Norton Internet Security / Norton AntiVirus

[traveler1969]

Does Norton Internet Security do anything that Norton 360 does not do?

My Norton Internet Security 2010 will be up for renewal in a while, but I already have two un-used licenses available for Norton 360, which I purchased for my 2005 Dell P4 Desktop running XP, so I am wondering whether, instead of renewing NIS, I should just use one of the unused licenses for N360 I have already paid for.

Maximum protection is important to me, because my Acer Aspire 7720-6395 laptop running Vista Ultimate is already having problems:  after turning on the computer, and using it for a while (the time varies) I lose control of the file and web browsers, all of them.  When I lose control, the browser automatically goes to the top of whatever page I am on, and when I scroll down, the page goes right back to the top.  I think this must be the result of malware that is either infecting, or did infect the computer. 

Some time ago, NIS showed that I had an MBR virus, and this occured at about the same time as my browser scrolling problems started, but NIS no longer shows the MBR virus...  In any case, I am looking for the most aggressive protection possible, in the hopes of getting rid of this problem, and preventing new ones. 

Thanks for any help that anyone can provide. 

[delphinium Norton Fighter]

If you know that you have a MBR rootkit, you need to remove it first before any effective security product can be installed.  Most of the standard antivirus suites can't remove it safely or at all because of the nature of the beast.  I would recommend getting some help from one of these free malware removal forums.

N360 has a few other utilities and back up included, but the firewall and antivirus engines are pretty much the same.

www.bleepingcomputer.com

http://www.geekstogo.com/forum/

http://www.cybertechhelp.com/forums/

http://forums.whatthetech.com/

[huwyngr Norton Fighter]

Bear in mind that the clock has been running on the 2 unused licences for N360 from the date when you used the first one.

At this moment the technology in NIS 2011 is a little more recent than in N360 v 4 but N360 v5 is in public beta and I'd guess from previous patterns will be out in the spring so there's a leapfrog situation there.

I'm a little narrow minded on NIS vs N360 <g> I'm here for protection and I don't want or need the online storage that N360 offers nor the utilities it includes so I prefer to stick with NIS especially since N360 is designed, usefully, for the fit and forget user and has much less in the availability to tailor settings to your preferences or needs.

Given the rebated prices that you can often get NIS at I'd disregard the cost benefit of using something you happen to have and go for what best suits your needs.

But that's just me .....