Windows Vista to kill spyware and the anti-spyware industry?

Posted on Monday, March 20 2006 @ 22:20 CET by Thomas De Maesschalck

Windows Vista will feature many security upgrades and will include Windows Defender, an anti-spyware tool. Thanks to this spyware will get under control, Gartner predicts. It won't go away but the threat will be significantly less.

Great for end-users but not so great for the dozens of anti-spyware firms:

While this may be good news for buyers of Vista, it is not for anyone who makes a living from selling anti-spyware software. The worldwide market has boomed recently, reaching $97m in revenue in 2004, up 240.4 per cent from a year earlier, according to IDC. However, companies such as Sunbelt Software and Webroot Software are in for tough times, analysts said.

Yankee Group analyst Andrew Jaquith said: "The aftermarket for Windows anti-spyware is going to dry up almost completely. Windows Defender is going to become the default anti-spyware engine, certainly for most consumers that have Vista machines."

More details over at Silicon.

About the Author

Thomas De Maesschalck

Thomas has been messing with computer since early childhood and firmly believes the Internet is the best thing since sliced bread. Enjoys playing with new tech, is fascinated by science, and passionate about financial markets. When not behind a computer, he can be found with running shoes on or lifting heavy weights in the weight room.

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