Computer Associates announced at the 2003 Comdex that it would offer a free one-year subscription to its eTrust EZ Armor antivirus and firewall desktop security suite. Since then they have cut back to 90 days, but that should be enough time to see if you like it. You can get the program from http://www.my-etrust.com/microsoft/index.cfm?.

Computer Associates is the world's #1 supplier of internet security software (primarily for businesses), and has taken top honors in a number of independant tests. They have teamed up with Microsoft to provide their EZ Armor antivirus and firewall program at no charge. They offer a one year no-charge subscription that includes all of the functionality that the pay version offers. Subscriptions are usually $49.95.

To get the program you have to fill out a registration form and submit it. They send an e-mail to you with the installation instructions and a download link, so you have to give them an e-mail address that you can access.

The website offers the following legalese:
Limit 1 per household. Not to be combined with any other offer. Customers may renew subscription after first year at current renewal rate. Free software offer expires 6/30/04. Note: this product is not suitable for installation to Windows 95, or to any Windows server versions.

So far, I have had no problem with the program running on my test machine, although the firewall permissions were not as easy to set as I am used to. I don't like all-in-one products, so I disabled the firewall and am simply running the antivirus portion. No problems to report with the installation or configuration, and everything is running smoothly.