BitDefender Internet Security 2011 Download:

BitDefender Internet Security 2011 uses the same lengthy installation routine (eight screens!) as BitDefender AntiVirus 2011 Pro. Once complete, users are taken to the BitDefender Dashboard, which is as easy to navigate as its sister application's Dashboard. At first, the available commands seemed thin. It took us a few minutes to realize that users must manually enable most of BitDefender's advanced features - such as Firewall Configuration and Parental Control - by selecting More Options from the Security Menu, and toggling these features to On. In order to configure settings for these features, users also have to go to the My Tools menu, select More Options, and enable the corresponding settings commands as well!

BitDefender Dashboard (Basic Mode):

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It took us a while to figure out that we could obtain the full panoply of features by clicking Options in the upper right hand menu and selecting Expert View. BitDefender defines three views - Basic, Intermediate, and Expert View - to customize the program for users of varying technical prowess. BitDefender calls this flexibility "Adaptive Design", and touts it as a selling point. And, in BitDefender's defense, it asked us which view we wanted during the (eight-step) installation process. While a nice idea, we found it a little weird that the default view of the program would hide the very features that made the upgrade to Internet Security worthwhile.

The BitDefender Web site highlights two other new features for Internet Security 2011. The Video Library, which contains video tutorials for all major features, is available by clicking Help and Support in the lower right corner, and then selecting View All Tutorials. The Search anytime box on the same page provides in-application access to BitDefender's online knowledge base. These are pretty meager improvements for a version upgrade.

BitDefender offers a great range of features, including enhancements to features commonly found on most antivirus platforms. Take Game Mode, which suspends antivirus scanning activity and alerts when an application is running full screen. Internet Security's Game Mode provides an Automatic Game Mode option that will keep Game Mode disabled, but enable it when certain applications are running. Users can also customize whether a full-screen application triggers Game Mode, or triggers Silent Mode instead (anti-virus activities still occur, but BitDefender suppresses all intrusive alerts).

Another unique feature is Encryption, which can encrypt traffic for certain Instant Messaging platforms. Currently, BitDefender only supports Yahoo! Messenger and Windows Live Messenger.

BitDefender's other features are equally rich and flexible. The Home Network menu provides a flexible and easy interface for managing security issues across multiple computers. Parental Control permits restricting the activity of user accounts, either by using a pre-determined set of recommendations based on the age of the user, or by customizing which resources and applications the user is allowed to access. BitDefender's Privacy Controls can be set to eliminate tracking cookies, forbid Registry entries that will be executed at start-up, and issue alerts when a user inadvertently sends personal information in an e-mail message.

BitDefender provides a nice Firewall control interface. Instead of insisting that users configure everything manually, it provides a slider with four options ranging from Deny All to Allow All. A Programs window displays which applications are approved for network access, and which have been denied.