Free Microsoft Antivirus and Antispyware Software

Information on Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE), a free antivirus and antispyware program, is available on the Microsoft blog at http://blogs.msdn.com/securitytipstalk/archive/2010/01/10/reviewers-like-microsoft-security-essentials.aspx:

Excerpt from one of the articles : "Not only did AV-Test.org find that it detects 98% of their enormous malware database, but AV-Comparatives (a widely known anti-malware testing group) found that

MSE was one of only three products that did well at both finding and removing malware, including the leftovers. It was also the only free product to grab their "Advanced+" rating—the top honor for an anti-malware solution."

NOTE: I suspect MSE is based on a former $50/year Microsoft antivirus and antispyware program named OneCare that failed as a commercial product. I used OneCare for a year and found it to be easy to use but weak on antivirus protection. Microsoft stopped selling the program last year. If we can believe the blog information the free product is much stronger than the commercial product.