Just like vaccination shots, virus protection software works best if everyone has it--making it that much harder for the little devils to propagate. Do your part (and protect your data) by rolling up your sleeve and taking a quick, painless injection of McAfee VirusScan.

Installation is as easy as sneezing, and soon enough you'll forget it's there, shielding your e-mail, Web browsing, and downloads, as well as hunting down naughty programs on your hard drives. Of course, if you're a power-user type, you'll want to tweak the details and tell the software exactly when, where, and how to scan; you'll find the interface simple but powerful and yielding the results you want quickly.

McAfee leads the field on viral protection and diligently works to expand the database of viral signatures that are used to identify and sterilize new viruses. Updates are always available, so even the newest terror is no threat to your system. Many people wait until problems develop before trying to fix them; computer viruses exploit this strategy to wreak havoc. Don't learn a painful lesson about prevention--get in line and take your shot of McAfee VirusScan. --Rob Lightner