While we we’re afraid that OneCare wouldn’t be made available for Vista, it seems that MS has rolled out version 1.5 which is compatible with the Vista operating system. This latest beta version of Windows Live OneCare is available as a free download (click). But OneCare will still be an add-on, the original version sells for US$49.95 a year so Vista users can expect the same…
The differences between version 1.0 and beta version 1.5 are international market support, unified antivirus and antispyware filtering capabilities, additional back-up options, and the ability to run on both Windows XP Service Pack 2 and …read more

New security features in Windows Vista will largely eliminate the need to run separate antispyware or firewall software, according to a new analyst report. As we know Microsoft is bundling its Defender software into Windows Vista, so the new operating system may reduce the need for disk encryption, device control and certain types of host intrusion-prevention software. “Yankee Group expects Vista to significantly shrink the aftermarket for antispyware and desktop firewalls,” analyst Andrew Jaquith wrote in the report. More on zdnet.com.

Oops, we shoud call it “Defender” and not Anti-Spyware, so it seems;) The Defender software got a minor update with improvements to the user interface and signature updating. As you may know the Defender will be integrated into Windows Vista, so at this time it’s only available as an add-on to WinXp.
“With these upcoming changes to our reporting network and our core technology, we will improve our detection and removal capabilities even more in the upcoming months,” the Defender team promised.
The updated Defender can be downloaded from here (via techweb).

According to The Register, Microsoft will “omit” antivirus services for Windows Vista when it ships. Strange, because you would think that one of the main reasons for upgrading to Vista is security… Why would you pay extra for Windows antivirus?
Microsoft currently has their own antivirus program in beta testing under Windows OneCare, but it’s made specifically for Windows XP Service Pack 2 users. Sidebar Geek thinks Microsoft should simply drop Windows OneCare. Get rid of it and port it over to Windows Defender. Users should be able to run Windows Defender on Windows 2000, XP, and Vista, and to pick …read more