14 DAY TRIAL // Users of Microsoft’s free security solution for genuine copies of Windows received an update for the AntiMalware engine powering the product earlier this week. The antimalware engine refresh is part of the software giant’s normal updating process of Microsoft Security Essentials.
According to the Redmond company, the new antimalware engine version is designed as a standard maintenance release.
Microsoft Security Essentials 2.0, as well as additional security products, requires frequent updating in order to keep up the pace with an ever-evolving malware universe.
In this regard, the new antimalware engine is “part of regular update of our antimalware technology to address the latest in the threat landscape,” Microsoft explained when announcing the update in the first half of April.
As customer leveraging Microsoft security products must already know, several of the software giant’s solutions share the same technology.
It is the case of Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE), Forefront Client Security (FCS) and Forefront Endpoint Protection.
This means that the new malware engine is offered not only to MSE 2.0 but also to the latest releases of FCS and FEP.
“Antimalware Engine 1.1.6802.0 is released to all MSE, FCS, FEP customers (…). Signature package 1.103.9.0 is the first that contains this engine,” the company stated.
Microsoft Security Essentials 2.0 continues to be available free of charge to end users with genuine copies of Windows 7, Windows Vista and Windows XP.
At the same time, the company is also offering MSE 2.0 free to small businesses which can deploy it on as much as 10 computers in their organization.
At the start of April 2011, the software giant overhauled the official Microsoft Security Essentials site.
The redesigned site places a greater deal of focus on MSE 2.0’s availability to small businesses than to end users.
Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE) 2.0 RTM is available for download here.