The default setting for LiveUpdates in Norton is Automatic. The help document for that feature says that when set to Automatic, the program checks for updates once an hour.

The two update bulletins you cite are not recent (as far as threat reaction is concerned) - one is from almost 2 months ago, the other from 10 days ago. Isn't it safe to assume that the vast majority of Norton users have long since received the fixes and there is nothing to do or be concerned with? I'm not sure what motivates your passing along a stale problem that appears to have been fixed weeks and months ago. Quietly, which is what users should expect from their security software.

Get rid of it! No reason to be involved with anything Norton/symantic or even McAfee too many great FREE AV's to DL that was always the first thing I got rid of on any new PC because they are always bundled into it, with a Free TRIAL version luring in paying suckers. Same way I get rid of MS Office (I pay for nothing) I can find better for Free online.

Give it a rest, nut. People have favorites and you've repeated ad nauseam that your approach to anti-virus software is restricted to free ones. Fine, but that doesn't give you a basis to slime what others use. You're talking off the top of your head.

Norton security product is excellent, well regarded, and the choice of computer experts that know more than either you or I. It's long been well regarded, just as a handful of others in this crowded market space. Users should pick a good one (ratings are readily found) and stick with that if it they find works for them.

It is a known fact that Norton takes over a PC and causes more problems then it's worth and this info. comes from many Techs. So hey, don't shoot the messenger, and GL with your AV.

@ Elmer,

Yes, the default setting for Norton/Symantec's Live Update is Automatic. And the program like any other program should check for updates once an hour as well as scan the system upon boot and in realtime. Take a moment to research Norton/Symantec LiveUpdate issues and you will find many topics that describe the issues that LiveUpdate has presented. Never hurts to double check manually to make sure the program is functioning properly.

Not sure what you mean by, "The two update update bulletins you cite are not recent". I only linked to the one article at the US-CERT.gov site that was released on July 5th, 2016 (3 days ago). Three days does not make it a stale problem.

What motivates me to pass this recently posted topic along is to educate users to not trust Automation and that they should from time to time manually check their software to ensure it is working properly.

It is not my place to encourage anyone to uninstall their paid subscription to their AV of choice and switch to another, free or not, if they are comfortable with whatever they are using.

Far as I am concerned, any AV software that is not configured properly can be an issue for some yet not for others. Hardware plays a large part in what is suitable for one machine and not for another.

bb, the page you linked is from US-CERT, an aggregator and not an original source. It cites two Symantec releases, 008 and 010

SYM 16-008 details a fix released by Symantec on May 16, 2016

16-08 announcement

SYM 16-010, the same, on June 28, 2016

16-010 announcement

The bad guys have people who are just as smart and just as focused as the good guys. You know that. The trouble is, the good guys need to first discover what the bad guys are doing before they can neutralize them. All the players in the security business have periodic problems with undetected intrusions, which is why they all share information about what they have discovered. The difference between them becomes the technology employed to be effective and the features and UI differences. All of which is very complicated and well beyond the ability of any user or amateur tech support person to assess.

nut, you're nothing if not tiresome.

Let's compare notes. I don't pass on hearsay - you don't use it, so what personal experiences do you have to share? I'm a Norton user with more home PCs than you like to frequently mention you have. I've been using it for about 10 years (first paid, and now free from Comcast) and I think it's great.

I don't evangelize about it because I don't care or criticize choices others have made with their eyes open. People make different choices for good reasons and all the consistent top performers deliver the security people want to have.

It would be better if you stopped trash-talking decisions people make that differ from your own because doing so only diminishes your credibility.

Ah, I see. Thank you for pointing that out to me. Not being a Norton user myself, (nothing personal) I don't get their newsletters though I am subscribed to US-CERT.

bb, no problem. I don't get Norton newsletters. I googled the releases cited on the US-CERT page to get to the source.

I think most users are challenged to even install programs, much less configure them. Whether deliberately or unknowingly, most people rely on default settings to do what they want done, don't you agree? And most of the time, that reliance works fine and causes no problems because the software companies set defaults to the most useful settings. They know most of their users will never dive into the depth of where settings get changed so the settings need to be correct from the start.

I do expect security software to work effectively and unobtrusively - Norton does that and many others do too.

Elmer you are equally tiresome, perhaps if you get to retirement/senior age you'll realize what it's like to live on a fixed income, as are most of the seniors who I have helped fix their PC problems to, save them money on techs or repair shops. I also get rid of anything they are being asked to pay for which I can DL and install for them for Free, while doing a remote and fixing their errors or problems, how many folks do you help for Free for me it used to be almost daily, for sure weekly, now with W10 most are doing pretty good, after I helped them to learn the differences in W10. And all of those trial software with whom the mfg. makes a deal like Norton does are only a traps to many seniors to get them to pay after the trial period is over, No thanks, I'm to smart to fall for that as are my online friends after they contact me. So you go on with paying for whatever you choose as for me, I'll just keep on saving folks money they can make use of elsewhere, like on food or medications. One day perhaps you'll understand.

I think it's nice that you provide assistance to others. But neither that nor being retired gives you a soapbox to say anything you want, whether supported or not, and try to disguise biases as being "help". Why not take the high road, be objective, share what you know to be true and give out only real information to allow people to make their own choices?

As for me ...I've been retired for over 8 years. I just qualified for Medicare! But so what?