The Consumer Reports Electronics Blog’s Donna Tapellini outlines some great ways to keep your new Windows Vista PC safe. Although Vista is being advertised as more safe, with included antispyware, steps should always be taken to protect your data more aggressively.

Donna suggests that you first update any existing security software you may have - check vendor sites for Vista upgrade availability. Preferably do the security upgrade before upgrading to Vista.

The following vendors/products have Vista upgrades available for free:

BitDefender Antivirus & Internet Security, Computer Associates Antivirus, F-Secure Security & Antivirus (beta only), Kaspersky Antivirus & Internet Security, McAfee 2007, Symantec Norton Internet Secuirty, AntiVirus and Confidential, Trend Micro Internet Security & Antivirus, ZoneAlarm Identity protection (beta only).

Absolute Software’s products are all Windows Vista compatible, for any new install. If you are upgrading to Vista, we recommend you log into your account, uninstall the agent, and do your Vista upgrade. Then, you can log into your account again and reinstall - a process which will ensure you have the very latest version.

Tags: windows, windows vista, vista security, security, laptop security, pc security, windows vista upgrades