Facebook Team Up With Security Software Company

McAfee and Facebook are getting together to make social networking safer

Security software specialist McAfee and social networking giant Facebook announced an collaboration that will provide what they claim is additional security protection to social networkers.

Through this partnership, the two companies have jointly created security solutions that include McAfee security software, a custom scanning and repair tool, and education materials that Facebook will make available to its more than 350 million users.
Under the terms of the partnership, McAfee is Facebook’s exclusive provider of consumer security software, and Facebook users will be eligible for a complimentary six-month subscription of the McAfee Internet Security Suite software.

Following the six-month period, Facebook users will be eligible for a discount subscription pricing. Facebook is applying all financial incentives from this partnership to the benefit of its users and will not be taking a share of any revenue from user subscriptions. McAfee Internet Security Suite software protects users’ PCs from online threats, viruses, spyware, hackers, online scammers, identity thieves and other cybercriminals, and includes award-winning McAfee SiteAdvisor site rating technology.

If a Facebook account is hacked, Facebook has developed a process that requires users to take steps to re-secure their Facebook account and learn security best practices. As part of this partnership, this process will now also include custom McAfee technology to clean users’ computers. There is no charge for use of this tool.

McAfee will also continuously update its own Facebook Page (www.facebook.com/mcafee), which features the offer on the “Protect Your PC” tab as well as security information on “Protect Your Kids” and “Security Notes” tabs.

Research has shown that up to 78 percent of consumers do not have updated anti-virus, an enabled firewall and anti-spyware, and 48 percent of them have expired anti-virus, the most fundamental protection. So many people without even the most basic protection for their computers are an obvious risk to themselves, but also to people with whom they interact online. The agreement between McAfee and Facebook is designed to address this problem.