Norton Antivirus Renewal Subscrition
How to Renew Norton AntiVirus. Norton AntiVirus is a security program built to protect computers from malicious programs such as viruses, Trojan horses, worms.
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by Ashley Poland, Demand Media
Yearly Licenses
The software license that comes with a Norton anti-virus product is good for one year, on one computer. This means that if you have multiple computers in the office, you ll need a license on each computer. The cost of a yearly license varies, depending on which version of Norton s anti-virus services you re using. As of March 2013, the basic anti-virus costs 50 for a yearly license, while Norton 360 costs 80 for a yearly license.
How to Renew
You can renew Norton directly from your anti-virus program -- the Renew Now button should be near the bottom of the screen, and will lead you through the process of checking out, which is secure to protect your financial information. You can also go to the Norton website to update your license or to choose another Norton product, such as to upgrade or downgrade from your current Norton product.
Related Reading: How to Set Exclusions in Norton Antivirus
Free Alternatives
If you would rather try another anti-virus program, there are free alternatives that will work just as well on your business computer. AVG Anti-Virus Free 2013 scored better than Norton in malware blocking, and only came in third in malware removal, after Norton. If you re only running one or two computers for your business, Avira offers a free anti-virus software -- but it also offers a commercial business alternative. Microsoft allows you to use Security Essentials for free for up to ten business computers.
Protect Your Computer
Whether you decide to stick with Norton on your office computer or not, you should always make sure that you re protected by some sort of anti-virus program. Without an anti-virus program, you re at risk of exposing your professional data to hackers and even infecting other computers on your office network. Viruses can also get into your email and send off messages to your contacts, putting your clients and coworkers at risk as well.
Resources 3
AVG FreeAvira Free AntivirusAvast
Photo Credits
Jack Hollingsworth/Photodisc/Getty Images.
Quick Summary: realizing this is a long article, for those not interested in the details, I m moving away from Norton 360 and over to Kaspersky Internet Security as soon as my subscription to Norton has ended. You can CLICK HERE to visit my Amazon Store and see the latest Kaspersky pricing.
And on one of my lesser used computers I m going to use AVG FREE AntiVirus, and on another, Bitdefender AntiVirus Free Edition.
HOWEVER, I do have some good Internet safety info in the article so perhaps you should continue reading
This past September, Symantec the makers of Norton products quietly released two new Internet security programs Norton Security and Norton Security with Backup and at that same time, ended the life of it s two mainstream security products, Norton 360 and Norton Internet Security.
What s really strange about all this is how quietly it happened. No big announcements, not even a news story nothing.
Then, in early October, Symantec announced that it was breaking up the company into two separate companies, one focused on security and the other on information management. CLICK HERE to read their news release on the breakup.
And to make matters even MORE mysterious, especially for consumers who use their Norton products, if you visit the Symantec web site, it s actually difficult to find information about the Norton products. It actually took me a couple minutes of clicking on links to finally find the Norton page showing their two new Norton Security and Norton Security with Backup programs.
And then I finally found that they had created a new web site just for the Norton products www.norton.com further separating the Norton brand from the name Symantec.
Wow this is really interesting
So what s going on.
My Own History with Norton Products
I ve personally used Norton Anti-Virus products off and on since the late 1980 s yes, that s 80 s, even before Symantec took Norton over from the guy who started it all, Peter Norton who I actually got to meet at a California programming conference.
I say off and on because about 15 years ago, in the late 1990 s after seeing it slow my computers down, I dropped Norton Anti-Virus and switched to other protection solutions for a few years, while Symantec re-tooled Norton and then re-released it as a brand new, top-rated security solution in the early 2000 s.
I picked it back up in about 2004, and have been using it ever since.
As I write this in early November, 2014, all the computers in my household use Norton 360.
But with all that I see going on with Symantec as a company, and with the dropping of Norton 360 and the change to the new Norton Security products, I ve decided that it s again time for a personal change.
Now, if you are a Norton 360 user, before you panic, please read on
Norton 360 will keep working
First of all, if you are a user of Norton 360 or another Symantec product, you are still protected and there s no need to panic.
End of Life for Norton 360 means that Symantec will no longer be selling the product, or updating the core program components. But what they WILL still continue doing is releasing new virus definition updates for Norton 360 at least as long as you pay for the yearly subscription.
So your Norton 360 program is NOT going to stop working.
However, when your virus definition subscription runs out, you ll still have to renew it with Symantec if you want to continue using Norton 360.
And should you do that. Hmm read on.
Should I Continue Using Norton 360.
As I just said, Norton 360 will keep working as long as the definitions are updated, and Symantec will continue to provide yearly virus definition subscriptions for at least another year.
But what should you do come renewal time. Should you pay the renewal fee and keep using Norton 360.
Honestly, I don t think you should, and I know that I m personally not going to.
First, renewing subscriptions directly with Symantec versus just purchasing a new version at the local store when it goes on sale is pricey.
A few minutes ago, I checked the subscription renewal prices and here s what I found
Norton 360 Premier Edition – 2 year renewal for up to 3 PC s – 154.99
Norton 360 Premier Edition – 1 year renewal for up to 3 PC s – 79.99
Considering that I can purchase an entirely new Internet security product from someone else for as little as 29.00, that s a lot of money for one year of just getting definition updates.
Second, no longer getting updated core components bothers me, especially since protection technology is always improving as new security threats appear.
So again, in my humble opinion it might be time for you to move on to something else when your subscription is up.
That s what I m going to do.
Should I get the new Norton product.
I would imagine that the new Norton Security product has been built upon the technology of Norton 360 s security component, which means it s probably a pretty good program.
But I m just not yet sure. Mainly because my favorite tech sites like PC Magazine, PC World, and CNet have yet to review the new products.
And it also really bothers me that Symantec seems to really be de-emphasizing it s commercial products, and changing it s focus from consumer products to the business and enterprise world.
NOTE: One example of how Symantec seems to be moving away from directly working with consumers like you and I is the case where local vendors who will go nameless are partnering with Symantec to offer security solutions using Symantec Endpoint Protection CLICK HERE to read about the product on Symantec.com.
Yes, I ve reviewed all the documentation about the products on the Norton site you can CLICK HERE to read about Norton Security yourself, but it just doesn t tell me enough.
So again, in my honest opinion, I would NOT get the new Norton Security product when my Norton 360 subscription ends.
Then What Should I Do. Part One: Review of Staying Safe
Let me digress for a moment, and remind you of the important points about staying safe online
Make sure you have a good Anti-Virus / Anti-Malware program on your computer and that you keep the definitions up-to-date
Make sure you have your Windows Firewall turned on
Do NOT click on links in phishing emails those that look like they are from a financial institution
Do NOT click on Internet pop-up windows that say Your PC needs to be scanned or Let us fix your PC.
Do NOT answer phone calls from companies claiming your computer needs fixing.
Make sure you do regular backups of your important files and folders the things you create
Always create secure passwords for your important online accounts
Don t send private information through email or post it on Facebook
Ok, those are the biggies I always relate to my students.
Oh, and if you d like to learn more CLICK HERE to check out a book I wrote and use in my classroom, and that can be purchased online. It s called Staying Safe on the Internet, and I keep it constantly updated.
Then What Should I Do. Part Two: My due diligence and conclusion
Now, back to an alternative to Norton 360.
To be honest with you, one problem I ve always had with Norton 360 is that it almost tried to do TOO MUCH. Not only did it cover the first two points I made in the previous section about staying safe Anti-Virus / Anti-Malware / Firewall, but it also performed lots of computer maintenance stuff that really had nothing to do with Internet security.
The maintenance was nice, but honestly, I have other programs that do that same thing, and do them better I use a program called Glary Utilities for all my computer upkeep.
So, in looking for a new product, I personally decided to focus JUST on an Internet Security product, and not the kitchen sink.
I started with a scan of my favorite tech sites, and the yearly reviews they do on Internet security products.
For example, one I visited was PC Magazine PC Magazine – The Best Antivirus for 2014 – CLICK HERE to read it, but I also made the rounds to PC World, CNet, and other sites I trust for good technology news.
And then after looking through the current reviews, took a handful of the programs that rated toward the top of lists, and individually check out their sites and Googled them to see what others were saying.
And one particular program caught my eye.
But let me digress one more time.
Back in the early 2000 s, I worked as a freelance writer for PC Today, SmartComputing, and Maximum PC magazines all of which are published by Sandhills Publishing in Lincoln, NE. Over a four year span I wrote about 30 articles on all kinds of technology topics, including a couple on Anti-Virus and Internet Security programs.
For those articles, I contacted all the major security software vendors of that time and got free samples of their programs. The companies included Symantec, McAfee, EST then called NOD, Panda, and others. And although I didn t give it my top review, one company s program made a big impression on me. Kaspersky Anti-Virus.
I didn t give Kaspersky my top review that year because frankly, way back then the company was just becoming known in the Anti-Virus world, and their interface was really cumbersome to use. But, when all was said and done, I took a fancy to the program, and even installed it for a year on one of my computers.
But now back to modern times.
As I looked through the reviews for this year, I saw again that Kasperskys programs had high ratings, and in looking through their site and materials, was impressed by what they offered CLICK HERE to visit Kaspersky.com, and how much nicer and easier to use their program interface was.
So I ve made my decision.
As soon as my Norton 360 subscription is up late in November, I m heading off to purchase Kaspersky Internet Security.
AND this is now the Anti-Virus/Anti-Malware product that I ve begun to recommended to my students, and have added it to my RECOMMENDED PAGE of the DiscoverSkills site.
Some Final Thoughts and Suggestions
Before I close, I wanted to point out and suggest a couple more things for those who might be looking for a new Internet Security solution.
I m going with Kaspersky Internet Security versus just the AntiVirus or the more extensive Pure 3.0 Total Security products that they offer. CLICK HERE to see a comparison chart. A lot of companies offer different levels of products with different sets of features. The only ones I m really interested in are 1 Anti-Virus 2 Anti-Malware 3 Firewall 4 Web site monitoring. What I m NOT interested in is a backup solution, which many offer, or a password manager. Both of those features I can get from other programs that do a better job.
As I shop for a program, I start at the company site and check the regular retail price. For example, as I write this, Kaspersky has Internet Security on sale for 39.95 3 PCs for 1 year, regular price 79.95. But then I head over to Amazon and check prices. In the case of Kaspersky, right now I can get it for 29.99 3 PCs for 1 year. CLICK HERE to visit my DiscoverSkills Amazon store to see the latest Kaspersky prices.
Instead of renewing my Internet Security program subscription every year which is WAY too expensive for my tastes, my favorite thing to do is shop for a brand new, full copy of the program. And the best time to do that is on Black Friday the Friday after Thanksgiving. For the past 4 years, I ve gotten Norton 360 full version for 3 PCs for just 19.95 that day. Then, I just leave it on the shelf until my regular subscription runs out, uninstall the old one, and install the new copy.
And don t forget if you d rather not pay at all, there are free Anti-Virus programs you can download. One I often suggest to my students is AVG Free Anti-Virus CLICK HERE to visit their site, free.avg.com. It only gives you Anti-Virus and Anti-Malware protection, but along with your Windows Firewall, should provide enough security for most basic Internet users.
I m also a fan of Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition CLICK HERE to visit their site, www.bitdefender.com/solutions/free.html. It s a decent antivirus program with a small footprint that doesn t seem to slow my computers down.
Whew. well I really rambled on a lot here. Hopefully, I ve answered some of your questions about Norton 360, and maybe a few others about Internet Security in general.
As always, I would love to hear your comments about the subject. You can leave them below
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Nov 06, 2015 The Norton Automatic Renewal service is an easy way to stay protected from Internet threats by automatically renewing the subscription for your Norton.
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