Why Use a Small Business Internet Security Suite?

Businesses rely on web-based services and tools more than ever today, which increases their vulnerability to malware. Short for malicious software, malware refers to any computer code that is intended to cause problems to computers and networks to which it gains access. It includes viruses, spyware or phishing, worms and Trojan horses.

An internet security software package is an essential part of any business, large or small. Business owners should consider it a necessary expense. The best internet security suites prevent your computer network from being exposed to eminent threats, which come in the form of harmful computer code that seeks to enter and destroy your system. The three small business software suites we rank the highest include BitDefender Business Security, Kaspersky Enterprise Space Security and G Data Client Security.

Small Business Internet Security Suites: What to Look For

Different from internet security suites for the consumer level, internet security suites designed for small- and mid-sized businesses provide protection for workstations as well as file and email servers. All of the network security suites we reviewed include a centralized management console, where an administrator may view reports and logs that describe the security software's activity in the network. Some of the internet security suites offer centralized consoles in the cloud, which we discuss in more depth in our articles about small business internet security suites.

The security industry provides a number of options for small- and medium-sized businesses. Some software focuses on just anti-virus protection. Endpoint protection focuses on the devices such as PCs, laptops and mobile devices that may or may not be connected to a network all the time. Internet security protects workstations and servers in your network, and it includes anti-virus protection. Many internet security suites also provide many of the protections included in endpoint security software.

The criteria we used to evaluate the small business internet security suites included on this website include: certifications, detection and cleaning, internet protection, management features, ease of use, and help and support.

Certifications
Certifications within the security software industry provide regular and comprehensive testing of software products and provide certifications for products that meet specific criteria. The certification bodies we considered in our evaluation include Virus Bulletin (VB100), West Coast Labs (WCL), ISCA Labs, AV-Test.org and AV-Comparatives.org. For convenience purposes, we converted the variety of ranking systems used by these bodies to percentages.

Detection & Cleaning
Most of the suites we included in our review provide different types of scanning such as on-access scanning, real-time scanning, on-demand scanning and scheduled scanning. The suites quarantine infected files to a place where they can no longer harm your network. They then, if possible, remove hazardous components from the files, fix and release them back into your system, good as new.

Internet Protection
In addition to anti-virus protection, small business internet protection suites provide protection from email spam and phishing efforts. Spam can be offensive or it can otherwise fill up users' inboxes with unwanted emails, which take time to sort through and can hurt productivity. Phishing is the attempt to acquire sensitive information, such as usernames, passwords or credit card information, which may be used as part of an identity theft operation. The suites also scan instant messages and allow you to implement website filters, which block users from accessing certain types of sites or certain types of web content.

Management Features
Small business internet security suites let you manage all the security software packages installed on workstations and servers within your network from one centralized location. They also give you the ability to install software and software updates from a managerial terminal. Many of the suites provide reports and logs of scans, as well as logs of website viewing histories from each of the PCs within your network.

Ease of Use
Small businesses may not have a full-time IT specialist on hand to manage security features. The software suites we evaluated are designed for networks with file and email servers, which requires that small businesses already have some technical resources. We are particularly impressed with software suites that offer the convenience of in-the-cloud management features, which may be accessed from any terminal that's connected to the internet.

Help & Support
The internet suite manufacturers often include a support team that offers telephone support, email support and online chat. Most manufacturers' websites include answers to frequently asked questions, user forums, blogs and a knowledge-base. Tutorials and a user manual are also often available.

A small business internet security suite must work reliably on its own without you spending your valuable time tweaking it. Most applications in this category are updated automatically with tools to combat the latest threats. Many also provide you with additional services, such as data backup, so that you can get back to running your business.

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