A number of major IT vendors have announced new anti-spyware products to help firms block unwanted tracking tools from corporate networks.

Security vendor Symantec has revealed details of two forthcoming anti-spyware products. Symantec Client Security 3.0 and Symantec AntiVirus Corporate Edition 10.0 are both designed to automatically detect and remove spyware, and provide integrated fix tools to repair damage caused by spyware, adware and blended threats. The products are expected to ship in March.

McAfee also announced it will release an enterprise anti-spyware product in March.

The security specialist said that McAfee Anti-Spyware Enterprise will differ from other anti-spyware tools by blocking malicious programs before they reach the corporate network and desktops.

Meanwhile, Microsoft has confirmed plans to issue its own antivirus and anti-spyware products. Although the tools will be free for consumers using Windows, firms will pay for the managed services.

Graham Titterington of analyst firm Ovum said it made good sense for antivirus specialists to add anti-spyware capabilities to their offerings, because both threats fall into the category of malicious software.

"Spyware has become a lot more common recently and it has really exploded into the public consciousness in the last six months," Titterington noted. "All of these vendors are competitors, so when one moves with a product all the others have to follow or they'll get left behind."