Morro Beta Test Underway

Morro Beta Test Underway

Rumours that Microsoft were getting into the anti-virus business have been floating around for some time and it was finally confirmed late last year when Microsoft released details of a security suite with the codename Morro. It’s a comprehensive package, designed to protect PCs against all current nasties, including viruses, malware, spyware, rootkits and Trojans and the intention was for it to be free, and available in the second half of 2009. Well, everything appears to be more or less on track, and the name is now Microsoft Security Essentials. The first beta release is now available for download, but don’t get too excited. This is a strictly limited trial, available to just the first 75,000 volunteers, and then only to Windows users living in the United States, Israel (English only), People's Republic of China (Simplified Chinese only) and Brazil (Brazilian Portuguese only). You’ll also need to go through the Genuine Advantage validation hoops, and there’s no telling what info will be sent back to the mothership, but first reports are quite positive. If you want to get in on the act early keep an eye on the download page as the beta is often made more widely available a week or two after the initial release.