It’s a little known fact outside of security circles that most computer infections aren’t the result of super skilled hackers hunting down individual computer users, laughing maniacally as they break into computers to steal identities or destroy data. The vast majority of malware infections are the result of running outdated and insecure software. Attackers know that most people don’t keep their software as up to date as they should, and they use this to their advantage.

Unfortunately, just telling people they need to keep their software up to date doesn’t put much of a dent in the problem. The reason is simple: Keeping track of the current version of every software program installed on your computer and checking for updates every day is a huge hassle, not to mention a gigantic time drain. If only there was a way to automate the process so that you don’t even need to think about it…

Secunia has solved the problem with their Personal Software Inspector (PSI). After Secunia PSI is installed, it will scan your computer to determine what programs you currently have installed and compare them against its database of current software versions. If any of your software is found to be out of date, it will automatically attempt to update the software for you, freeing you to do more important things like looking at funny pictures of cats or watching the latest South Korean pop videos on YouTube. If Microsoft Update  is installed on your computer Secunia PSI becomes even more powerful, with the ability to update Microsoft’s software products using their own automatic update features. When closed or minimized, Secunia PSI will continue to run in the system tray, keeping watch for any updates available for software on your system.

Secunia PSI can be downloaded from Secunia’s website: http://secunia.com/vulnerability_scanning/personal/