Playing it safe with Windows Vista

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On the consumer side, banks currently recommend the use of security software and in many cases have special pages on their Web sites with security tips. But they seem to be stopping short of requiring security tools.

"We are committed to educating our customers about fraud and identity theft protection and recommend steps for customers to take to secure their PCs," Wells Fargo spokeswoman Andrea Mahoney said. Bank of America spokeswoman Betty Riess echoed her words.

While analysts don't think businesses would want to add security checks to their consumer sites or services, some regular Internet users do see value in it.

"Security needs to be taken seriously, and long as it doesn't become overly burdensome, it may actually have some benefits," said Brian Lambert, a student at Southern Illinois University. "This just adds another reminder, especially to people who ignore the pop-up notices that Windows provides."

Jeff Rosado, owner of a computer consulting company in Pensacola, Fla., agreed. "A system that is showing as secure, with running antivirus, firewall, and up-to-date security patches, is less likely to be harboring malicious software that could steal a consumer's password or identity," he said.

But Rosado and Lambert, both members of CNET News.com's Vista Views panel, do see some potential pitfalls. Privacy is one concern. Another is the compatibility of outside security programs with the Windows Security Center.

"I don't want to be excluded from sites because I don't use Microsoft's preferred program, and more importantly, I don't want private information like that to be disclosed," Lambert said. Also, users should be able to access Web sites without having up-to-date security, after acknowledging the risk, he said. "Consumers might welcome the warning."

Despite that so far only one company has signed on, Microsoft is optimistic that its PC security checks will gain traction. "I am sure we will see more and more applications start to do it as Windows Vista rolls out," Robinson said. "Our No. 1 objective is that customers are secure and safe online."