BullGuard Internet Security Reviewer's Comments
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The latest offering from Bullguard is Bullguard Internet Security 8. This recent update to the Bullguard suite of products brings us one of the most complete and advanced security suites available today.
A fast virus scanner that includes advanced spyware detection, along with a full featured mail scanner bring Bullguard Internet Security 8 to the forefront of Internet security. The firewall that is included is easy to use and very functional with the added benefit of being easy to configure.
BullGuard Internet Security Screenshots. Click to Enlarge
Firewall:
Bullguard Internet Security's firewall is effective and easy to use for the most part. It has two modes that have several options within them.
In beginner mode, you have the ability to change how some programs are handled within the firewall, but are not able to limit specific ports. This is not an issue as the firewall should detect and assign the correct ports based on the program you are using.
Within advanced mode, you have three different profiles to choose from. High Security -- blocks all program access to the net. Low Security -- like not having much of a firewall at all. Custom Security -- can be set to any level you wish. Within these profiles, you have several logging options, as well as the ability to set up advanced rules.
The firewall in basic mode caught everything we threw at it. It warned us of port scans and blocked them. It also quietly blocked other intrusion attempts without popping up an annoying warning every time.
Antivirus:
Bullguard's antivirus scanner is among the top in the market. It has a fast on demand scanner and doesn't slow down your system noticeably while using the on access scanner.
Antispyware:
The antispyware features included with Bullguard Internet Security were effective and thorough. It caught all of the spyware and tool bars we had installed on our test system as well as removing any cookies left by Internet Explorer.
Other Security/Features:
Bullguard comes with a spread of extra features including a great backup utility and a spam filter that integrates with all the mail clients we attempted to use. Everything from Outlook Express/Microsoft Mail to Thunderbird were supported and detected.
The backup utility has several features associated with it that make it extremely useful. As well as including local backup functionality, Bullguard provides the option to store information on their servers. They also allow you to view your remote backups using Windows Explorer in order to make viewing, moving, and deleting files easier. Secure transfer and worldwide access makes this utility even more useful.
The one place Bullguard lacks in extras is parental controls. The addition of solid parental controls would help push this product to the forefront of the Internet security market.
Ease of Use:
Bullguard Internet Security is one of the easiest, yet powerful programs we have used to date. The main screen is easy to navigate and has well labeled options so that you don't have to search for what you are looking for. Scanning options for Bullguard are easy to understand and the locations to start them make sense. Logging options are available for each scan type as well so that you can see what was caught and what was done for each problem.
Ease of Installation/Setup:
The setup for Bullguard Internet Security was easy and straight forward. It required a single reboot and some initial configuration steps as well. The configuration is run by a wizard that makes the initial configuration steps easy to perform and understand.
Help/Support:
The help and support options that are included with Bullguard Internet Security are extremely useful. Included in their support options are a forum, FAQ as well as live chat and email support that are both available within the program and from the support website. The only thing they are missing is phone support in the list of standard support options. With how well this program is set up though, there shouldn't be much of a need for it.
Summary:
Bullguard Internet Security is an elite product in the Internet security market. It has offerings that outpace most of the other suites on the market as well as offering a backup utility that places it far ahead of suites that don't offer backup capabilities. Bullguard also offers advanced antivirus as well as advanced antispyware integrated into a single scanner to save time during scans. With these advanced features, Bullguard has released a product that is moving quickly to the head of the Internet security pack.
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