Posted by Virus Bulletin on May 24, 2013
Sales of Spyware Doctor and other security products end, support to continue for existing users.
Symantec has quietly announced the end of life the of PC Tools security product lines, including PC Tools Spyware Doctor, PC Tools Spyware Doctor with Antivirus and PC Tools Internet Security. Users with existing subscriptions will be supported for the length of those subscriptions, but will need to move to other solutions once they expire.
Other parts of the PC Tools family, including Registry Mechanic and other optimisation tools, will continue to operate under the PC Tools brand name.
PC Tools was founded in 2003, with its Spyware Doctor line a prominent name in the anti-spyware boom of the mid-2000s. The firm was acquired by Symantec in 2008. PC Tools products have made regular appearances in VB100 comparatives over the last five years or so; for a time before the Symantec acquisition, they included the VirusBuster anti-malware engine, which is also now defunct.
The company also created the Threat Expert malware analysis system, which continues to operate unchanged (at least at the time of writing). Other PC Tools offerings, such as the Mac solution iAntiVirus and the standalone behavioural monitoring system ThreatFire, seem to have faded from view.
The switch was pulled on May 18th, according to a subtle announcement on the PC Tools website. An FAQ on the decision is here
Posted on 24 May 2013 by John Hawes
