No more excuses for not having up-to-date anti-virus or anti-malware protection. Microsoft has released its new Security Essentials software that offers real-time protection against viruses, spyware, and other malicious programs. It’s also free.

Free anti-virus protection for Windows, in one form or another, has been available for quite some time. In fact, these days it’s been used as the virtual equivalent of the retail “doorbuster,” enabling security companies to plant their brands on users’ systems. It’s even been more common place for newsreaders to incorporate antivirus programs to scan any downloaded content.

It is the first Microsoft security product to use the company’s new Dynamic Signature Service, which ensures users are protected by the most current virus definitions available. Most other antivirus applications download the latest virus signatures one or more times daily.

Microsoft hopes that the free software will be broadly adopted, particularly by those who have not been vigilant about protecting computers from hackers, and thereby “increase security across the entire Windows ecosystem”.

More than 90 per cent of the computers worldwide run on Windows operating systems made by the US technology firm.

“Microsoft is helping to reduce some of the barriers that constrain consumers from running (anti-virus software),” said IDC security analyst Jon Crotty. “Microsoft is focused on the challenges that prevent consumers from running up-to-date anti-virus software today, particularly in emerging markets where there is a growing prevalence of malware.”

MSE will run on Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) or SP3, Windows Vista, and Windows 7.