G DATA AntiVirusKit 2005 (AVK) provides a double layer of protection, bundling both the Kaspersky and BitDefender antivirus engines under a single, easy-to-use console. The use of these engines offers an important advantage to AVK.

In response time testing conducted by AV-Test.org during 45 outbreaks in 2004, both Kaspersky and BitDefender provided commercial updates faster than any of their competitors. And fast response times aren't the only benefit these two stellar engines bring to the table. AVK was the only product out of 35 tested by AV-Test.org in 2004 to achieve 100% detection of both the basic WildList viruses and the more comprehensive collection of zoo viruses.

The AVK monitor can use either the Kaspersky engine or the BitDefender engine, or both.

The default is both engines, optimized for best performance. While this ensures no discernable performance hit in realtime, expect a slower on-demand scan speed when performing manual scans of the system.

AVK includes all of the basic features one would hope to find in a standalone antivirus scanner, including email protection, automatic updates and scheduling capabilities. G Data then goes a step further by providing signature updates daily (compared, for example, to Symantec who provides updates only weekly). In addition to faster, more frequent updates, AVK 2005 offers specific dialer protection, extended boot protection, and password protection to prevent unauthorized changes to the configuration. AntiVirusKit also includes report logging and customizable warnings to alert if virus definitions are older than a configured number of days.

The AVK interface is attractive and simple, ideal for even novice users. And it's packed full of customizable options, so even the most advanced users will be pleased.

An added bonus, the AVK SecurityAgent provides a realtime security news ticker, top virus threats (linked to their description), as well as links to other security sites. Customizable options allow the AVK SecurityAgent to be configured for individual needs (or disabled altogether if desired). Options include ticker speed, news feeds, selected links and how the agent is displayed.