Perhaps one way to educate users as to how the constant maintenance of security software is a necessary evil is to compare this activity with maintaining their cars. If you own a car you know you have to change the oil, check the brakes, belts and hoses and buy replacement parts as they wear out. This is usually a big hassle, but nobody complains about it because "wear and tear" is considered normal for mechanical equipment.

Viruses, worms and other threats are roughly analogous to the wear and tear on your car. It's not the software vendors fault that some idiot is out there trying to break into your computer any more than it is GM's fault that parts wear out when you drive your car. Both are simply facts of life of the environment where your car or computer is being used.

If you don't maintain your car, it will break down, and can pose a safety risk to other drivers on the road. If you blow a tire at 70 MPH in moderate traffic, you'll probably have a wreck. If your anti-virus isn't up to date, you could end up being a spam relay that victimizes other computer users.

Users should be thankful that software vendors are giving away their patches for such a low cost. Imagine if they used the profit model of the auto manufacturers and charged a 100% markup for parts.

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