The bigger your business is, the harder it can sometimes be to keep an eye on what?s happening with your software.

All businesses need software for their computers; the type and amount of software programs required depends largely on the type of business being run and how large it is. But regardless of these issues the problem of whether your software is authorised or unauthorised can rear its ugly head in any business, and it?s important to have adequate measures in place to ensure that any problems associated with unauthorised software are kept to a minimum.

Many employees don?t recognise the problems that can occur when unauthorised software is introduced into the system. Of course the most pressing issue is that of keeping within the law; keeping a copy of the software locked up safely in your software library is perfectly acceptable, but installing that same software on half a dozen computers in a single office is most certainly not.

Unfortunately some employees are na?ve when it comes to this kind of breach. It can be worth amending the staff handbook or guidebook to ensure that guidelines and advice regarding such matters are included there for them to read. Department memos and perhaps even training sessions to help raise awareness of these issues can also help to bring people in line with what?s required by law, and what?s required by the company as a whole.

Of course some employees will assume that they are doing the company a favor by using software in inappropriate ways. Why purchase more copies than you really need when one or two copies can be used to install the program throughout an entire office? Employees that take this line of thinking assume they are doing a good thing by saving the company money ? not thinking ahead to the possible fines and fees associated with being caught.

The other main problem associated with using unauthorised software is the risk of introducing viruses and other unwanted ?hangers on? into the business systems. If an employee brings a copy of some software they have at home, or worse, accesses it from the internet, they are putting the safety of the whole company at risk.

It?s plain to see that using authorised software is the only safe and legal route to making sure you get the best from your computer system. The challenge is in making sure all staff members recognise and accept this same fact, and don?t do anything to jeopardise it.

It seems like every other month a new ?program? comes along to make our lives that much easier. For example, first we could bookmark favorites, and then RSS feed them, and then came widgets and now ?bots? which are robots that do a lot of our computer work for us in the background. Examples of friendly bots are weather bots, game playing bots, instant messaging and my favorites are those on AOL Instant Messenger which do all kinds of functions for me like shop, find movie times and even give updates on the Wall Street Journal.

Unfortunately not all bots were created ?equal.? Some are friendly and some are not. The ones that are not friendly can be a form of malware that allows control of your computer to be released, providing hackers with the opportunity to access your information and spread harmful bots to others. This type of computer virus can then be used to spread spam and commit various types of identity theft and other online fraud.

So with new threats to our computers and information, new methods of protection are required. One of the oldest and most well known software protection designers has recently released a new protection program, Symantec Norton AntiBot. This is a software product designed to prevent the hijacking of one?s personal computer by bots and uses the bots on design programs against them, to located and destroy them.

Many people already employ some form of protection on their personal computer, such as increasing the protection level from internet information to ?high.? But these cannot detect some of the most recent bot programs and may not be the most efficient means of information protection, especially with the Internet being used more and more frequently for online shopping, ticket purchases, travel and other ?high risk? activities.

A more effective method of detecting and eliminating threats caused by bots is to install software designed specifically to detect, destroy and prevent bots from having access to your computer. With Symantec Norton AntiBot software, protection against bots is enhanced several times and the threat of bot attack is greatly diminished. It?s program protects against bots by blocking bots from entering your computer through downloads and e-mail attachments (two of the common ways bots enter a personal computer), checking for any unusual behavior on your personal computer and eliminating it, and detecting malicious bot software at all levels; keeping your personal, financial and credit card information safe and stopping identify theft before it can occur.

Because bots operate in the background and are not detectable by antivirus or antispyware programs, many computer users are completely unaware that their personal computer has become infected. Many problems caused by bots go undetected until it is too late. Warning signs that your computer may have been accessed include: slowness of computer speed and unusual or irrelevant error messages. However, many times com these symptoms are sporadic and computer users will take little notice. Many people will continue to use their personal computer, unaware that bots have hijacked their personal computer and are slowly at work; looking for credit card numbers, passwords, and logon information which can be used for identity theft and in committing other types of online crime. This program scans your personal computer on a continuous basis, closing the gaps that could allow bots to infect your personal computer and better ensuring that bots do not invade and gain control.

The use of Symantec Norton AntiBot to determine what a harmful or useful bot and allows you to continue using those bots you love and have come to depend on for information and services. It can be used in addition to several other antivirus and antispyware programs. Its compatibility is not limited to only Norton products.

The cost of this software is $29.95 for one year of service. It was awarded PC Magazine?s Editor?s Choice Award (2007) and underwent rigorous testing which included using AntiBot on computers with existing threats as well as allowing threats to try to access the computer after installation.

With the growing threat of identity theft and credit card fraud Symantec Norton AntiBot offers an additional level of protection needed to combat the threat of bots and prevent them from turning one?s personal computer into a robotic that turns into an instrument of destruction to both your personal and financial well-being.