When a new strand of malicious code strikes the world’s computers, no antivirus vendor launches a fix faster than Kaspersky Lab. Perhaps that’s because the company is housed in a Cold War temple consecrated to rapid response: an ex-Soviet missile complex in Moscow.

Eugene Kaspersky, the company’s head virus researcher, founded the company in 1997 with his then-wife Natalya, who became CEO. The two started Kaspersky Lab at just the right time. The market for digital protection has grown to $11.6 billion per year, according to the Yankee Group.

Vendors all over the world have tackled the problem, and at least 37 antivirus products have hit the market. In this crowded pack, Kaspersky Lab has a reputation for delivering a strong product backed by cutting-edge antivirus innovation. The company has held its own against McAfee and Symantec, but will face its biggest challenge at the end of the year, when Microsoft enters the market.

In its Personal Security Suite, Kaspersky Labs offers firewall protection, antivirus, anti-spyware, and anti-spam. The company also sells corporate and small business versions. Although this package is an industry standard, Kaspersky has taken the service aspects to their logical conclusion, getting its security patches out in an average of four hours, compared to the industry standard of about 10, say testers. And that speed can make a big difference, as virus writers increasingly design their malicious code to spread quickly and infect computers before antivirus programs receive pre-emptive updates.

The company has been way out in front of emerging threats in devices as diverse as mobile phones, PDAs, and even luxury cars. It was the first to investigate a vulnerability in the Bluetooth-enabled Lexus that opened the car to virus attacks. Kaspersky Lab has released antivirus software for both PDAs and Symbian smart phones to combat the proliferation of Bluetooth viruses like Cabir and Skulls.

But the best technology isn’t enough to stay competitive in digital security. On the business side, Ms. Kaspersky has pushed the company to expand globally. The firm now has more than 380 employees and offices in Moscow, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, the United States, and Japan. Ms. Kaspersky says the company is working to increase sales in China.

The company’s strong footing may not be enough to steel the company against Microsoft’s promised entry into the antivirus market. In February, the software giant bought Sybari Software, one of Kaspersky Lab’s partners, to prepare for an antivirus offering by the end of the year.

The Kasperskys don’t seem particularly concerned. “Microsoft wants to understand what to do, so they’re trying things,” says Mr. Kaspersky. “I don't know what they’ll do. They probably don’t either…. We can expect Microsoft to make a system more secure than the one in use. But how easy will it be to use? It’s a difficult balance.”

Even if Microsoft’s future in the antivirus space is uncertain, there’s no doubt that the threat of hackers is here to stay. Kaspersky Lab has shown its ability to master the discovery of new threats and deliver speedy updates. It has moved to meet new, emerging threats in smart phones and expand into promising new markets like China.

The antivirus market will see more consolidation in the future, narrowing down the 37 products it supports today. Kaspersky Lab may yet follow the former tenants of its missile complex into oblivion, but expect the company to make at least the first round of cuts.