(FORTUNE Small Business) – The numbers are stunning: According to statistics compiled by Symantec's security-check website, 31% of users were susceptible to virus attacks and 56% were vulnerable to exposing private data online. Protecting yourself from these from such intrusions has never been easier, yet the Internet is filled with sitting ducks, many of whom aren't even aware how infected their PCs are.

Symantec, the leader in PC antivirus, security, and diagnostic products, has been automating its products for years in the belief that users just won't do the work themselves. Honestly, if you're on the Net and not running antivirus software, I just don't know what we're going to do with you. These statistics prove that Symantec is right about users, but it has taken on a tough task. With the new 2003 editions of its security and tune-up programs, it tries to automate the tasks further while expanding the realm of security threats. Lazy people aren't completely off the hook, but they're better off than before.

Automation takes two forms: scheduling programs that test your computer periodically, and programs that update themselves to protect against new threats and bug fixes over the Internet. I saw real improvements in both throughout my testing. One-button checkup, Norton SystemWorks' feature that schedules a series of tests and cleans up trash like temporary files, is much improved. It no longer stops to ask so many questions, which thwart the user. Now you can just pick and choose which tests to run, and it does it. With the updating, I could actually see the quality of some features improve over time, notably the new spam e-mail filter.

That spam filter is an excellent example of how Symantec has expanded its notion of Net security issues. Because of good software, I haven't really worried about viruses in years, but spam drives me crazy almost every day. By the end of my testing, Norton Internet Security's spam filter was finding more than 80% of the junk I sent it. That's good, but when messages like "Yo Sexy Baby See My Nude ..." still get through, it's not good enough. In fairness to Symantec, its spam filter is about the same as others out there. But at least Symantec's can learn and get better.

The concept of automating protection, however, has its limits. Some changes, like those that require the program or even the computer to be restarted, aren't installed automatically. You have to remember to check for them manually-- and the programs could do more to remind you. Unfortunately for most users, not all the technical complexity can be obscured either. For example, consider Norton Firewall (which is designed to stop hackers from breaking into your computer or planting programs on your PC that break out). Running that app, you'll eventually get a warning indicating that a program is trying to access the Internet and asking what should it do. It could be completely innocuous, but since the message is ambiguous, you're at the mercy of the program if there's no techie within shouting distance.

Symantec has the right idea, even if it hasn't perfected it--and even if it's not perfectible. You have to take that first step to protect yourself, and Symantec pretty much does the rest. --LARRY SELTZER