[News] Panda Cloud Antivirus: The next big antivirus or a failed attempt?

Panda Security SL, the Spain-based security company, launched a new, free antivirus software today. Panda Cloud Antivirus offers free protection against viruses, spyware, adware, and rootkits. But what makes it different from other antivirus softwares is the “cloud” feature.

While most antivirus softwares require daily updates to keep their “signature,” or information on viruses, up-to-date, Panda Cloud uses information stored on Panda’s own servers. The virus information will be on Panda’s servers, not your computer. The program will have to communicate with the server in order to function. The software on your computer doesn’t do the work; the data monitoring center does.

As a result, the program uses less memory than competitors.

This idea does have a major problem. First, your computer has to be connected to the Internet for Cloud to function. This could be a major problem for people with bandwidth limits (Verizon BroadbandAccess limits you to 50MB or 5GB per month). If they’re not careful, their limits could easily be passed and each megabyte would cost extra (like $0.25 a MB). Somone with an accidental $250 bill would not be happy with their “free” antivirus.

Free antivirus softwares have been successful in the past. Millions use AVG Free Edition, avast! Home Edition, and Avira AntiVir. Will this cloud feature lour in millions more, or will it just use too much bandwidth? We have yet to find out.