 On 18 November 2008 , Microsoft announced plans for a free consumer security product , codenamed Morro . This development marked a change in Microsoft 's consumer AV marketing strategy : instead of offering a subscription @-@ based security product with a host of other tools , such as backup and a personal firewall , Morro would offer free AV protection with a smaller impact on system resources . Amy <unk> , senior director of product management for the Online Services and Windows Division at Microsoft , announced that Morro would not directly compete with other commercial AV software ; rather it was focused on the 50 to 60 percent of PC users who did not have or would not pay for AV protection . By 17 June 2009 , the official name of Morro was revealed : Microsoft Security Essentials . 
