus only takes up a paltry 10MB of disk space, meaning those with heavily loaded machines will find it comfortable to use and it does not slow down your PC. Many programs of this type have a tendency to hog system resources and reduce your computer to snail-like speeds, so it was refreshing to see that Computer Associates have not fallen into this trap.

After installation and reboot, a quick start wizard appears which directs you to download the latest virus signature file update and activate the program. These updates are delivered almost on a daily basis to ensure that the software is always adequate to deal with new threats. If you don't like programs opening or pop-ups appearing when you start-up your computer (who does?), you can conveniently disable this quick start wizard.

The interface of the program itself continues with the simple yet effective theme. The main window uses a tab system to operate the software, which is highly intuitive and certainly very easy to get around. You can scan your entire computer, schedule a scan at a specific time and date or use selective scanning - which only scans specific files or folders which you can specify. The initial scan we performed on our test PC took less than five minutes and we had no issues with any files it detected. The entire operation was swift, extremely quick and done with a minimum of fuss - just how we like it.

The Automatic email scanning however was somewhat time consuming. It takes quite a while for the program to scan each outgoing and incoming message and if you need to send a quick e-mail before leaving the house, this poses a subtle, yet notable annoyance.

We were also impressed with what CA call "Real-Time Scanning", which means files are scanned as soon as they are opened, closed or saved to your PC, increasing protection and peace of mind. Other additions to this version include File Quarantine, which prevents you from fully erasing important system files and an advanced help system which we found very useful - even though we didn't have to use it very often.

CA also includes free product upgrades, free phone support and free access to a substantial online help service should you ever need it, which rounds out an extremely good value for money package. This is a program that anyone with a home PC should be able to use and for this, it's highly recommended. If you require more advanced options though, such as a Personal Firewall and Anti-Spam protection, you may be better off with a security suite instead of just anti-virus software.