Protection From Malware (Windows Users)

[Love]

I've used a Linux VM for web browsing in the past. But knowledge is the best defense, IMO. I usually only run MSE for system security. Then again, I manage a Windows network with ~120 users, so they provide a fertile testing ground for learning how to best avoid a malware infection, as well as what steps to take when a machine becomes infected.

What method would you use to safely "test" a piece of Windows malware without infecting the host machine? Also, at the organisation/company where you work, I would be interested to know the security measures that you undertake in terms of protection from malware. For example, it would be interesting to ascertain if enterprise antivirus applications are more comprehensive than the inadequate solutions available to the home user. The malware developers are becoming much smarter at avoiding detection with standard antivirus applications. However, to the best of my knowledge, they have not figured out how to break out of a virtual machine of a different operating system (i.e a Linux VM on a Windows host).