Business Solutions Magazine (BSM) has published the results of their second annual “Best Channel Vendors 2011” survey. The winners were rated exceptional (top 5%) in categories pertaining to their overall channel program.
Categories VARs were surveyed in: Data Collection & Mobility, Managed Services, Point Of Sale Hardware, Data Collection Media , Mobile Computing , Point Of Sale Software, ECM Hardware , Network Security , Power Protection, ECM Software, Networking, Storage, General Computing, Payment Processing, Wireless Networking, Labeling Software, Physical Security, and VoIP
BSM Best Channel Vendors 2011 – Network Security
These vendors made the cut in network security. They are not listed by their overall score.
Barracuda Networks
Top 2 Categories: (1) Channel Friendly, (2) Product Innovation
Kaspersky Lab
Top 2 Categories: (1) Product Innovation, (2) Channel Friendly
SonicWALL
Top 2 Categories: (1) Product Reliability, (2) Product Features
Juniper Networks
Top 2 Categories: (1) Product Features, (2) Product Reliability
Symantec
Top 2 Categories: (1) Product Features, (2) Channel Friendly
Both Kaspersky and Symantec had internet security solutions that scored highly in PC World's “Battle of the Security Superpowers” and PC Magazine's "Best Security Suites for 2011” http://kensek.blogspot.com/2010/12/pc-world-battle-of-security-superpowers.html
Survey Methodology
Business Solutions Magazine collaborated with Penn State University and surveyed Business Solutions Magazine (BSM) subscribers. Respondents were asked to rate their vendor partners on a scale of 0 to 5 in these categories: Service/Support, Channel Friendly , Channel Program, Product Features, Product Reliability, Product Innovation, and Adequate VAR Margins.
Ultimately, over 11,504 votes from 2,437 unique reseller subscribers were collected. Ballots that couldn’t be verified as BSM subscribers were eliminated. Penn State University performed the hard number crunching. BSM tightened the grading criteria and chose the top 5% of channel vendors in each category for 2011. Last year, 15% was the cutoff.
Go to the link below for complete results and additional details on the selected vendors:
http://www.bsminfo.com/article.mvc/Business-Solutions-Best-Channel-Vendors-2011-0002
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
PC World Battle of the Security Superpowers and PC Magazine Best Security Suites for 2011 Combined
The table below consolidates the summary scores of PC World’s “Battle of the Security Superpowers” and a portion of PC Magazine’s "Best Security Suites for 2011” round-ups into a single table.
This table should be looked at in conjunction with the round-ups by the two publications. The PC Magazine "Best Security Suites for 2011" reviews also contain links to comprehensive malware blocking, malware removal, antispam, antiphishing, and performance (boot time, browsing, file move/copy Windows Installer, zip/unzip) charts. One of the below links for PC World shows a comprehensive table summarizing the scores for all the tests in their round-up.
The first column is the ranking that PC World gave the internet security products. In almost all cases, PC World was more generous in their scoring than PC Magazine. The largest differential was 1.50 with PC Tools Internet Security Suite 2011. This may be because the reviewer found that PC Tools missed a number of phishing sites, the suite's firewall, its antispam capabilities, and that malware interfered with the installation on one system. PCW = PC World, PCM = PC Magazine.
Both publications gave Norton Internet Security Suite 2011 their top ranking at the time the products were tested. PC Magazine's review of Norton Internet Security 2011 was one of the publication's top 10 reviews for 2010, according to their readers. The link below takes you to the article, the slide show and links to each of the 10 reviews:
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2374759,00.asp
Additional internet security suites tested by PC Magazine during the latter half of 2010 not in the table above include, in no particular order: TrustPort Total Protection 2011, BullGuard Internet Security Suite 10, eScan Internet Security Suite 11, AVG Internet Security 2011, Webroot Internet Security Complete 2011, and Ad-Aware Total Security 1.0. More than one of these suites received 2.5 stars, or less. Internet security suites tested and reviewed by PC Magazine during the first half of 2010 but aren't included in the list above. None of these companies went through an initial public offering (IPO) during 2010.
The PC Magazine reviews also discuss functionality such as firewalls, network management, privacy, parental controls, online back-up, data theft protection, full disk encryption, sandbox, and other features that vary by suite.
PC World Battle of the Security Superpowers and PC Magazine Best Security Suites of 2011
These links take you to the full articles.
PCW http://www.pcworld.com/article/21461/battle_of_the_security_superpowers.html
PCW http://www.pcworld.com/zoom?id=214618&page=1&zoomIdx=1
PCM http://www.pcmag.com/category2/0,2806,1639159,00.asp
Addendum - Information Security Magazine - Best Antimalware Security Products, September 2010
Information Security Magazine surveyed readers in a number of different security categories for their Readers' Choice Awards. http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/magazineFeature/0,296894,sid14_gci1519600_mem1,00.html
In the Antimalware category, Kaspersky Open Space Security, Cisco Security Agent, and Symantec Endpoint Protection were awarded Gold, Silver, and Bronze, respectively.
http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/magazineFeature/0,296894,sid14_gci1519605_mem1,00.html
This table should be looked at in conjunction with the round-ups by the two publications. The PC Magazine "Best Security Suites for 2011" reviews also contain links to comprehensive malware blocking, malware removal, antispam, antiphishing, and performance (boot time, browsing, file move/copy Windows Installer, zip/unzip) charts. One of the below links for PC World shows a comprehensive table summarizing the scores for all the tests in their round-up.
The first column is the ranking that PC World gave the internet security products. In almost all cases, PC World was more generous in their scoring than PC Magazine. The largest differential was 1.50 with PC Tools Internet Security Suite 2011. This may be because the reviewer found that PC Tools missed a number of phishing sites, the suite's firewall, its antispam capabilities, and that malware interfered with the installation on one system. PCW = PC World, PCM = PC Magazine.
Both publications gave Norton Internet Security Suite 2011 their top ranking at the time the products were tested. PC Magazine's review of Norton Internet Security 2011 was one of the publication's top 10 reviews for 2010, according to their readers. The link below takes you to the article, the slide show and links to each of the 10 reviews:
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2374759,00.asp
Additional internet security suites tested by PC Magazine during the latter half of 2010 not in the table above include, in no particular order: TrustPort Total Protection 2011, BullGuard Internet Security Suite 10, eScan Internet Security Suite 11, AVG Internet Security 2011, Webroot Internet Security Complete 2011, and Ad-Aware Total Security 1.0. More than one of these suites received 2.5 stars, or less. Internet security suites tested and reviewed by PC Magazine during the first half of 2010 but aren't included in the list above. None of these companies went through an initial public offering (IPO) during 2010.
The PC Magazine reviews also discuss functionality such as firewalls, network management, privacy, parental controls, online back-up, data theft protection, full disk encryption, sandbox, and other features that vary by suite.
PC World Battle of the Security Superpowers and PC Magazine Best Security Suites of 2011
These links take you to the full articles.
PCW http://www.pcworld.com/article/21461/battle_of_the_security_superpowers.html
PCW http://www.pcworld.com/zoom?id=214618&page=1&zoomIdx=1
PCM http://www.pcmag.com/category2/0,2806,1639159,00.asp
Addendum - Information Security Magazine - Best Antimalware Security Products, September 2010
Information Security Magazine surveyed readers in a number of different security categories for their Readers' Choice Awards. http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/magazineFeature/0,296894,sid14_gci1519600_mem1,00.html
In the Antimalware category, Kaspersky Open Space Security, Cisco Security Agent, and Symantec Endpoint Protection were awarded Gold, Silver, and Bronze, respectively.
http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/magazineFeature/0,296894,sid14_gci1519605_mem1,00.html
2010 – A Year of Security Acquisitions - Addendum: Link to PC World Battle of the Security Superpowers
Any time a company wants to expand their product line, go into new areas, or add new functionality to a product, they go through a make, buy, or license decision. Often, the quickest way to acquire the new technology is through an acquisition. On a somewhat different level, companies find themselves caught in a perpetual buying mode, because they need the acquisition to help justify their current stock price. They may require the revenue/cash flow generated to help make up for the fact that the revenue/cash growth in their current core technologies is slowing down (which could affect the stock price). They may need this extension to plug a hole in their current product portfolio for competitive reasons and/or to make themselves look more attractive to investors in case they are planning an initial public offering (IPO). A firm may need a cash infusion through an equity investor to help fund and accelerate future growth.
Major Security Acquisitions – 2010
• Intel may have changed the security playing field with its August $7.6 billion (US) acquisition of McAfee. Security will be placed in Intel’s chips and ultimately into a variety of devices. Intel stated that McAfee will be operated as a wholly owned subsidiary. McAfee had been trading near a one and two year low at the time of the acquisition (which has recently been approved). http://www.mcafee.com/us/about/news/2010/q3/20100819-01.aspx
• Hewlett Packard - purchased security assurance company Fortify Software in August, and ArcSight, security compliance and management, in September. Over the years, Hewlett Packard has been mentioned as a possible acquirer of Trend Micro.
• McAfee acquired Trust Digital in May. This strengthens their presence in mobile security. http://newsroom.mcafee.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=3653
• Avast - Growth equity investor Summit Partner purchased a minority interest $100mm (US) in Avast in August. Avast has been growing rapidly and surpassed 130mm users in September. http://www.avast.com/pr-avast-software-crosses-the-130-million-user-threshold
• AVG Technologies – In June, AVG Technologies acquired one of their major US distributors, Walling Data (education, government, non-profits, and resellers). This acquisition also strengthens their US based support. http://www.avg.com/us-en/press-releases-news.ndi-230728 AVG Technologies acquired DroidSecurity in November. www.droidsecurity.com This gives them a strong presence in the Android space. They currently have no solution for Symbian, however. http://kensek.blogspot.com/2010/11/avg-technologies-acquires-droidsecurity.html
• Kaspersky – Kaspersky, while not making any acquisitions in 2010, has been growing rapidly. According to IDC's annual report, the company grew by 44.5 % in 2009 and has acquired a 5.8% overall market share. Kaspersky Lab is at fourth place in the IDC rating of Worldwide Endpoint Security Revenue by Vendor for 2009. The rating was published in IDC's Worldwide Endpoint Security Market 2010-2014 Forecast and 2009 Vendor Shares report. http://usa.kaspersky.com/about-us/press-center/press-releases/kaspersky-lab-continues-its-global-market-growth . They will probably announce a Droid security solution in Q1 2011.
• Sophos - In May, Sophos stated that it planned to sell the majority of its business to private equity investment firm APAX Partners for $830 million US. http://www.sophos.com/pressoffice/news/articles/2010/05/apax-sophos.html
• Symantec purchased PGP /Guardian Edge in the encryption space in April. McAfee had divested itself of PGP in the early 90’s. In May, Symantec purchased VeriSign’s Identity and Authentication business.
• Trend Micro purchased Mobile Armor in November to strengthen their data protection and encryption portfolio. http://trendmicro.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=43&news_item=847&type=archived&year=2010 Gartner saw the acquisition is a positive development for Trend Micro and its customers. Rumors about Trend Micro being “in play” surfaced during the summer. http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6880U620100909 In the past, they have been mentioned as an acquisition candidate for both Cisco (who has made a number of acquisitions in 2010) and Hewlett Packard. In September, CRN suggested that Trend Micro should be on Oracle’s hit list for acquisition. http://www.crn.com/slide-shows/channel-programs/227300309/hurds-top-five-oracle-acquisition-target-hit-list.htm?pgno=4
• Webroot acquired Prevx, a provider of cloud-based anti-malware solutions, in November. http://pr.webroot.com/momentum/corp/technology-acquisition-cloud-security-110110.html . In July, Webroot had acquired BrightCloud, a Web content classification and security services provider. http://pr.webroot.com/momentum/corp/acquisition-url-filtering-saas-070710.html
• Google – Google has entered the security fray. On December 17, Google announced that they were adding a hacked site alarm for search results. When Google believes a site has been hacked, a sentence will appear under the search result stating, "This site may be compromised." Google provides a similar warning to steer users away from sites found to be infected with malware. http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Security/Google-Adds-Hacked-Site-Alarm-for-Search-Results-466461/
See the link below for a slide show on CRN’s list on their take of the 10 most important security acquisitions of the year.
http://www.crn.com/slide-shows/security/228702000/the-10-most-significant-security-acquisitions-of-2010.htm
December 28 Addendum - PC World Battle of the Security Superpowers
PC World tested 13 consumer internet security packages to "see which ones can protect your data without overburdening your PC". Below are links to the complete article and to the table illustrating the ranking the products. To view a table that consolidates the overall scores from PC World "Battle of the Security Superpowers" and PC Magazine "Best Security Suites for 2011", go to:
http://kensek.blogspot.com/2010/12/pc-world-battle-of-security-superpowers.html
Hint - for the top internet security suite - Think the color yellow. Complete reviews and tables for PC World are at:
http://www.pcworld.com/article/214618/battle_of_the_security_superpowers.html
http://www.pcworld.com/zoom?id=214618&page=1&zoomIdx=1
Major Security Acquisitions – 2010
• Intel may have changed the security playing field with its August $7.6 billion (US) acquisition of McAfee. Security will be placed in Intel’s chips and ultimately into a variety of devices. Intel stated that McAfee will be operated as a wholly owned subsidiary. McAfee had been trading near a one and two year low at the time of the acquisition (which has recently been approved). http://www.mcafee.com/us/about/news/2010/q3/20100819-01.aspx
• Hewlett Packard - purchased security assurance company Fortify Software in August, and ArcSight, security compliance and management, in September. Over the years, Hewlett Packard has been mentioned as a possible acquirer of Trend Micro.
• McAfee acquired Trust Digital in May. This strengthens their presence in mobile security. http://newsroom.mcafee.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=3653
• Avast - Growth equity investor Summit Partner purchased a minority interest $100mm (US) in Avast in August. Avast has been growing rapidly and surpassed 130mm users in September. http://www.avast.com/pr-avast-software-crosses-the-130-million-user-threshold
• AVG Technologies – In June, AVG Technologies acquired one of their major US distributors, Walling Data (education, government, non-profits, and resellers). This acquisition also strengthens their US based support. http://www.avg.com/us-en/press-releases-news.ndi-230728 AVG Technologies acquired DroidSecurity in November. www.droidsecurity.com This gives them a strong presence in the Android space. They currently have no solution for Symbian, however. http://kensek.blogspot.com/2010/11/avg-technologies-acquires-droidsecurity.html
• Kaspersky – Kaspersky, while not making any acquisitions in 2010, has been growing rapidly. According to IDC's annual report, the company grew by 44.5 % in 2009 and has acquired a 5.8% overall market share. Kaspersky Lab is at fourth place in the IDC rating of Worldwide Endpoint Security Revenue by Vendor for 2009. The rating was published in IDC's Worldwide Endpoint Security Market 2010-2014 Forecast and 2009 Vendor Shares report. http://usa.kaspersky.com/about-us/press-center/press-releases/kaspersky-lab-continues-its-global-market-growth . They will probably announce a Droid security solution in Q1 2011.
• Sophos - In May, Sophos stated that it planned to sell the majority of its business to private equity investment firm APAX Partners for $830 million US. http://www.sophos.com/pressoffice/news/articles/2010/05/apax-sophos.html
• Symantec purchased PGP /Guardian Edge in the encryption space in April. McAfee had divested itself of PGP in the early 90’s. In May, Symantec purchased VeriSign’s Identity and Authentication business.
• Trend Micro purchased Mobile Armor in November to strengthen their data protection and encryption portfolio. http://trendmicro.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=43&news_item=847&type=archived&year=2010 Gartner saw the acquisition is a positive development for Trend Micro and its customers. Rumors about Trend Micro being “in play” surfaced during the summer. http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6880U620100909 In the past, they have been mentioned as an acquisition candidate for both Cisco (who has made a number of acquisitions in 2010) and Hewlett Packard. In September, CRN suggested that Trend Micro should be on Oracle’s hit list for acquisition. http://www.crn.com/slide-shows/channel-programs/227300309/hurds-top-five-oracle-acquisition-target-hit-list.htm?pgno=4
• Webroot acquired Prevx, a provider of cloud-based anti-malware solutions, in November. http://pr.webroot.com/momentum/corp/technology-acquisition-cloud-security-110110.html . In July, Webroot had acquired BrightCloud, a Web content classification and security services provider. http://pr.webroot.com/momentum/corp/acquisition-url-filtering-saas-070710.html
• Google – Google has entered the security fray. On December 17, Google announced that they were adding a hacked site alarm for search results. When Google believes a site has been hacked, a sentence will appear under the search result stating, "This site may be compromised." Google provides a similar warning to steer users away from sites found to be infected with malware. http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Security/Google-Adds-Hacked-Site-Alarm-for-Search-Results-466461/
See the link below for a slide show on CRN’s list on their take of the 10 most important security acquisitions of the year.
http://www.crn.com/slide-shows/security/228702000/the-10-most-significant-security-acquisitions-of-2010.htm
December 28 Addendum - PC World Battle of the Security Superpowers
PC World tested 13 consumer internet security packages to "see which ones can protect your data without overburdening your PC". Below are links to the complete article and to the table illustrating the ranking the products. To view a table that consolidates the overall scores from PC World "Battle of the Security Superpowers" and PC Magazine "Best Security Suites for 2011", go to:
http://kensek.blogspot.com/2010/12/pc-world-battle-of-security-superpowers.html
Hint - for the top internet security suite - Think the color yellow. Complete reviews and tables for PC World are at:
http://www.pcworld.com/article/214618/battle_of_the_security_superpowers.html
http://www.pcworld.com/zoom?id=214618&page=1&zoomIdx=1
Thursday, December 23, 2010
AV-Comparatives Whole Product Dynamic Test – August through November 2010
AV-Comparatives released their latest Whole Product Dynamic Test results on December 17. Nineteen products are in the report. Four vendors’ consumer internet security solutions received the Advanced, 3 stars rating in the Whole Product Dynamic Test. These were F-Secure, Symantec, Avira, and Kaspersky (Symantec and Kaspersky were the only products to receive 3 stars in the December 2009 report). F-Secure and Symantec showed the least variability of monthly results. These four vendors, and solutions from G DATA and Avast, were the only ones to score above 95% during all test months. A variety of malware was used in the test. Out of the box settings for the products were used.
The only one of these four companies failing to receive 3 stars in AV-Comparative’s Proactive/Retrospective Test (last revised on December 6) was Kaspersky. Twelve products received 3 stars in this test. Consistency can be a good thing. The most notable vendor missing from both of these tests was McAfee.
Eight products received a two star rating in Whole Product Dynamic Test. Their average results were all above 95%.
For the complete report and to look at interactive charts, go to the AV-Comparatives web site.
AV-Comparatives is an Austrian Non-Profit-Organization, which provides independent Anti-Virus software tests free to the public. www.av-test.org
Note that there are other testing organizations as well. Individuals and companies evaluating AV and Internet Security SW should also look at the others, at reviews, round-ups, and group tests performed by reputable testing organizations, and technology publications. For information on testing best practices, people can go to the Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization website, www.amtso.org
The only one of these four companies failing to receive 3 stars in AV-Comparative’s Proactive/Retrospective Test (last revised on December 6) was Kaspersky. Twelve products received 3 stars in this test. Consistency can be a good thing. The most notable vendor missing from both of these tests was McAfee.
Eight products received a two star rating in Whole Product Dynamic Test. Their average results were all above 95%.
For the complete report and to look at interactive charts, go to the AV-Comparatives web site.
AV-Comparatives is an Austrian Non-Profit-Organization, which provides independent Anti-Virus software tests free to the public. www.av-test.org
Note that there are other testing organizations as well. Individuals and companies evaluating AV and Internet Security SW should also look at the others, at reviews, round-ups, and group tests performed by reputable testing organizations, and technology publications. For information on testing best practices, people can go to the Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization website, www.amtso.org
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Free vs. Fee: Free and Paid Antivirus Programs Compared – PC World Antivirus Review
PC World has published their Top 5 lists of free and paid antivirus products for 2011. The article is available both online and in the January issue of PC World.
Among the criteria used to rate the products were: antivirus detection, infection cleanup, scan speed, and design. For more extensive details, comprehensive test results, and links to reviews of the products tested, people should go to:
http://www.pcworld.com/article/210589/free_vs_fee_free_and_paid_antivirus_programs_compared.html
Ratings of Free Antivirus Tested
4.5 – Avast Free Antivirus 5
4.0 - Avira AntiVir Personal Free AntiVirus 10
4.0 - Microsoft Security Essentials
3.5 – Panda Cloud Antivirus 1.0 (version 1.3 is now available)
3.5 – Comodo Internet Security Premium 5.0
Ratings of Paid Antivirus Tested
4.5 – Norton Antivirus 2011
4.5 – BitDefender Antivirus Pro 2011
4.0 – Avast Pro Antivirus 5
4.0 – G Data AntiVirus 2011
4.0 – Kaspersky Lab Anti-Virus 2011
For the testing, PC World teamed up with AV-test.org. AV-test.org is a member of the Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization www.amtso.org
The article didn't make clear how the products were selected for testing. For example, not included in the above - AVG Technologies, McAfee, Trend Micro, and Webroot, to name just a few.
Individuals evaluating products should look at the reviews of the individual products in conjunction with reviews published from other publications, as well.
Among the criteria used to rate the products were: antivirus detection, infection cleanup, scan speed, and design. For more extensive details, comprehensive test results, and links to reviews of the products tested, people should go to:
http://www.pcworld.com/article/210589/free_vs_fee_free_and_paid_antivirus_programs_compared.html
Ratings of Free Antivirus Tested
4.5 – Avast Free Antivirus 5
4.0 - Avira AntiVir Personal Free AntiVirus 10
4.0 - Microsoft Security Essentials
3.5 – Panda Cloud Antivirus 1.0 (version 1.3 is now available)
3.5 – Comodo Internet Security Premium 5.0
Ratings of Paid Antivirus Tested
4.5 – Norton Antivirus 2011
4.5 – BitDefender Antivirus Pro 2011
4.0 – Avast Pro Antivirus 5
4.0 – G Data AntiVirus 2011
4.0 – Kaspersky Lab Anti-Virus 2011
For the testing, PC World teamed up with AV-test.org. AV-test.org is a member of the Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization www.amtso.org
The article didn't make clear how the products were selected for testing. For example, not included in the above - AVG Technologies, McAfee, Trend Micro, and Webroot, to name just a few.
Individuals evaluating products should look at the reviews of the individual products in conjunction with reviews published from other publications, as well.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
December Virus Bulletin RAP Averages Quadrant, June through December 2010 – VB100 on Windows 7, December 2010
Virus Bulletin RAP Averages Quadrant, June through December
Virus Bulletin has published their latest Reactive and Proactive (RAP) Averages Quadrant for June through December 2010.
Those achieving greater than 90% for Reactive Detection and greater than 70% for Proactive Detection on the RAP Averages Quadrant were Kaspersky, Avast!, Ikarus, eScan, AVG Technologies, Avira Pro, Bkis BKAV Home Plus, G DATA, MicroSafe, Avira Free, ZeoBit, Coranti, and TrustPort. TrustPort had the highest Reactive Detection rate and ZeoBit the highest Proactive Detection rate.
The anti-virus, internet security market share leaders (Symantec and McAfee) will not be bragging about their results on this particular test. Kingsoft was the major laggard, however.
This test measures products' detection rates across four distinct sets of malware samples. The first three test sets comprise malware first seen in each of the three weeks prior to product submission. These measure how quickly product developers and labs react to the steady flood of new malware emerging every day across the world. A fourth test set consists of malware samples first seen in the week after product submission.
This test set is used to gauge products' ability to detect new and unknown samples proactively, using heuristic and generic techniques. A detailed description can be viewed at: http://www.virusbtn.com/vb100/vb200902-RAP-tests
The relative performance of vendors can best be viewed by looking at the RAP Averages Quadrant (June through December 2010) chart at http://www.virusbtn.com/vb100/rap-index.xml. Subscribers to Virus Bulletin's publications have access to more details on the results.
Virus Bulletin 100 Award (VB100) on Windows 7, December 2010
Sixty-four products were tested in this latest test. Twenty one products failed! People can go to the following site to see the complete list, and to see which major vendor failed, albeit with only one miss: http://www.virusbtn.com/vb100/archive/2010/12
The VB100 (virus) award is granted to any product that passes the test criteria under test conditions in the VB lab as part of the formal VB comparative review process.
The basic requirements are that a product detects, both on demand and on access, in its default settings, all malware known to be 'In the Wild' at the time of the review. Also, it can generate no false positives when scanning a set of clean files.
UK based Virus Bulletin www.virusbtn.com started in 1989. The organization provides PC users with a regular source of intelligence about computer viruses, their prevention, detection and removal, and how to recover programs and data following an attack. VB’s website is at www.virusbtn.com . The site is a great source of information on malware and spam. They are a member of the Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization, www.AMTSO.org.
Virus Bulletin has published their latest Reactive and Proactive (RAP) Averages Quadrant for June through December 2010.
Those achieving greater than 90% for Reactive Detection and greater than 70% for Proactive Detection on the RAP Averages Quadrant were Kaspersky, Avast!, Ikarus, eScan, AVG Technologies, Avira Pro, Bkis BKAV Home Plus, G DATA, MicroSafe, Avira Free, ZeoBit, Coranti, and TrustPort. TrustPort had the highest Reactive Detection rate and ZeoBit the highest Proactive Detection rate.
The anti-virus, internet security market share leaders (Symantec and McAfee) will not be bragging about their results on this particular test. Kingsoft was the major laggard, however.
This test measures products' detection rates across four distinct sets of malware samples. The first three test sets comprise malware first seen in each of the three weeks prior to product submission. These measure how quickly product developers and labs react to the steady flood of new malware emerging every day across the world. A fourth test set consists of malware samples first seen in the week after product submission.
This test set is used to gauge products' ability to detect new and unknown samples proactively, using heuristic and generic techniques. A detailed description can be viewed at: http://www.virusbtn.com/vb100/vb200902-RAP-tests
The relative performance of vendors can best be viewed by looking at the RAP Averages Quadrant (June through December 2010) chart at http://www.virusbtn.com/vb100/rap-index.xml. Subscribers to Virus Bulletin's publications have access to more details on the results.
Virus Bulletin 100 Award (VB100) on Windows 7, December 2010
Sixty-four products were tested in this latest test. Twenty one products failed! People can go to the following site to see the complete list, and to see which major vendor failed, albeit with only one miss: http://www.virusbtn.com/vb100/archive/2010/12
The VB100 (virus) award is granted to any product that passes the test criteria under test conditions in the VB lab as part of the formal VB comparative review process.
The basic requirements are that a product detects, both on demand and on access, in its default settings, all malware known to be 'In the Wild' at the time of the review. Also, it can generate no false positives when scanning a set of clean files.
UK based Virus Bulletin www.virusbtn.com started in 1989. The organization provides PC users with a regular source of intelligence about computer viruses, their prevention, detection and removal, and how to recover programs and data following an attack. VB’s website is at www.virusbtn.com . The site is a great source of information on malware and spam. They are a member of the Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization, www.AMTSO.org.
Monday, December 13, 2010
Info Security Products Guide Global Product Excellence Awards Finalists - SC Magazine Best of 2010 – CRN Innovative Products of 2010
The Info Security Products Guide announced their finalists for their 2011 Global Product Excellence Awards on Monday, December 13. Also, SC Magazine has published a "Best of 2010" compilation. SC Magazine Technology Editor Peter Stephenson and his SC Lab team selected these from the products that were in group tests run during 2010.
Info Security Global Product Excellence Awards
There are approximately 30 categories for Info Security 2011 Global Product Excellence Awards. Some of the product categories were modified this year. Last year there were categories for “Security Solution for Consumers” and “Security Solution for Enterprise (Small) and SOHO”. AVG Technologies won both of these for 2010 with their AVG Internet Security version 9.0 offerings (introduced in fall 2009).
These two categories have been merged into "Security Solution for Small Businesses, SOHO, and Consumers” for recognition. The finalists in this new category are DigitalPersona, Inc. for DigitalPersona Pro; Faronics for Deep Freeze, GFI Software for GFI VIPRE® Enterprise, and Faronics for Faronics Anti-Executable.
WatchGuard Technologies, who partners with AVG Technologies to provide gateway anti-virus protection, is a finalist in the Integrated Security category.
Companies that are finalists in multiple categories for 2011 include Novell, Sonicwall, McAfee, Digitalpersona, Actividentity, and Faronics.
Below is a listing for the categories for 2011 Global Product Excellence Awards.
Global Product Excellence Awards Categories
• Access
• Anti-Malware, Anti-Spam or Anti-Virus
• Application Security Auditing
• Authentication Solution (Multi, Single or Two-Factor)
• Best Security Hardware Product (New or Updated version)
• Best Security Software Product (New or Updated version)
• Best Security Service (New or Updated version)
• Compliance
• Content Security
• Data Leakage-Protection/ Extrusion Prevention
• Disaster Recovery
• Encryption
• Endpoint Security
• Identity Management
• Integrated Security/ Unified Threat Management (UTM)
• Intrusion Detection/Prevention
• IPSec/SSL/VPN
• Network Management
• Network Security
• Managed Security Service
• Policy Management
• Risk Management
• SaaS/Cloud
• Secured Archiving or Storage
• Security Information/ Event Management
• Security Software Development
• Security Solution for Enterprise (Large)
• Security Solution for Enterprise (Medium)
• Security Solution for Small Businesses, SOHO, Consumers
• Social Media or Web/URL Filtering
• Vulnerability Assessment/Remediation/Management
• Web Application Security
• Wireless/Mobile Security
The list, including all finalists, is at:
http://www.infosecurityproductsguide.com/excellence/finalists.html
www.infosecurityproductsguide.com
Info Security Global Product Excellence winners will be announced February 16, 2011 at an awards dinner banquet in San Francisco, California.
SC Magazine Best of 2010
SC Magazine Best of 2010 is a compilation of the products and services selected by Technology Editor Peter Stephenson and his SC Lab team in 2010 as Best Buy, Recommended and SC Lab Approved. The group tests were performed throughout 2010.
In the category of Anti-malware Management - F-Secure Client Security 9.0 received the Best Buy designation. AVG Technologies Internet Security Business Edition version 9.0 received Recommended. The original article appeared in the April 2010 issue of SC Magazine. 6 products were in the group test.
In the category of Endpoint UTM - Trend Micro Enterprise Security for Endpoints v10 received the Best Buy Designation. Sophos Endpoint Security and Data Protection v9 received the Recommended Designation. The original article appeared in the July 2010 issue of SC Magazine. 6 products were in the group test.
SC Magazine Best of 2010 Categories
• SSL VPN
• IP Security (IPsec) VPN
• Encryption at rest
• Encryption in motion
• Access management: NAC
• Access management: Identity management
• SIEM
• Forensics
• Gateway UTM
• Endpoint UTM
• Policy management
• Risk management
• Network data leakage prevention
• Endpoint data leakage prevention
• Anti-malware gateways
• Anti-malware management
• Security Innovators Throwdown
• Email security
• Vulnerability assessment
• Patch management
• Biometrics
• Multifactor authentication
http://www.scmagazineus.com/web-exclusive-best-products-of-2010/article/191634/
www.scmagazine.com
Both of these organization provide independent recognition of security products. Descriptions of how the products are evaluated are on each organization's respective web sites. These awards also provide marketing opportunities for the respective companies, products and version recognized, for the year in which they receive the award (web site, logos, packaging, campaigns, etc).
CRN Most Innovative Products of 2010
CRN published it’s most innovative products of 2010 compilation. Sophos Endpoint Security and Data Protection v 9.5 was cited in the Security category (pgno=13) http://www.crn.com/slide-shows/channel-programs/228800145/the-most-innovative-products-of-2010.htm?pgno=1
SC Magazine Readers Trust Awards 2011 (US)
For SC Magazine's Readers Trust Awards being announced on February 15 in San Francisco, CA, McAfee is a finalist in twelve areas. They are also a a finalist for three “Excellence Awards".
Sophos was named a finalist across nine SC Magazine's 2011 Reader Trust Choice categories.
For a complete list of finalists, go to the link below.
http://www.scmagazineus.com/2011-sc-awards-us-finalists/section/1908/
Info Security Global Product Excellence Awards
There are approximately 30 categories for Info Security 2011 Global Product Excellence Awards. Some of the product categories were modified this year. Last year there were categories for “Security Solution for Consumers” and “Security Solution for Enterprise (Small) and SOHO”. AVG Technologies won both of these for 2010 with their AVG Internet Security version 9.0 offerings (introduced in fall 2009).
These two categories have been merged into "Security Solution for Small Businesses, SOHO, and Consumers” for recognition. The finalists in this new category are DigitalPersona, Inc. for DigitalPersona Pro; Faronics for Deep Freeze, GFI Software for GFI VIPRE® Enterprise, and Faronics for Faronics Anti-Executable.
WatchGuard Technologies, who partners with AVG Technologies to provide gateway anti-virus protection, is a finalist in the Integrated Security category.
Companies that are finalists in multiple categories for 2011 include Novell, Sonicwall, McAfee, Digitalpersona, Actividentity, and Faronics.
Below is a listing for the categories for 2011 Global Product Excellence Awards.
Global Product Excellence Awards Categories
• Access
• Anti-Malware, Anti-Spam or Anti-Virus
• Application Security Auditing
• Authentication Solution (Multi, Single or Two-Factor)
• Best Security Hardware Product (New or Updated version)
• Best Security Software Product (New or Updated version)
• Best Security Service (New or Updated version)
• Compliance
• Content Security
• Data Leakage-Protection/ Extrusion Prevention
• Disaster Recovery
• Encryption
• Endpoint Security
• Identity Management
• Integrated Security/ Unified Threat Management (UTM)
• Intrusion Detection/Prevention
• IPSec/SSL/VPN
• Network Management
• Network Security
• Managed Security Service
• Policy Management
• Risk Management
• SaaS/Cloud
• Secured Archiving or Storage
• Security Information/ Event Management
• Security Software Development
• Security Solution for Enterprise (Large)
• Security Solution for Enterprise (Medium)
• Security Solution for Small Businesses, SOHO, Consumers
• Social Media or Web/URL Filtering
• Vulnerability Assessment/Remediation/Management
• Web Application Security
• Wireless/Mobile Security
The list, including all finalists, is at:
http://www.infosecurityproductsguide.com/excellence/finalists.html
www.infosecurityproductsguide.com
Info Security Global Product Excellence winners will be announced February 16, 2011 at an awards dinner banquet in San Francisco, California.
SC Magazine Best of 2010
SC Magazine Best of 2010 is a compilation of the products and services selected by Technology Editor Peter Stephenson and his SC Lab team in 2010 as Best Buy, Recommended and SC Lab Approved. The group tests were performed throughout 2010.
In the category of Anti-malware Management - F-Secure Client Security 9.0 received the Best Buy designation. AVG Technologies Internet Security Business Edition version 9.0 received Recommended. The original article appeared in the April 2010 issue of SC Magazine. 6 products were in the group test.
In the category of Endpoint UTM - Trend Micro Enterprise Security for Endpoints v10 received the Best Buy Designation. Sophos Endpoint Security and Data Protection v9 received the Recommended Designation. The original article appeared in the July 2010 issue of SC Magazine. 6 products were in the group test.
SC Magazine Best of 2010 Categories
• SSL VPN
• IP Security (IPsec) VPN
• Encryption at rest
• Encryption in motion
• Access management: NAC
• Access management: Identity management
• SIEM
• Forensics
• Gateway UTM
• Endpoint UTM
• Policy management
• Risk management
• Network data leakage prevention
• Endpoint data leakage prevention
• Anti-malware gateways
• Anti-malware management
• Security Innovators Throwdown
• Email security
• Vulnerability assessment
• Patch management
• Biometrics
• Multifactor authentication
http://www.scmagazineus.com/web-exclusive-best-products-of-2010/article/191634/
www.scmagazine.com
Both of these organization provide independent recognition of security products. Descriptions of how the products are evaluated are on each organization's respective web sites. These awards also provide marketing opportunities for the respective companies, products and version recognized, for the year in which they receive the award (web site, logos, packaging, campaigns, etc).
CRN Most Innovative Products of 2010
CRN published it’s most innovative products of 2010 compilation. Sophos Endpoint Security and Data Protection v 9.5 was cited in the Security category (pgno=13) http://www.crn.com/slide-shows/channel-programs/228800145/the-most-innovative-products-of-2010.htm?pgno=1
SC Magazine Readers Trust Awards 2011 (US)
For SC Magazine's Readers Trust Awards being announced on February 15 in San Francisco, CA, McAfee is a finalist in twelve areas. They are also a a finalist for three “Excellence Awards".
Sophos was named a finalist across nine SC Magazine's 2011 Reader Trust Choice categories.
For a complete list of finalists, go to the link below.
http://www.scmagazineus.com/2011-sc-awards-us-finalists/section/1908/
Wednesday, December 08, 2010
AV Comparatives’ November Test Results For Anti-Virus Software (Proactive/Retrospective Test)
In December, testing organization AV Comparatives published their latest Proactive/Retrospective test report. This was for the on-demand detection of viruses/malware. This is one of a number of tests they perform throughout the year. The report constitutes the second part of the August 2010 test.
For the proactive detection of new malware, the top 6 performers overall (combination of proactive detection of new malware and false positives) were:
1. G DATA – 62%
2. Panda – 61%
3. Avira - 59%
3. Kaspersky – 59%
5. TrustPort – 58%
5. Sophos - 58%
G DATA, Panda, Kaspersky, and TrustPort were all in the top 5 in the previous report. Sophos jumped up 10 spots.
Companies receiving “Advanced+ Certification” (3 stars) for their products in the Retrospect/Proactive Test were – G DATA, Avira, Sophos, ESET, F-Secure, BitDefender, eScan, Microsoft, and Symantec.
There are many reasons a firm may select not to participate. These could include:
1. Don’t feel the test reflects real world
2. Methodology (in the retrospective test, there were no live internet connections, for example)
3. Results in previous test
4. New release coming out before test report is issued (though some products weren’t “2011” releases such as TrustPort)
Companies in the August report that do not appear in the latest report, for whatever reason (revision December 6), in alphabetical order are – AVG Technologies, Kingsoft, McAfee, Norman and Trend Micro.
People should go to the AV Comparatives website and download the complete report for comprehensive test results and test details. For each test, it’s important to note what is and isn’t included. Many of the products tested utilize additional protection features (such as behavior blockers) to protect against new/unknown malware. AV Comparatives’ test evaluated the offline heuristic/generic detection capabilities of the products against unknown /new malware, without executing it or submitting anything online. www.av-comparatives.org
Note that there are other testing organizations as well. Individuals and companies evaluating AV and Internet Security SW should also look at the others, at reviews, round-ups, and group tests performed by reputable testing organizations, and technology publications. For information on testing best practices, people can go to the Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization website, www.amtso.org
For the proactive detection of new malware, the top 6 performers overall (combination of proactive detection of new malware and false positives) were:
1. G DATA – 62%
2. Panda – 61%
3. Avira - 59%
3. Kaspersky – 59%
5. TrustPort – 58%
5. Sophos - 58%
G DATA, Panda, Kaspersky, and TrustPort were all in the top 5 in the previous report. Sophos jumped up 10 spots.
Companies receiving “Advanced+ Certification” (3 stars) for their products in the Retrospect/Proactive Test were – G DATA, Avira, Sophos, ESET, F-Secure, BitDefender, eScan, Microsoft, and Symantec.
There are many reasons a firm may select not to participate. These could include:
1. Don’t feel the test reflects real world
2. Methodology (in the retrospective test, there were no live internet connections, for example)
3. Results in previous test
4. New release coming out before test report is issued (though some products weren’t “2011” releases such as TrustPort)
Companies in the August report that do not appear in the latest report, for whatever reason (revision December 6), in alphabetical order are – AVG Technologies, Kingsoft, McAfee, Norman and Trend Micro.
People should go to the AV Comparatives website and download the complete report for comprehensive test results and test details. For each test, it’s important to note what is and isn’t included. Many of the products tested utilize additional protection features (such as behavior blockers) to protect against new/unknown malware. AV Comparatives’ test evaluated the offline heuristic/generic detection capabilities of the products against unknown /new malware, without executing it or submitting anything online. www.av-comparatives.org
Note that there are other testing organizations as well. Individuals and companies evaluating AV and Internet Security SW should also look at the others, at reviews, round-ups, and group tests performed by reputable testing organizations, and technology publications. For information on testing best practices, people can go to the Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization website, www.amtso.org
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Trend Micro Acquires Encryption Vendor Mobile Armor
On Monday, Trend Micro announced their plans to acquire Mobile Armor, a provider of data encryption software for hardware and operating systems. http://www.mobilearmor.com/ . Mobil Armor’s product portfolio includes products that provide full-disk, file/folder, and removable media encryption for endpoints. This acquisition helps augment Trend Micro’s portfolio of endpoint security products for their business customers.
According to IDC, Trend Micro is the world's third-largest content and threat management vendor. They controlled 9.3% of the market in 2009. That puts them behind Symantec (25.8%) and McAfee (12.2%) but ahead of Check Point Software Technologies (6.9%), Microsoft (4.6%), Kaspersky Lab (3.6%), Websense (2.9%), and Sophos (2.4%). http://www.informationweek.com/news/security/management/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=228400197&subSection=News
Mobile Armor appears in Gartner’s 2010 Magic Quadrant for Mobile Data Protection. They are regarded by Gartner as one of the Niche players and scored low for their ability to execute. Symantec, McAfee, Sophos, and Check Point Technologies appear in the Leaders portion of the quadrant.
Symantec, as part of their acquisition strategy to broaden their security portfolio, purchased PGP and Guardian Edge in April, 2010. McAfee had owned PGP but divested them in 2002. McAfee has been on an acquisition mission since David Dewalt became president several years ago.
This acquisition may present a challenge to some of the other internet security providers to develop, license, or purchase an encryption vendor. AVG Technologies, does not seem to currently have an endpoint encryption solution in their product portfolio. However, their business security solutions are more focused on the SMB market, where endpoint encryption may not be as critical a need. Kaspersky doesn’t appear to have an endpoint encryption solution with the exception of within their Kaspersky Mobile Security product.
According to IDC, Trend Micro is the world's third-largest content and threat management vendor. They controlled 9.3% of the market in 2009. That puts them behind Symantec (25.8%) and McAfee (12.2%) but ahead of Check Point Software Technologies (6.9%), Microsoft (4.6%), Kaspersky Lab (3.6%), Websense (2.9%), and Sophos (2.4%). http://www.informationweek.com/news/security/management/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=228400197&subSection=News
Mobile Armor appears in Gartner’s 2010 Magic Quadrant for Mobile Data Protection. They are regarded by Gartner as one of the Niche players and scored low for their ability to execute. Symantec, McAfee, Sophos, and Check Point Technologies appear in the Leaders portion of the quadrant.
Symantec, as part of their acquisition strategy to broaden their security portfolio, purchased PGP and Guardian Edge in April, 2010. McAfee had owned PGP but divested them in 2002. McAfee has been on an acquisition mission since David Dewalt became president several years ago.
This acquisition may present a challenge to some of the other internet security providers to develop, license, or purchase an encryption vendor. AVG Technologies, does not seem to currently have an endpoint encryption solution in their product portfolio. However, their business security solutions are more focused on the SMB market, where endpoint encryption may not be as critical a need. Kaspersky doesn’t appear to have an endpoint encryption solution with the exception of within their Kaspersky Mobile Security product.
Monday, November 29, 2010
Who Won the Internet Security Cyber Monday Price Battle?
The winners in the internet security Cyber Monday price battle were……………………… Trend Micro and Kaspersky,free after mail-in rebates, with Norton in 3rd, when purchased at (some) retail stores in the US.
In an admittedly quick online audit, below were the discounts found on consumer internet security vendors’ web sites on Cyber Monday.
• Avast - 33% off Internet Security on their website (2 years)
• Avira - - Nothing off their suite! Free copy of Tune-Up Utilities, however.
• AVG Technologies – 10% off the suite on website (50% if using the Facebook Fan Page special)
• Kaspersky – 50% off the suite on their web site
• McAfee – 50% off Identity Protection, $55, normally $109.95 (from their Fan Page). However, this 16 hour sale expired shortly after 5PM Pacific Time. 30% and up for consumer internet security suites.
• Panda Security – 30% (up to)
• Symantec - 50% off Norton 360
• Trend Micro – 50% off storewide
Undoubtedly there were other deals on the web.
Nonetheless, due to the wonders of discounting and rebates (within a set time limit) consumers in the United States could obtain Kaspersky’s and Trend Micro’s home internet security suites for free after rebates and Norton 360 for less than $10. Staples was one of the US retail outlets where this was available. AVG Technologies, Avast, and Avira often offer deals to home users during the download process of their free anti-virus product.
How this works in the retail outlet: it’s a combination of the store, the channel, rebates, and renewals. Stores want customers to come in. A number of customers miss the rebate deadline, fill out forms incorrect, etc. and end up paying full price.
Online: it’s to a large extent about auto-renewal. Vendors will often have the “yes” box checked off for auto-renewal when customers provide their credit card number. Slightly less than a year from purchase, they’ll then receive a notice that their credit card will be charged for auto renewal unless they opt out (there are variations of this).
In June, 2009, Symantec and McAfee settled with the New York State Attorney General’s office regarding not providing adequate disclosure over how customers were being auto-renewed. They were penalized and changed their procedures. http://www.ag.ny.gov/media_center/2009/june/june10a_09.html
In an admittedly quick online audit, below were the discounts found on consumer internet security vendors’ web sites on Cyber Monday.
• Avast - 33% off Internet Security on their website (2 years)
• Avira - - Nothing off their suite! Free copy of Tune-Up Utilities, however.
• AVG Technologies – 10% off the suite on website (50% if using the Facebook Fan Page special)
• Kaspersky – 50% off the suite on their web site
• McAfee – 50% off Identity Protection, $55, normally $109.95 (from their Fan Page). However, this 16 hour sale expired shortly after 5PM Pacific Time. 30% and up for consumer internet security suites.
• Panda Security – 30% (up to)
• Symantec - 50% off Norton 360
• Trend Micro – 50% off storewide
Undoubtedly there were other deals on the web.
Nonetheless, due to the wonders of discounting and rebates (within a set time limit) consumers in the United States could obtain Kaspersky’s and Trend Micro’s home internet security suites for free after rebates and Norton 360 for less than $10. Staples was one of the US retail outlets where this was available. AVG Technologies, Avast, and Avira often offer deals to home users during the download process of their free anti-virus product.
How this works in the retail outlet: it’s a combination of the store, the channel, rebates, and renewals. Stores want customers to come in. A number of customers miss the rebate deadline, fill out forms incorrect, etc. and end up paying full price.
Online: it’s to a large extent about auto-renewal. Vendors will often have the “yes” box checked off for auto-renewal when customers provide their credit card number. Slightly less than a year from purchase, they’ll then receive a notice that their credit card will be charged for auto renewal unless they opt out (there are variations of this).
In June, 2009, Symantec and McAfee settled with the New York State Attorney General’s office regarding not providing adequate disclosure over how customers were being auto-renewed. They were penalized and changed their procedures. http://www.ag.ny.gov/media_center/2009/june/june10a_09.html
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
AV-Comparatives Whole Product Dynamic Test – August through October 2010
AV-Comparatives (www.av-comparatives.org) released their Whole Product Dynamic Test report for August through October 2010 on November 22. 14 AV/Internet Security products are in the report, comprising three months of tests. The products were a mix of 2010 and 2011 releases (and for some of the products changed in September or October) For some products, this may have effected the results. For Kingsoft, the results improved slightly. For AVG, the results were worse. For AVG Technologies, the rate was above 95% for August and September before falling to below 90% for October. Kingsoft and Norman were the only products below 90% for October. A variety of malware was used in the test, with out of the box settings for the products being utilized.
The table below should only be looked at in conjunction with the whole report! Updates to this report will be released regularly. It will be great to see any trends that develop or changes in rankings. The report is available at www.av-comparatives.org.
Key to the below – U signifies the percentage was up (improved) between August and October, S signifies the percentage was the same; D signifies that the percentage was down.
Percent Compromised Ranking for October
----Below 100%----
1U - Symantec
2S - F-Secure
3U - GDATA
3U - Avast
5S - Kaspersky
6D - Panda
6D - Avira
8D - PC Tools
9D - ESET
----Below 95%----
10D - Trend Micro
11U - BitDefender
12D - AVG (above 95% in August)
-----Below 90%-----
13U - Norman
14U - Kingsoft
Six products went up between August and October, two were the same, and six went down.
The table below should only be looked at in conjunction with the whole report! Updates to this report will be released regularly. It will be great to see any trends that develop or changes in rankings. The report is available at www.av-comparatives.org.
Key to the below – U signifies the percentage was up (improved) between August and October, S signifies the percentage was the same; D signifies that the percentage was down.
Percent Compromised Ranking for October
----Below 100%----
1U - Symantec
2S - F-Secure
3U - GDATA
3U - Avast
5S - Kaspersky
6D - Panda
6D - Avira
8D - PC Tools
9D - ESET
----Below 95%----
10D - Trend Micro
11U - BitDefender
12D - AVG (above 95% in August)
-----Below 90%-----
13U - Norman
14U - Kingsoft
Six products went up between August and October, two were the same, and six went down.
Sunday, November 21, 2010
AVG Technologies Acquires DroidSecurity, Teams with Google on Internet Security, (LinkScanner, AVG Security Toolbar)
AVG Technologies has yet to go through with their Initial Public Offering ( IPO) (it’s still business as usual on both the London Stock Exchange and Warsaw Stock Exchange, despite this!) http://kensek.blogspot.com/2010/07/avg-technologies-prepares-to-go-public.html for more information), Nonetheless, while the AVG Technologies IPO has been on hold, they have been busy.
On November 10, AVG Technologies announced the acquisition of DroidSecurity, a provider of tools and services to protect Android devices. On November 19, AVG Technologies announced that they were they were going to partner with Google broaden the search functionality of AVG’s Security Toolbar and AVG LinkScanner. http://www.avg.com/us-en/press-releases-news.ndi-284377 http://www.avg.com/us-en/press-releases-news.ndi-197
A December 30 AVG Technologies blog discussed, in part, how companies like AVG are working to make sure that additional security is available to protect smart phone users. http://jrsmith.blog.avg.com/2009/12/how-will-smart-phones-and-social-networking-affect-cybercrime.html This acquisition jumpstarts AVG’s role in protecting users on the Android™ operating system.
Prior to the DroidSecurity acquisition, mobile protection was a gap in AVG Technologies' product portfolio. Competitors have been offering protection for awhile (not for Droid obviously). For example, as paid products - Trend Micro offers Trend Micro Mobile Security (Symbian), Symantec offers Norton Smartphone Security for Symbian and Windows Mobile, Avast Mobile Edition (Palm, Windows CE, and Windows Mobile 5), Kaspersky Mobile Security (Windows Mobile, Symbian (on Nokia).
Protecting Android devices presents a nice opportunity for monetization (cutting to the chase, revenue!. According to Digitimes Research - Smartphones, tablet PCs and notebooks will all become the mainstream terminal devices in the mobile Internet market in the future with smartphone shipments having a chance to reach 800 million units in 2013. This is more than double from 2010, with tablet PCs at 100 million units and notebooks at 300 million units. http://www.digitimes.com/news/a20101118VL201.html
DroidSecurity has both free (over 4.5 million downloads) and paid ($9.99 US) version of their product. The pitch to upgrade:
• Complete protection from SMS spam, scams and phishing attempts
• VIP support
• No disruptions or advertising
DroidSecurity is a provider of mobile security solutions, for all Android™ devices (smartphones, e-readers, tablets and appliances). For more information on DroidSecurity http://www.droidsecurity.com/
AVG Facebook Fans, Pleased With the Switch to Google, Not As Pleased With Toolbar
There were a number of people clicking “like” on AVG’s fan page regarding the announcement (the flip side of this is that there are people who will click like on anything. There is no dislike option). For those taking the time to comment, there were a number of people pleased that Yahoo will no longer be the search engine installed with the security toolbar. There was also a significant number of people (around 25%), who had less than positive comments regarding toolbars, in general.
One Facebook fan commented, "Having "search" functions in tool bars are redundant. All browsers have selectable search bars built in now. All most ‘toolbars’ do is eat up memory and take up space.” Toolbar users will be able to use Yahoo on the AVG Security toolbar for another six months. Based on fan comments, though, it looks as if people will switch sooner rather than later.
Note that when people install AVG products, the box to install the toolbar is pre-checked. So people must actively opt out in order to not have it installed on their laptop/PC. It is an optional install and there are support pages on the AVG site and the web explaining how to uninstall it, for those who don’t wish to use it.
Possible Reasons for the Switch from Yahoo to Google
• From a business perspective, the Google search engine is a superior engine.
• The Google search engine has 2/3 of market share in the US. Yahoo has only about 1/6 of the market. http://www.comscore.com/Press_Events/Press_Releases/2010/11/comScore_Releases_October_2010_U.S._Search_Engine_Rankings
• This may increase AVG user’s installing/retaining/using the toolbar for searches and other purposes on the bar.
• AVG’s monetization opportunities, after product revenue, including OEM revenue, are on the toolbar, to a large extent.
It would be interesting to be able to compare the Yahoo contract to the Google contract to see whether AVG Technologies will accrue less revenue from Google on a “per something” basis, but will make up for it in volume. Customer satisfaction with the toolbar should increase. In negotiations, Google probably was the 800 pound gorilla.
For more information on the AVG Security Toolbar, go to http://www.avg.com/us-en/special-toolbar-first-run-tlbrc-v2-mcr7
On November 10, AVG Technologies announced the acquisition of DroidSecurity, a provider of tools and services to protect Android devices. On November 19, AVG Technologies announced that they were they were going to partner with Google broaden the search functionality of AVG’s Security Toolbar and AVG LinkScanner. http://www.avg.com/us-en/press-releases-news.ndi-284377 http://www.avg.com/us-en/press-releases-news.ndi-197
A December 30 AVG Technologies blog discussed, in part, how companies like AVG are working to make sure that additional security is available to protect smart phone users. http://jrsmith.blog.avg.com/2009/12/how-will-smart-phones-and-social-networking-affect-cybercrime.html This acquisition jumpstarts AVG’s role in protecting users on the Android™ operating system.
Prior to the DroidSecurity acquisition, mobile protection was a gap in AVG Technologies' product portfolio. Competitors have been offering protection for awhile (not for Droid obviously). For example, as paid products - Trend Micro offers Trend Micro Mobile Security (Symbian), Symantec offers Norton Smartphone Security for Symbian and Windows Mobile, Avast Mobile Edition (Palm, Windows CE, and Windows Mobile 5), Kaspersky Mobile Security (Windows Mobile, Symbian (on Nokia).
Protecting Android devices presents a nice opportunity for monetization (cutting to the chase, revenue!. According to Digitimes Research - Smartphones, tablet PCs and notebooks will all become the mainstream terminal devices in the mobile Internet market in the future with smartphone shipments having a chance to reach 800 million units in 2013. This is more than double from 2010, with tablet PCs at 100 million units and notebooks at 300 million units. http://www.digitimes.com/news/a20101118VL201.html
DroidSecurity has both free (over 4.5 million downloads) and paid ($9.99 US) version of their product. The pitch to upgrade:
• Complete protection from SMS spam, scams and phishing attempts
• VIP support
• No disruptions or advertising
DroidSecurity is a provider of mobile security solutions, for all Android™ devices (smartphones, e-readers, tablets and appliances). For more information on DroidSecurity http://www.droidsecurity.com/
AVG Facebook Fans, Pleased With the Switch to Google, Not As Pleased With Toolbar
There were a number of people clicking “like” on AVG’s fan page regarding the announcement (the flip side of this is that there are people who will click like on anything. There is no dislike option). For those taking the time to comment, there were a number of people pleased that Yahoo will no longer be the search engine installed with the security toolbar. There was also a significant number of people (around 25%), who had less than positive comments regarding toolbars, in general.
One Facebook fan commented, "Having "search" functions in tool bars are redundant. All browsers have selectable search bars built in now. All most ‘toolbars’ do is eat up memory and take up space.” Toolbar users will be able to use Yahoo on the AVG Security toolbar for another six months. Based on fan comments, though, it looks as if people will switch sooner rather than later.
Note that when people install AVG products, the box to install the toolbar is pre-checked. So people must actively opt out in order to not have it installed on their laptop/PC. It is an optional install and there are support pages on the AVG site and the web explaining how to uninstall it, for those who don’t wish to use it.
Possible Reasons for the Switch from Yahoo to Google
• From a business perspective, the Google search engine is a superior engine.
• The Google search engine has 2/3 of market share in the US. Yahoo has only about 1/6 of the market. http://www.comscore.com/Press_Events/Press_Releases/2010/11/comScore_Releases_October_2010_U.S._Search_Engine_Rankings
• This may increase AVG user’s installing/retaining/using the toolbar for searches and other purposes on the bar.
• AVG’s monetization opportunities, after product revenue, including OEM revenue, are on the toolbar, to a large extent.
It would be interesting to be able to compare the Yahoo contract to the Google contract to see whether AVG Technologies will accrue less revenue from Google on a “per something” basis, but will make up for it in volume. Customer satisfaction with the toolbar should increase. In negotiations, Google probably was the 800 pound gorilla.
For more information on the AVG Security Toolbar, go to http://www.avg.com/us-en/special-toolbar-first-run-tlbrc-v2-mcr7
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Oct 2011 Add. , Best Antivirus Software for 2011 - PC Magazine Antivirus Review (Round-up) - Avira softwareload.de Addendum at End
Oct. 2011 Addendum. - For Beat Antivirus Software for 2012 - go to http://kensek.blogspot.com/2011/08/best-antivirus-software-2012-pc.html
Original Post
PC Magazine's Neil Rubenking has been busy putting 20 consumer antivirus 2011 editions through his tests and summarized the results in his November 10 round-up, “The Best Antivirus Software for 2011”. These are a mix of free and paid antivirus products. Webroot’s product and Panda Cloud Antivirus were PC World Editor’s Choice recipients for paid and free antivirus in the "Best Antivirus Software for 2011" round-up. The complete antivirus review can be viewed at http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2372364,00.asp
For his antivirus review, Rubenking defined an antivirus product as a “utility that protects against all kinds of malicious software, not just viruses…. Trojans, spyware, rootkits, keyloggers, adware, scareware”. In the security world, these each have a unique definition.
Also see, Best Internet Security Suites 2011 at http://kensek.blogspot.com/2011/04/best-internet-security-suites-2011-pc.html
Many of the products have their own unique twists, according to Rubenking. Panda’s product operates in the cloud. Others include a firewall; others include some intrusion prevention protection. Others help protect against phishing attacks. For this reason, it’s important to go to the antivirus review itself when taking a detailed look at the products.
Summary Scores - Best Antivirus Software for 2011
In the table below, products are listed numerically, highest to lowest, and reverse alphabetical order (important)!
Score/Product
4.5 - Webroot AV With Spysweeper
4.0 - PC Tools Antivirus
4.0 - Panda Cloud Antivirus*
4.0 - Double Anti-Spy Professional
4.0 - Ad-Aware
3.5 - Panda AV Pro
3.5 - Norton AV
3.5 - McAfee AV Plus
3.5 - Malware Bytes*
3.5 - Kaspersky AV
3.5 - Comodo*
3.5 - BitDefender AV
3.5 - AVG Anti-Virus *
3.0 - F-Secure AV
3.0 - eScan AV
2.5 - Outpost AV
2.5 - Immunet*
2.5 - Bullguard AV
2.0 - Trend Micro Titanium AV
2.0 - Digital Defender*
* = free
Avast! and Avira did not have their free antivirus 2011 edition products released as of the time this round-up was published.
Two great charts to look at in the round-up are the 2011 Antivirus Malware Removal Chart, and the 2011 Antivirus Malware Blocking Chart. These show the details for each of the products tested. http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2372369,00.asp
Third party sites to go to for additional test results include Virus Bulletin (www.virusbtn.org ) AV-Comparatives (www.av-comparatives.org ) and AV-Test (www.av-test.org ). Note that some of these sites may still have 2010 version products tested. Others may have tested the business edition of a company’s antivirus solution. Rubenking’s tests are for 2011 products, consumer version.
What does the above show? There are a number of solutions to choose from for the home user. The “best” product isn’t necessarily the most expensive product, though in a couple of instances, you do seem to get what you pay for. Look at the products, also, on the basis of additional features you may want. For any of the above solutions, it’s possible to add an additional layer of safe surfing protection by downloading McAfee’s SiteAdvisor or AVG Technologies LinkScanner products. These work with most home security solutions. To look at the results for internet security 2011 solutions from October, go to http://kensek.blogspot.com/2010/10/avg-internet-security-2011-review-rush.html As always, to learn more about testing standards, go to Anti-malware Testing Standard Organization's (AMTSO) webs site, www.amtso.org
Table of PC World Top Internet Security Suites of 2011 Combined With PC Magazine Information
Go to http://kensek.blogspot.com/2010/12/pc-world-battle-of-security-superpowers.html to view a summary table combining information on PC World's and PC Magazine's takes on top internet security suites for 2011.
Avira Premium Security Suite Named "Software of the Year 2010" in softwareload.de Online Poll
From the Avira website - Tettnang, October 22, 2010 – Over 800,000 Internet users took part in the Softwareload.de online poll, which ran between September 1 - 30, 2010, to select the "Software of the Year 2010." Voters picked their favorites from 18 software categories. Avira Premium Security Suite won first place in the "Security" category leaving nine competitors in its wake.
Given where Avira is located, there may have been a little “hometown influence”. Avira is also currently doing a promotion where individuals who purchase the premium Premium Security Suite receive TuneUp Utilities free (usually €39.95).
http://www.avira.com/en/press-details/nid/477/news/software-of-the-year-2010
Original Post
PC Magazine's Neil Rubenking has been busy putting 20 consumer antivirus 2011 editions through his tests and summarized the results in his November 10 round-up, “The Best Antivirus Software for 2011”. These are a mix of free and paid antivirus products. Webroot’s product and Panda Cloud Antivirus were PC World Editor’s Choice recipients for paid and free antivirus in the "Best Antivirus Software for 2011" round-up. The complete antivirus review can be viewed at http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2372364,00.asp
For his antivirus review, Rubenking defined an antivirus product as a “utility that protects against all kinds of malicious software, not just viruses…. Trojans, spyware, rootkits, keyloggers, adware, scareware”. In the security world, these each have a unique definition.
Also see, Best Internet Security Suites 2011 at http://kensek.blogspot.com/2011/04/best-internet-security-suites-2011-pc.html
Many of the products have their own unique twists, according to Rubenking. Panda’s product operates in the cloud. Others include a firewall; others include some intrusion prevention protection. Others help protect against phishing attacks. For this reason, it’s important to go to the antivirus review itself when taking a detailed look at the products.
Summary Scores - Best Antivirus Software for 2011
In the table below, products are listed numerically, highest to lowest, and reverse alphabetical order (important)!
Score/Product
4.5 - Webroot AV With Spysweeper
4.0 - PC Tools Antivirus
4.0 - Panda Cloud Antivirus*
4.0 - Double Anti-Spy Professional
4.0 - Ad-Aware
3.5 - Panda AV Pro
3.5 - Norton AV
3.5 - McAfee AV Plus
3.5 - Malware Bytes*
3.5 - Kaspersky AV
3.5 - Comodo*
3.5 - BitDefender AV
3.5 - AVG Anti-Virus *
3.0 - F-Secure AV
3.0 - eScan AV
2.5 - Outpost AV
2.5 - Immunet*
2.5 - Bullguard AV
2.0 - Trend Micro Titanium AV
2.0 - Digital Defender*
* = free
Avast! and Avira did not have their free antivirus 2011 edition products released as of the time this round-up was published.
Two great charts to look at in the round-up are the 2011 Antivirus Malware Removal Chart, and the 2011 Antivirus Malware Blocking Chart. These show the details for each of the products tested. http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2372369,00.asp
Third party sites to go to for additional test results include Virus Bulletin (www.virusbtn.org ) AV-Comparatives (www.av-comparatives.org ) and AV-Test (www.av-test.org ). Note that some of these sites may still have 2010 version products tested. Others may have tested the business edition of a company’s antivirus solution. Rubenking’s tests are for 2011 products, consumer version.
What does the above show? There are a number of solutions to choose from for the home user. The “best” product isn’t necessarily the most expensive product, though in a couple of instances, you do seem to get what you pay for. Look at the products, also, on the basis of additional features you may want. For any of the above solutions, it’s possible to add an additional layer of safe surfing protection by downloading McAfee’s SiteAdvisor or AVG Technologies LinkScanner products. These work with most home security solutions. To look at the results for internet security 2011 solutions from October, go to http://kensek.blogspot.com/2010/10/avg-internet-security-2011-review-rush.html As always, to learn more about testing standards, go to Anti-malware Testing Standard Organization's (AMTSO) webs site, www.amtso.org
Table of PC World Top Internet Security Suites of 2011 Combined With PC Magazine Information
Go to http://kensek.blogspot.com/2010/12/pc-world-battle-of-security-superpowers.html to view a summary table combining information on PC World's and PC Magazine's takes on top internet security suites for 2011.
Avira Premium Security Suite Named "Software of the Year 2010" in softwareload.de Online Poll
From the Avira website - Tettnang, October 22, 2010 – Over 800,000 Internet users took part in the Softwareload.de online poll, which ran between September 1 - 30, 2010, to select the "Software of the Year 2010." Voters picked their favorites from 18 software categories. Avira Premium Security Suite won first place in the "Security" category leaving nine competitors in its wake.
Given where Avira is located, there may have been a little “hometown influence”. Avira is also currently doing a promotion where individuals who purchase the premium Premium Security Suite receive TuneUp Utilities free (usually €39.95).
http://www.avira.com/en/press-details/nid/477/news/software-of-the-year-2010
Saturday, November 06, 2010
SC Magazine Awards 2011 Finalists Announced
February addendum - go to the following url to view the winners http://kensek.blogspot.com/2011/02/sc-awards-2011-us-announced.html
SC Magazine has announced their SC Awards 2011 finalists (US). There are 20 categories for Reader Trust Awards, 5 for Excellence Awards and 5 for Professional Awards. Winners in the latter two categories are chosen by a panel selected by SC Magazine. The Reader Trust Awards are voted on by a panel of SC Magazine readers.
McAfee, Symantec, and Sophos all have multiple products up for Reader Trust awards. Some of the categories security products are finalists for are interesting. For example, in the below, companies up for awards in Best Anti-Malware Management and Best Endpoint Security could be interchangeable. Sophos’ Sophos Endpoint Security and Data Protection is in both categories.
Best Anti-Malware Management (client-based, typically software only)
• ESET for ESET NOD32 Anti-virus 4
• Kaspersky Lab Americas for Kaspersky Open Space Security
• McAfee for McAfee Endpoint Protection Suite
• Microsoft for Forefront Client Security
• Sophos for Sophos Endpoint Security and Data Protection
Best Endpoint/UTM Security
• Check Point Software Technologies for Check Point UTM-1
• McAfee for McAfee Total Protection for Endpoint, Enterprise Edition
• SonicWALL for SonicWALL E-Class Network Security Appliance (NSA) E8500
• Sophos for Sophos Endpoint Security and Data Protection
• Symantec for Symantec Endpoint Protection 11.0
McAfee was recognized for products in 12 areas within the “Readers Trust” competition, which honors best-in-class security products and services. McAfee was also selected as a finalist for three “Excellence Awards." http://www.mcafee.com/us/about/news/2010/q4/20101111-01.aspx
None of the three companies best known for their free internet security software, AVG Technologies, Avast, and Avira are represented this year. AVG Technologies business AVG Internet Security product was a finalist last year in the Anti-Malware category (US Edition).
SC Magazine SC Awards 2011 - Reader Trust Categories
• Best Anti-Malware Solution Gateway
• Best Anti-Malware Management (client-based, typically software only)
• Best Endpoint Security Solution
• Best Computer Forensics Solution
• Best Encryption Solution
• Best Enterprise Firewall
• Best Identity Management Solution
• Best Integrated Security Solution
• Best Intrusion Detection/Prevention Solution
• Best IPsec/SSL VPN
• Best Managed Security Service
• Best Messaging Security Solution
• Best Mobile Device Security Solution
• Best Multi- and Second-factor Solution
• Best Policy Management Solution
• Best Security Information/Event Management (SIM/SEM) Solution
• Best Security Software Development Solution
• Best Vulnerability Management Solution
• Best Web Application Security Solution
• Best Web Filtering Solution
Winners will be announced on February 15 in San Francisco. This will coincide with when the RSA Conference takes place. For a complete listing of finalists in all categories, go to http://www.scmagazineus.com/2011-sc-awards-us-finalists/section/1908/
SC Magazine has announced their SC Awards 2011 finalists (US). There are 20 categories for Reader Trust Awards, 5 for Excellence Awards and 5 for Professional Awards. Winners in the latter two categories are chosen by a panel selected by SC Magazine. The Reader Trust Awards are voted on by a panel of SC Magazine readers.
McAfee, Symantec, and Sophos all have multiple products up for Reader Trust awards. Some of the categories security products are finalists for are interesting. For example, in the below, companies up for awards in Best Anti-Malware Management and Best Endpoint Security could be interchangeable. Sophos’ Sophos Endpoint Security and Data Protection is in both categories.
Best Anti-Malware Management (client-based, typically software only)
• ESET for ESET NOD32 Anti-virus 4
• Kaspersky Lab Americas for Kaspersky Open Space Security
• McAfee for McAfee Endpoint Protection Suite
• Microsoft for Forefront Client Security
• Sophos for Sophos Endpoint Security and Data Protection
Best Endpoint/UTM Security
• Check Point Software Technologies for Check Point UTM-1
• McAfee for McAfee Total Protection for Endpoint, Enterprise Edition
• SonicWALL for SonicWALL E-Class Network Security Appliance (NSA) E8500
• Sophos for Sophos Endpoint Security and Data Protection
• Symantec for Symantec Endpoint Protection 11.0
McAfee was recognized for products in 12 areas within the “Readers Trust” competition, which honors best-in-class security products and services. McAfee was also selected as a finalist for three “Excellence Awards." http://www.mcafee.com/us/about/news/2010/q4/20101111-01.aspx
None of the three companies best known for their free internet security software, AVG Technologies, Avast, and Avira are represented this year. AVG Technologies business AVG Internet Security product was a finalist last year in the Anti-Malware category (US Edition).
SC Magazine SC Awards 2011 - Reader Trust Categories
• Best Anti-Malware Solution Gateway
• Best Anti-Malware Management (client-based, typically software only)
• Best Endpoint Security Solution
• Best Computer Forensics Solution
• Best Encryption Solution
• Best Enterprise Firewall
• Best Identity Management Solution
• Best Integrated Security Solution
• Best Intrusion Detection/Prevention Solution
• Best IPsec/SSL VPN
• Best Managed Security Service
• Best Messaging Security Solution
• Best Mobile Device Security Solution
• Best Multi- and Second-factor Solution
• Best Policy Management Solution
• Best Security Information/Event Management (SIM/SEM) Solution
• Best Security Software Development Solution
• Best Vulnerability Management Solution
• Best Web Application Security Solution
• Best Web Filtering Solution
Winners will be announced on February 15 in San Francisco. This will coincide with when the RSA Conference takes place. For a complete listing of finalists in all categories, go to http://www.scmagazineus.com/2011-sc-awards-us-finalists/section/1908/
Thursday, November 04, 2010
Antivirus and Internet Security 2011, Sophos Introduces Anti-Virus for Mac Home Edition
Sophos entered the home Mac antivirus marketplace on November 1 with the introduction of Sophos Anti-Virus for Mac Home Edition. It’s a free product targeted for the home user. Their positioning on the product is that it provides full protection from viruses, Trojans and worms and that it stops all threats, including those designed for Windows. http://www.sophos.com/products/free-tools/free-mac-anti-virus/
Among the three internet security vendors more well known for their free antivirus products, AVG Technologies (AVG LinkScanner for Mac), and Avast! (Avast! Mac Edition) offer Mac antivirus solutions. Avira doesn’t seem to have one. AVG Technologies LinkScanner for Mac has probably contributed to their 100k plus Facebook fans. However, AVG Technologies currently has no consumer paid antivirus Mac product to migrate to. PC Tools (owned by Symantec) has a frequently downloaded IAntiVirus product with 250k downloads from the CNET download site as of November 1.
As with the other vendors with a free antivirus product, support for Sophos Anti-Virus for Mac product is via a user forum, help documents, and videos. There is no phone or email support for Sophos Anti-Virus for Mac.
Other Vendors Providing Antivirus Protection for the Mac
There are a number of vendors providing antivirus protection for the Mac. Panda (Panda Antivirus for Mac) Symantec (Norton Antivirus for Mac, Norton Internet Security for Mac), ESET (ESET Cybersecurity for Mac) (Trend Micro (Smart Surfing for Mac), McAfee (McAfee Internet Security for Mac, McAfee Family Protection for Mac, and McAfee Family Protection for iPhone), and Kaspersky (Kaspersky Anti-Virus for Mac) offer paid internet security/antivirus solutions for the Macintosh. Offering multiple Macintosh solutions has probably contributed to their 300k Facebook fans.
There is “sort of” a migration path to a paid product. Home users can purchase Sophos Anti-Virus. However, the minimum purchase is 3 licenses, for a total cost of about $145 US. Migration and monetization will probably be limited. Sophos’ website implies that the functionality is the same.
“The main motivation is to create lasting fans of our brand,” says Sophos marketing vice president Chris Kraft. “If we [give away] tools that we’re not intending to commercialize, things that people will like and that will let them experience the quality of our security, more customers will emerge over time.”
http://blogs.forbes.com/andygreenberg/2010/11/02/antivirus-for-apple-hits-the-right-price-free/
Sophos may have also felt compelled to offer something for home users since many of the major security vendors offer a Macintosh solution. They may be planning on offering some kind of paid solution for the Macintosh that is more clearly positioned for home users, Kraft’s comments notwithstanding (or other Apple products, iPhone, iPad in the future?). Depending on how the product's functionality compares to other Mac solutions, Users wanting a more robust solution may need to migrate to one of the other vendors mentioned above. However, Sophos states that this is a business strength product. Reviews will probably begin appearing in the near future.
Among the three internet security vendors more well known for their free antivirus products, AVG Technologies (AVG LinkScanner for Mac), and Avast! (Avast! Mac Edition) offer Mac antivirus solutions. Avira doesn’t seem to have one. AVG Technologies LinkScanner for Mac has probably contributed to their 100k plus Facebook fans. However, AVG Technologies currently has no consumer paid antivirus Mac product to migrate to. PC Tools (owned by Symantec) has a frequently downloaded IAntiVirus product with 250k downloads from the CNET download site as of November 1.
As with the other vendors with a free antivirus product, support for Sophos Anti-Virus for Mac product is via a user forum, help documents, and videos. There is no phone or email support for Sophos Anti-Virus for Mac.
Other Vendors Providing Antivirus Protection for the Mac
There are a number of vendors providing antivirus protection for the Mac. Panda (Panda Antivirus for Mac) Symantec (Norton Antivirus for Mac, Norton Internet Security for Mac), ESET (ESET Cybersecurity for Mac) (Trend Micro (Smart Surfing for Mac), McAfee (McAfee Internet Security for Mac, McAfee Family Protection for Mac, and McAfee Family Protection for iPhone), and Kaspersky (Kaspersky Anti-Virus for Mac) offer paid internet security/antivirus solutions for the Macintosh. Offering multiple Macintosh solutions has probably contributed to their 300k Facebook fans.
There is “sort of” a migration path to a paid product. Home users can purchase Sophos Anti-Virus. However, the minimum purchase is 3 licenses, for a total cost of about $145 US. Migration and monetization will probably be limited. Sophos’ website implies that the functionality is the same.
“The main motivation is to create lasting fans of our brand,” says Sophos marketing vice president Chris Kraft. “If we [give away] tools that we’re not intending to commercialize, things that people will like and that will let them experience the quality of our security, more customers will emerge over time.”
http://blogs.forbes.com/andygreenberg/2010/11/02/antivirus-for-apple-hits-the-right-price-free/
Sophos may have also felt compelled to offer something for home users since many of the major security vendors offer a Macintosh solution. They may be planning on offering some kind of paid solution for the Macintosh that is more clearly positioned for home users, Kraft’s comments notwithstanding (or other Apple products, iPhone, iPad in the future?). Depending on how the product's functionality compares to other Mac solutions, Users wanting a more robust solution may need to migrate to one of the other vendors mentioned above. However, Sophos states that this is a business strength product. Reviews will probably begin appearing in the near future.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
NSS Labs Consumer Anti-Malware Product Group Test Report – September 2010
NSS Labs has released their “Consumer Anti-Malware Internet Security Product Group Test Report” Internet security products tested were tested and summary guidance for these products are:
Recommend - F-Secure Internet Security 2010, McAfee Internet Security, Trend Micro Titanium Maximum Security.
Neutral - Kaspersky Internet Security 2011, Norman Security Suite, Panda Internet Security 2011, Norton Internet Security 2010.
Caution - AVG Internet Security 2010, ESET Smart Security 4.
NSS Labs Tests
NSS Labs performed 19 tests across three categories - Malware Protection, Exploit Protection, and Performance Impact. The whole report is worth looking at. There is a mix of 2010 and 2011 releases in the report. Results from this report should only be used in conjunction with looking at test and certifications results from other organizations such as Virus Bulletin, AV-Test.org, AV Comparatives, ICSA Labs, and West Coast Labs. PC Magazine uses a collection of malware they receive from internet security vendors in their testing.
NSS Labs was recently featured in an October Forbes Magazine article – “NSS Labs' Nasdaq for Hackers”. It’s interesting reading. In October, “the firm plans to launch an online platform that will allow researchers and penetration testers to buy and sell hacking exploits on an open marketplace known as Exploit Hub.” http://www.forbes.com/global/2010/1011/ideas-internet-hackers-nasdaq-nss-digital-arms-dealer.html
The NSS Labs report can be downloaded at:
http://nsslabs.com/assets/noreg-reports/NSS%20Labs%20Consumer%20Antimalware%20Group%20Test%20Q3%202010.pdf
NSS Labs was previously a member of the Anti-malware Testing Standards Organization www.amtso.org . For more information on NSS Labs, go to http://nsslabs.com
Recommend - F-Secure Internet Security 2010, McAfee Internet Security, Trend Micro Titanium Maximum Security.
Neutral - Kaspersky Internet Security 2011, Norman Security Suite, Panda Internet Security 2011, Norton Internet Security 2010.
Caution - AVG Internet Security 2010, ESET Smart Security 4.
NSS Labs Tests
NSS Labs performed 19 tests across three categories - Malware Protection, Exploit Protection, and Performance Impact. The whole report is worth looking at. There is a mix of 2010 and 2011 releases in the report. Results from this report should only be used in conjunction with looking at test and certifications results from other organizations such as Virus Bulletin, AV-Test.org, AV Comparatives, ICSA Labs, and West Coast Labs. PC Magazine uses a collection of malware they receive from internet security vendors in their testing.
NSS Labs was recently featured in an October Forbes Magazine article – “NSS Labs' Nasdaq for Hackers”. It’s interesting reading. In October, “the firm plans to launch an online platform that will allow researchers and penetration testers to buy and sell hacking exploits on an open marketplace known as Exploit Hub.” http://www.forbes.com/global/2010/1011/ideas-internet-hackers-nasdaq-nss-digital-arms-dealer.html
The NSS Labs report can be downloaded at:
http://nsslabs.com/assets/noreg-reports/NSS%20Labs%20Consumer%20Antimalware%20Group%20Test%20Q3%202010.pdf
NSS Labs was previously a member of the Anti-malware Testing Standards Organization www.amtso.org . For more information on NSS Labs, go to http://nsslabs.com
Monday, October 18, 2010
October Virus Bulletin RAP Averages Quadrant (April through October)
Virus Bulletin has published their latest Reactive and Proactive (RAP) Averages Quadrant for April through October 2010.
Those achieving greater than 90% for Reactive Detection and greater than 70% for Proactive Detection on the RAP Averages Quadrant were Avira Pro, Ikarus, Emsisoft, Webroot, Coranti, Check Point, Kaspersky, ESET and Trustport (moving approximately left to right for Proactive Detection). The stellar performer was Trustport which had the highest Reactive Protection overall and the second highest score for Proactive Detection. Avast! and AVG Technologies were close to being in this group but fell below the 70% rate for Proactive Detection.
The anti-virus, internet security 800 pound gorillas will probably not be trumpeting their results on this particular test.
This test measures products' detection rates across four distinct sets of malware samples. The first three test sets comprise malware first seen in each of the three weeks prior to product submission. These measure how quickly product developers and labs react to the steady flood of new malware emerging every day across the world. A fourth test set consists of malware samples first seen in the week after product submission.
This test set is used to gauge products' ability to detect new and unknown samples proactively, using heuristic and generic techniques. A detailed description can be viewed at. http://www.virusbtn.com/vb100/vb200902-RAP-tests
The relative performance of vendors can best be viewed by looking at the RAP Averages Quadrant (April through October 2010) chart at http://www.virusbtn.com/vb100/rap-index.xml . Subscribers to Virus Bulletin's publications have access to more details on the results.
UK based Virus Bulletin www.virusbtn.com started in 1989. They provide PC users with a regular source of intelligence about computer viruses, their prevention, detection and removal, and how to recover programs and data following an attack. VB’s website is at www.virusbtn.com . The site is a great source of information on malware and spam. They are a member of the Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization, www.AMTSO.org.
Those achieving greater than 90% for Reactive Detection and greater than 70% for Proactive Detection on the RAP Averages Quadrant were Avira Pro, Ikarus, Emsisoft, Webroot, Coranti, Check Point, Kaspersky, ESET and Trustport (moving approximately left to right for Proactive Detection). The stellar performer was Trustport which had the highest Reactive Protection overall and the second highest score for Proactive Detection. Avast! and AVG Technologies were close to being in this group but fell below the 70% rate for Proactive Detection.
The anti-virus, internet security 800 pound gorillas will probably not be trumpeting their results on this particular test.
This test measures products' detection rates across four distinct sets of malware samples. The first three test sets comprise malware first seen in each of the three weeks prior to product submission. These measure how quickly product developers and labs react to the steady flood of new malware emerging every day across the world. A fourth test set consists of malware samples first seen in the week after product submission.
This test set is used to gauge products' ability to detect new and unknown samples proactively, using heuristic and generic techniques. A detailed description can be viewed at. http://www.virusbtn.com/vb100/vb200902-RAP-tests
The relative performance of vendors can best be viewed by looking at the RAP Averages Quadrant (April through October 2010) chart at http://www.virusbtn.com/vb100/rap-index.xml . Subscribers to Virus Bulletin's publications have access to more details on the results.
UK based Virus Bulletin www.virusbtn.com started in 1989. They provide PC users with a regular source of intelligence about computer viruses, their prevention, detection and removal, and how to recover programs and data following an attack. VB’s website is at www.virusbtn.com . The site is a great source of information on malware and spam. They are a member of the Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization, www.AMTSO.org.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
AVG Internet Security 2011 Review – Rush to Release Part VII
AVG Internet Security 2011 Review – Rush to Release Part VII
Fall 2012 Addendum For a listing of PC Magazine Internet Suite 2012 rankings go to
http://kensek.blogspot.com/2011/08/best-internet-security-suites-2012-pc.html
For a PC Magazine review of AVG Internet Security 2012, go to
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2392086,00.asp
Original Post
AVG Technologies announced the release of AVG Internet Security 2011 on September 28. This, AVG Anti-Virus 2011, AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition 2011, AVG Anti-Virus Business Edition 2011, and AVG Internet Security Small Business Edition 2011 and the rest of AVG’s internet security solutions are released. A number of AVG Internet Security 2011 reviews.
AVG Introduces AVG 2011 Enhanced Internet Security Software Suite
Link to PC Magazine ratings of Internet Security 2012 suites http://kensek.blogspot.com/2011/08/best-internet-security-suites-2012-pc.html
Consumer and Business Free and Paid Offerings Feature Enhancements Based on Community Feedback and Rise in Popularity of Social Networking
AMSTERDAM, September 28, 2010– AVG Technologies, makers of the world’s most popular free anti-virus software, today announced the immediate availability of its newest Internet security suite, AVG 2011. The design of AVG 2011 incorporates feedback from AVG’s global community of more than 110 million users and includes enhanced Web- and social network-protection, among the best detection rates in the industry, ease-of-use and a faster, nimble and more powerful design. AVG 2011 is the company’s most advanced consumer and small business solution to-date.
ck - Much of the emphasis of the release seemed to be on under the hood improvements. For AVG 2011, speed was emphasized,ease of use, and the need to protect people while they perform social networking. Some of Smart Scanning was part of the 2010 (not scanning files on the laptop that had already been scanned, and remained unchanged was part of the 2010 version 9 release) The below is extracted from the press release. Some AVG blogs go into detail as to what is new versus what is enhanced in the product release.
Superior Web Protection – Including Social Network Protection for Facebook and MySpace
Enhanced User Experience - The Simplest and Easiest to Use (including 5 click installations)
Among the Best Detection Rates in the Industry
Social Networking Protection
Community Protection Network
Protective Cloud Technology
Smarter Scanning
Auto-Fix Button
Desktop Widget - Provides quick and simple access to AVG 2011’s main features, as well as relevant news and updates.
Faster, Lighter, and More Powerful
Desktop Widget - Provides access to AVG 2011’s main features, as well as relevant news and updates.
Game Mode - (ck – Actually available in 8.5 and 9.0)
AVG Online Shield™ - Download and share files without risk of infection. Protection while exchanging files through online chat.
Consumer and Business Free and Paid Offerings Feature Enhancements Based on Community Feedback and Rise in Popularity of Social Networking
Social Network Protection - LinkScanner allows users to surf, search, email, shop and use social networks online with the confidence that the pages they surf are not compromised and the places they choose to visit online are safe to enter personal and private information. LinkScanner automatically checks and protects, in real-time, links exchanged within social networks such as Facebook and MySpace.Hassle free, with no configuration required - protection is automatically activated so you’re safe.
Enhanced User Experience - The Simplest and Easiest to Use – single click “Fix It” button. 5 screen install. AVG 2011 includes a “game mode,” which scans and protects users’ computers behind the scenes without interrupting full screen, multi-media applications with pop-up notifications (ck – “game mode was available In 9.0).
Faster, Lighter, and More Powerful - Smart Scanning, a new functionality that learns which files are certified and safe and only scans new, uncertified files on a user’s computer. When AVG 2011 Smart Scanning does scan a user’s computer, it pays attention to the system resources in use and only scans those resources not in use at the time of the scan Smart Scanning (ck – some of this actually introduced in 9.0 and enhanced in 10.0)
For the actual press release, go to http://www.avg.com/us-en/press-releases-news.ndi-283905
Review Comments on AVG Internet Security PC 2011– PC Magazine
The stars were not shining on AVG Internet Security 2011 from PC Magazine, as it received 2.5 stars out of 5 from PC Magazine’s Neil Rubenking in an October 7th review. CNET’s Seth Rosenblatt was a bit more kind in his review, awarding the product 4 stars.
From PC Magazine (out of 5 stars. The list below is a subset that has been listed in Rush to Release)
• 4.5 – Norton Internet Security 2011 (Editor’s Choice)
• 4.0 – Kaspersky Internet Security 2011
• 4.0 – Webroot Internet Security Complete 2011
• 3.5 – McAfee Total Protection 2011
• 3.5 – Trend Micro Titanium Maximum Security 2011
• 3.0 – PC Tools Internet Security 2011
• 3.0 – F-Secure Internet Security 2011
• 3.0 – Panda Internet Security 2011
• 2.5 – AVG Internet Security Suite 2011
For a more complete listing, go to http://www.pcmag.com/category2/0,2806,1639159,00.asp
Overall - From a saving money perspective, Rubenking felt that consumers could do better to match the free antivirus with a free firewall and (Zone Alarm) and spam filter (Cloudmark Desktop One). For customers who wanted to purchase a full desktop suite (with 3 licenses), he suggested Norton or Kaspersky. Links to feature grids of these products (including the companies’ AV offerings are located in the 2011 Internet Security Solution Released section.
On the plus side - High marks from independent antivirus labs. Good malware detection in testing. LinkScanner blocks exploits, malicious sites. Free identity theft recovery service. Includes tune-up utility. Accurate spam filtering. Small effect on system performance. (ck – note that the tune-up utility is a onetime tune-up, AVG has introduced a separate tune up product with this release.)
On the negative side – the product was found less effective at removing malware, and the antiiphisihing and firewall companies were criticized.
Much of the commentary had to do with the fact that so much of the functionality seemed to be contained within the Anti-virus component, with that functionality virtually identical to AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition.
Malware Removal – Rubenking felt that the product provided good virus protection, but with incomplete removal. It scored tied for the top in rootkit detection, and about average for malware and keyloggers. It’s worthwhile to individuals to look at the pop-up table “AVG Internet Security 2011 malware removal chart” for details of all 2011 products tested to date.
Malware Blocking – A number of products outperformed Internet Security 2011 in this test. It’s worthwhile for individual to look at the “AVG Internet Security 2011 malware blocking chart”. AVG blocked 78% of the rootkits, for example, while 8 of the 10 products blocked 100%.
Antiphishing and Privacy – AVG scored near the bottom 69% worse than the top product, Norton. Individuals should look at the pop-up for details, “AVG Internet Security 2011 antiphishing chart”
Safe Social Networking - Rubenking complimented (new in this release), the products ability to provide Facebook event notification through the optional toolbar (also provided is 1 year of identity theft recover help through Identity Guard)
AVG PC Tune-Up 2011 - For 24 hours after purchase AVG Internet Security 2011 customers can perform a single tune-up for free. There's also a 24-hour trial period for many of the tune-up tool's additional features. Rubenking recommended taking advantage of the free trial period (ck – some competing products include unlimited PC tune-up capabilities with their internet security product. Readers will have to click on the features grids below for more details)
Firewall – Rubenking talked about the firewall in detail. He had mixed opinions about the firewall finding the Windows firewall fairly adequate. Its program control puts too much reliance on the user's security decisions. In a test he ran using the Core Impact penetration tool, Rubenking found that LinkScanner blocked 2/3 of the exploits while Norton and Kaspersky blocked all of them.
Performance – Rubenking defined performance as including boot time, filing moving/copying among others. He found the product to be about average with the exception of its tie for performance in the boot time test. Readers should go to the article and “AVG Internet Security 2011 performance chart” and comparative details.
For the full review, much more detail and access to all tables (worth looking at!) go to http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2370326,00.asp
Review Comments on AVG Internet Security 2011 – CNET
CNET gave AVG Internet Security 2011 4 stars. Seth Rosenblatt complimented the product on faster scan times, shorter install (now 5 clicks), improved usability, and faster scans.
However, he also wrote that “while the premium product does its best to make it worth your while to upgrade, but unless you're regularly in need of support and PC tuning it's hard to justify paying when the efficacy ratings are less than stellar.” He also cited the increased competition between other free and paid security suites.
Installation – Rosenblatt complimented AVG on the fact the reduced number of screens it takes to install the product has been reduced from 13 to 5screens. He also culled out the fact that user installing the
Interface - Found the changes minor but that usability was improved.
One click Fix button for automatically fixing security breaches was complimented in the review as was the One click Scan now button.
Other Features (not comprehensive)
Smart Scanning - Rosenblatt complimented the “smart scanning” feature. This makes use of AVG’s behavioral detection network to scan-known-safe files one and then scan them again if it detects changes. (ck – some of AVG’s competitors utilize a similar technology)
Resource Management – Users can accept a default setting (use resources only when system is idle) or they can adjust it themselves (ck – users always have the option of having scans run at night or when they know they will be away from their system)
Social Networking Protection - Rosenblatt liked this new feature where AVG LinkScanner will scan links posted on Facebook and MySpace.
Telephone Support - Telephone support is offered 24 hours a day, seven days a week. (ck – available for users of paid products. Probably a result of a combination of competitive pressures and the Walling Data purchase.
New Desktop Widget - for Windows Vista and Windows 7 users. Lets them initiate scans and updates with one click, without having to open the full interface. Contains links to AVG's Twitter and Facebook pages.
Download Scan - Looks at all ports, not just port 80, when checking files sent via instant message.
Performance In CNET's tests, AVG Internet Security 2011 was a bit slower than the median. MS Office performance and Cinebench results were slightly below average, whereas iTunes decoding and media multitasking were slightly faster than average.
For the complete review including a detailed performance table, go to - http://download.cnet.com/AVG-Internet-Security/3000-2239_4-10710160.html
Mixed Review from PC Advisor
PC Advisor gave a mixed review AVG Internet Security 2011, awarding the product 3.5 stars out of 5.0.
The summary verdict from PC Advisor was, “AVG Internet Security 2011 offers all the modules you would expect in a comprehensive protection suite, but its annoying habit of trying to sell you additional services, and its tendency to slow your system down during anti-virus scans, make this software less useful than it otherwise would be.” However, they also said,” those who like to configure their own security settings will find a wealth of options to tweak.” They found that AVG Internet Security 2011 provided a full complement of tools and liked the simple to use interface.
PC Advisor’s system took 3 hours to perform an initial scan, which they stated was slow. They may not have understood that scans after the initial scan would be much faster. They found fault with the PC Analyzer module. They were concerned with the number of register errors it found during its system test. It appears that 3 others products they ran against the system found significantly fewer errors. PC Analyzer performs fixes for free the first time. After that there is an annual fee to install and run the product.
For the complete review, go to http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/reviews/index.cfm?reviewid=3244107
The Differences Between AVG Anti-virus Free Edition, AVG Anti-virus and AVG Internet Security 2011
AVG Anti-virus Free Edition 2011 – Anti-Virus, Ant-Spyware, Enhanced Anti-rootkit, New Social Networking Protection, Enhanced LinkScanner
AVG Anti- virus 2011- Adds Online Shield for Safe Download, Online Shield for Safe Chatting
AVG Internet Security Suite 2011 - Adds Identity Protection, Enhanced Firewall, Anti-Spam
For a grid showing the above http://tinyurl.com/33ltpez
Of course, one person’s “great new feature” is another person’s “bloat ware” if they can’t make use of that functionality.
AVG Certifications and Testing (not comprehensive, not 2011 product for AVG, a combination of 2010 and 2011 for the others)
Certifications are typically given for a particular product, version number, and on a specific platform. Organizations will frequently require that the certification logos be linked back to the organization’s web site. Certification logos may be placed in close proximity of products that that weren’t awarded (halo effect). For example, a certification for a consumer version of a product doesn’t automatically mean that the business version is certified. To validate certifications, customers should find an area on the company’s site that does link back to the certification organizations'
Note - On October 12, AVG formally announced AVG Anti-Virus Business Edition and AVG Internet Security Business Edition. Certifications for the consumer versions of these products cannot be attributed to these automatically and vice versa.
Virus Bulletin - Customer’s should only be concerned with the last 2 or 3 years of a vendor’s performance when looking at this. With respect to receiving VB100 Awards for entries since 2008 to current time. For AVG Technologies’ test history for the VB100 award, go to http://www.virusbtn.com/vb100/archive/results?vendor=VE10 .
Note the product tested, and the platform tested on . AVG did receive an October VB 100 reward. This was using Internet Security 2010 running on Windows Server 2003.
AVG performed okay, but did not crack the top nine in the Virus Bulletin’s RAP (Reactive and Proactive detection test for the the August through October time frame. It Performed above 90% in Reactive Protection but scored just below 70% in Proactive Detection. This test measures products' reactive and proactive detection abilities against the most recent malware that has emerged around the world. For a thorough description of the test, go to . http://www.virusbtn.com/vb100/vb200902-RAP-tests . To see the quadrant go to http://www.virusbtn.com/vb100/rap-index.xml . http://www.virusbtn.com
ICSA Labs –To generate a list of current certifications AVG has received, go to https://www.icsalabs.com/products . 2010 Product tests and certified as of September 2010 are AVG Internet Security 2010 and AVG File Server (desktop/server anti-virus detection)
AV-Test – AVG Internet Security 2010 received 5.5 for Protection, 4.0 for Repair and 5.5 for Usability, out of 6.0, in the “AV-Test Product Review and Certification Report” - 2010/Q2. The product did receive certification. www.av-test.org
AV-Comparatives – AVG Anti-virus 2010 was one of 7 companies to receive an Advanced 2 star rating in AV-Comparatives’ August “On Demand Detection of Malicious Software Test”. Nine companies received an Advanced 3 star rating. http://www.av-comparatives.org/comparativesreviews/main-tests
West Coast Labs Checkmark – For a list of AVG product with Checkmark Platinum Certification and Checkmark Certification, go to http://www.westcoastlabs.com/checkmark/productList/?vendorID=32 As of September 2010, these are the 9.0 versions. AVG was one of the first companies to receive a Checkmark Platinum certification.
http://www.westcoastlabs.com/checkmark/productList/?vendorID=32 www.westcoastlabs.com
All the above organization are members of the Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization (www.amtso.org) The Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization (AMTSO) was founded in May 2008 as an international non-profit association that focuses on the addressing the global need for improvement in the objectivity, quality and relevance of anti-malware testing methodologies.
Other Vendor’s Internet Security 2011 and Other Suites – Sampling of New Features
Some interesting features not available in AVG Internet Security in these company’s internet security and/or security solutions include (not comprehensive) for a sample of the companies below:
BitDefender – Chat Encryption, Online Back-up, File Encryption
Panda Security - Secure Browser, Remote PC-Access, File Encryption, File Shredding
Norton – Online back-up, Remote File-Access, PC-Tune-up
Kaspersky - Safe Desktop, Block Websites by Country Code, Special Online Banking Mode
Internet Security 2011 Solutions Released
Clicking on the links below will take you to the complete comparison tables. These are for the company’s anti-virus, internet security, and other security suite solutions in checklist form.
• BitDefender Total Security 2011 was released around August 16. For product details - http://www.bitdefender.com/solutions/total-security.
• Kaspersky - Kaspersky announced Kaspersky Internet Security 2011 on August 16 For product details -http://usa.kaspersky.com/products_services/compare/
• Panda Security – Panda Internet Security Suite 2011 was announced on July 27. For product details - http://www.pandasecurity.com/usa/homeusers/solutions/
• Webroot - Webroot Internet Security Complete 2011 was announced on July 26. For product details http://www.webroot.com/En_US/consumer-compare.html
• Symantec – Symantec introduced their Norton consumer security solutions in early September. For product details: http://www.symantec.com/norton/products/charts/comparison.jsp?pcid=mp
• Trend Micro - Trend Micro introduced their Titanium product line in early September. For product details: http://us.trendmicro.com/us/products/personal/titanium-maximum-security/ and click on “product comparison”
• F-Secure - F-Secure announced their internet security product line on September 15. For product details: http://www.f-secure.com/en_US/products/home-office/internet-security/ and then click on compare products.
• McAfee – McAfee announced their 2011 retail product line on September 30. For product details: http://home.mcafee.com/root/landingpage.aspx?LPName=/3products&culture=en-us&cid=83103
• AVG Technologies – AVG Technologies announced their AVG 2011 product line on September 29. For product details: http://tinyurl.com/33ltpez
2011 Internet Security Solutions That Haven’t Been Released
• Avast – No official release date has been announced.
• Avira – No official release data has been announced.
Revenue from AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition?
Approximately 75 million downloads of AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition took place from www.download.com last year. AVG’s publicly talked about installed base is 110 million. This suggests a lot of churn, or perhaps people using the product just once to do a clean-up. A portion migrate to a paid product as well. Switching costs from a free product? $0.
The preferred migration path to revenue for AVG from the free users purchase AVG Internet Security 2011. However, these two reviewers are more or less suggesting that the free customers keep what they have. Rubenking even goes so far to suggest that they can create a suite using AVG’s Free Anti-virus, a free firewall, and a free spam filter from Cloudmark (Desktop One, 5 stars). Product revenue to AVG $0. Toolbar revenue and other revenue is unknown. Another free alternative would be to replace AVG Anti-virus Free Edition (3.5 out of 5) Panda Cloud Security (Editor’s Choice, and 4.0 out of 5). These users could then download AVG LinkScanner for Free. In the Wall Street Journals’ 2010 Technology Innovation Awards on September 22, Panda came in second in the Network Security Category. This results in lost toolbar revenue for AVG.
Should these customers decide to upgrade to a full internet security suite, Rubenking is suggesting Norton or Kaspersky as alternatives. Norton was Rubenking’s Editor’s Choice in the Internet Security category). The product Panda came in second to in the Wall Street Journal? Norton. This may not have quite the same cachet as receiving Walter Mossberg’s seal of approval, but it’s quite impressive.
What does CNET’s Rosenblatt have to suggest about AVG Free Edition users upgrading to AVG Internet Security? “But unless you're regularly in need of support and PC tuning it's hard to justify paying when the efficacy ratings are less than stellar.”
Non AVG customers looking for a new free or internet security solution? - As mentioned above Panda Security received top billing from Rubenking and for a suite, he’s suggesting Kaspersky or Norton. These people can then download the standalone version of AVG LinkScanner. Of course, this is where partners come in to provide the suite for free in exchange for purchasing some other good or service.
AVG Technologies Initial Public Offering (IPO) – As of October 1
Several publications in Europe wrote (unnamed sources) that AVG Technologies intended to go public on November 10 on the Warsaw exchange.
According to AVG CEO J.R. Smith in the September 29 edition of the Prague Post, there has been no decision to list shares of AVG Technologies on either the Warsaw or any other bourse.
For more details, go to “September 30 Addendum: AVG Technologies IPO to Appear on Warsaw Stock Exchange” November 10? http://tinyurl.com/2f3obhp and “September Addendum - AVG Technologies Prepares to Go Public” http://tinyurl.com/2875ne3
This blog is subject to updates.
Friday, October 01, 2010
McAfee Internet Security 2011 – Rush to Release Part VI
McAfee Consumer 2011 Retail Versions Begins Rolling out in Stores
Link to AVG Internet Security 2011 PC Magazine Review AVG IS 2011 PC Magazine Review http://tinyurl.com/366n5mg
McAfee introduced its 2011 security product line (retail editions) on September 30. These include McAfee AntiVirus Plus 2011, McAfee Internet Security 2011, and McAfee Total Protection 2011. A product review of one or more of these solutions will be appearing by numerous publications quickly. McAfee is promoting that with their 2011 product line they provide the fastest, lightest and most effective consumer PC protection in the company’s history. McAfee Labs researchers proactively search for new cyberthreats by using the millions of computers running McAfee software as the discovery beacon.
Some of the Features McAfee is Promoting
• Enhanced performance and fast installation.
• 325% faster scans.
• Updates are only initiated when the computer is idle.
• Easy to use interface. The new products simplify the experience for both novices and experts.
• Scheduled activity throttling which pauses McAfee updates until the computer is idle.
To see the press release go to - http://newsroom.mcafee.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=3680
Some Differentiators
McAfee AntiVirus Plus 2011 - No scan interruptions with Scheduler and Idle Timer. Includes McAfee Quick Clean Tool.
McAfee Internet Security 2011 – Adds the above plus Anti-Spam and email protection, McAfee Online Back-up, Child Protection with enhanced Parental Controls.
McAfee Total Protection 2011 – Adds the above plus McAfee Anti-theft, some home network protection, McAfee SiteAdvisor Plus.
Of course one person’s “great new benefit” is another person’s “bloatware” if they can’t make use of that functionality.
http://home.mcafee.com/root/landingpage.aspx?LPName=/3products&culture=en-us&cid=83103
McAfee touts their SiteAdvisor technology as providing safe web surfing. SiteAdvisor adds small site rating colored icons to search results as well as a browser button and optional search box. These advise web surfers as to the safety of a site.
These site ratings are based on tests conducted by McAfee using a large number of computers that look for all kinds of threats. For details, go to http://www.siteadvisor.com/howitworks/index.html . This product competes against AVG Technologies AVG LinkScanner® offering.
McAfee Certifications and Testing (not comprehensive, not 2011 product)
Certifications are typically given for a particular product, version number, and on a specific platform. Organizations will frequently require that the certification logos be linked back to the organization’s web site. Certification logos may be placed in close proximity of products that that weren’t awarded (halo effect). Where are the logo license enforcers when you need them? For example, a certification for a consumer version of a product doesn’t automatically mean that the business version is certified. To validate certifications, customers should find an area on the company’s site that does link back to the certification organizations' sites.
Virus Bulletin - Customer’s should only be concerned with the last 2 or 3 years of a vendor’s performance when looking at this. McAfee is 11-3 with respect to receiving VB100 Awards for entries since 2008 (through August) 2010.
McAfee Total Protection was not one of the top performers in the RAP Averages Quadrant. It performed under 90% in Reactive Protection and just over 60% in Proactive Detection. This test measures products' reactive and proactive detection abilities against the most recent malware that has emerged around the world. http://www.virusbtn.com/vb100/rap-index.xml
www.virusbtn.com
ICSA Labs – Go to https://www.icsalabs.com/products to generate a list of current certifications McAfee has received.
AV-Test – McAfee Internet Security 2010 received 5.0 for Protection, 2.0 for Repair and 3.5 for Usability, out of 6.0, in the AV-Test Product Review and Certification Report - 2010/Q2. The product did not receive certification. www.av-test.org
AV-Comparatives – McAfee AntiVirus Plus 2010 was one of 7 companies to receive an Advanced 2 star rating in AV-Comparatives August “On Demand Detection of Malicious Software Test”. Nine companies received an Advanced 3 star rating. http://www.av-comparatives.org/comparativesreviews/main-tests
West Coast Labs Checkmark – McAfee has a number of Checkmark certified products. Go to http://www.westcoastlabs.com/checkmark/productList/?vendorID=16 They don’t have any Checkmark Platinum certified products as of August 2010. www.westcoastlabs.com
All the above organization are members of the Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization (www.amtso.org) The Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization (AMTSO) was founded in May 2008 as an international non-profit association that focuses on the addressing the global need for improvement in the objectivity, quality and relevance of anti-malware testing methodologies.
2011 Internet Security Solutions Released
The lines below contain feature checklists for a number of each of the company's products.
• BitDefender Total Security 2011 was released around August 16. For product details - http://www.bitdefender.com/solutions/total-security.
• Kaspersky - Kaspersky announced Kaspersky Internet Security 2011 on August 16 For product details -http://usa.kaspersky.com/products_services/compare/
• Panda Security – Panda Internet Security Suite 2011 was announced on July 27. For product details - http://www.pandasecurity.com/usa/homeusers/solutions/
• Webroot - Webroot Internet Security Complete 2011 was announced on July 26. For product details http://www.webroot.com/En_US/consumer-compare.html
• Symantec – Symantec introduced their Norton consumer security solutions in early September. For product details: http://www.symantec.com/norton/products/charts/comparison.jsp?pcid=mp
• Trend Micro - Trend Micro introduced their Titanium product line in early September. For product details: http://us.trendmicro.com/us/products/personal/titanium-maximum-security/ and click on “product comparison”
• F-Secure - F-Secure announced their internet security product line on September 15. For product details: http://www.f-secure.com/en_US/products/home-office/internet-security/ and then click on compare products.
• AVG Technologies – AVG Technologies announced their AVG 2011 product line on September 29. For product details: http://www.avg.com/us-en/home-and-office-security-comparison
• McAfee – McAfee announced their 2011 retail product line on September 30. For product details: http://home.mcafee.com/root/landingpage.aspx?LPName=/3products&culture=en-us&cid=83103
2011 Internet Security Solutions That Haven’t Been Released
• Avast – No official release date has been announced.
• Avira – No official release data has been announced.
McAfee Acquired By Intel
The market for security companies was hot this summer. No longer will McAfee be an independent ship, sailing the internet to protect users from Malware. McAfee accepted an offer to be acquired by Intel for a premium of 60% over the previous day’s closing price on August 18. http://newsroom.mcafee.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=3678.
This blog is subject to updates.
Link to AVG Internet Security 2011 PC Magazine Review AVG IS 2011 PC Magazine Review http://tinyurl.com/366n5mg
McAfee introduced its 2011 security product line (retail editions) on September 30. These include McAfee AntiVirus Plus 2011, McAfee Internet Security 2011, and McAfee Total Protection 2011. A product review of one or more of these solutions will be appearing by numerous publications quickly. McAfee is promoting that with their 2011 product line they provide the fastest, lightest and most effective consumer PC protection in the company’s history. McAfee Labs researchers proactively search for new cyberthreats by using the millions of computers running McAfee software as the discovery beacon.
Some of the Features McAfee is Promoting
• Enhanced performance and fast installation.
• 325% faster scans.
• Updates are only initiated when the computer is idle.
• Easy to use interface. The new products simplify the experience for both novices and experts.
• Scheduled activity throttling which pauses McAfee updates until the computer is idle.
To see the press release go to - http://newsroom.mcafee.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=3680
Some Differentiators
McAfee AntiVirus Plus 2011 - No scan interruptions with Scheduler and Idle Timer. Includes McAfee Quick Clean Tool.
McAfee Internet Security 2011 – Adds the above plus Anti-Spam and email protection, McAfee Online Back-up, Child Protection with enhanced Parental Controls.
McAfee Total Protection 2011 – Adds the above plus McAfee Anti-theft, some home network protection, McAfee SiteAdvisor Plus.
Of course one person’s “great new benefit” is another person’s “bloatware” if they can’t make use of that functionality.
http://home.mcafee.com/root/landingpage.aspx?LPName=/3products&culture=en-us&cid=83103
McAfee touts their SiteAdvisor technology as providing safe web surfing. SiteAdvisor adds small site rating colored icons to search results as well as a browser button and optional search box. These advise web surfers as to the safety of a site.
These site ratings are based on tests conducted by McAfee using a large number of computers that look for all kinds of threats. For details, go to http://www.siteadvisor.com/howitworks/index.html . This product competes against AVG Technologies AVG LinkScanner® offering.
McAfee Certifications and Testing (not comprehensive, not 2011 product)
Certifications are typically given for a particular product, version number, and on a specific platform. Organizations will frequently require that the certification logos be linked back to the organization’s web site. Certification logos may be placed in close proximity of products that that weren’t awarded (halo effect). Where are the logo license enforcers when you need them? For example, a certification for a consumer version of a product doesn’t automatically mean that the business version is certified. To validate certifications, customers should find an area on the company’s site that does link back to the certification organizations' sites.
Virus Bulletin - Customer’s should only be concerned with the last 2 or 3 years of a vendor’s performance when looking at this. McAfee is 11-3 with respect to receiving VB100 Awards for entries since 2008 (through August) 2010.
McAfee Total Protection was not one of the top performers in the RAP Averages Quadrant. It performed under 90% in Reactive Protection and just over 60% in Proactive Detection. This test measures products' reactive and proactive detection abilities against the most recent malware that has emerged around the world. http://www.virusbtn.com/vb100/rap-index.xml
www.virusbtn.com
ICSA Labs – Go to https://www.icsalabs.com/products to generate a list of current certifications McAfee has received.
AV-Test – McAfee Internet Security 2010 received 5.0 for Protection, 2.0 for Repair and 3.5 for Usability, out of 6.0, in the AV-Test Product Review and Certification Report - 2010/Q2. The product did not receive certification. www.av-test.org
AV-Comparatives – McAfee AntiVirus Plus 2010 was one of 7 companies to receive an Advanced 2 star rating in AV-Comparatives August “On Demand Detection of Malicious Software Test”. Nine companies received an Advanced 3 star rating. http://www.av-comparatives.org/comparativesreviews/main-tests
West Coast Labs Checkmark – McAfee has a number of Checkmark certified products. Go to http://www.westcoastlabs.com/checkmark/productList/?vendorID=16 They don’t have any Checkmark Platinum certified products as of August 2010. www.westcoastlabs.com
All the above organization are members of the Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization (www.amtso.org) The Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization (AMTSO) was founded in May 2008 as an international non-profit association that focuses on the addressing the global need for improvement in the objectivity, quality and relevance of anti-malware testing methodologies.
2011 Internet Security Solutions Released
The lines below contain feature checklists for a number of each of the company's products.
• BitDefender Total Security 2011 was released around August 16. For product details - http://www.bitdefender.com/solutions/total-security.
• Kaspersky - Kaspersky announced Kaspersky Internet Security 2011 on August 16 For product details -http://usa.kaspersky.com/products_services/compare/
• Panda Security – Panda Internet Security Suite 2011 was announced on July 27. For product details - http://www.pandasecurity.com/usa/homeusers/solutions/
• Webroot - Webroot Internet Security Complete 2011 was announced on July 26. For product details http://www.webroot.com/En_US/consumer-compare.html
• Symantec – Symantec introduced their Norton consumer security solutions in early September. For product details: http://www.symantec.com/norton/products/charts/comparison.jsp?pcid=mp
• Trend Micro - Trend Micro introduced their Titanium product line in early September. For product details: http://us.trendmicro.com/us/products/personal/titanium-maximum-security/ and click on “product comparison”
• F-Secure - F-Secure announced their internet security product line on September 15. For product details: http://www.f-secure.com/en_US/products/home-office/internet-security/ and then click on compare products.
• AVG Technologies – AVG Technologies announced their AVG 2011 product line on September 29. For product details: http://www.avg.com/us-en/home-and-office-security-comparison
• McAfee – McAfee announced their 2011 retail product line on September 30. For product details: http://home.mcafee.com/root/landingpage.aspx?LPName=/3products&culture=en-us&cid=83103
2011 Internet Security Solutions That Haven’t Been Released
• Avast – No official release date has been announced.
• Avira – No official release data has been announced.
McAfee Acquired By Intel
The market for security companies was hot this summer. No longer will McAfee be an independent ship, sailing the internet to protect users from Malware. McAfee accepted an offer to be acquired by Intel for a premium of 60% over the previous day’s closing price on August 18. http://newsroom.mcafee.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=3678.
This blog is subject to updates.
Sunday, September 26, 2010
September 30 Addendum: AVG Technologies IPO to Appear on Warsaw Stock Exchange November 10?
--------
October 8 Addendum - PC Magazine Review of AVG Internet Security 2011 AVG IS 2011 PC Magazine Review http://tinyurl.com/366n5mg
-------------
Blog amended Sept. 30
It looks as if AVG Technologies Initial Public Offering (IPO) “may” take place November 10 with the stock appearing on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. The range of the initial market capitalization is unchanged from earlier articles in the press, 400 million to 800 million EUR. The November 10 IPO date appeared in the press in Europe in several publications during the latter half of the week of September 19. Nothing new about the stock appearing on the London Stock Exchange.
In the US, market activity in the security world has been high, as previously written. McAfee is being acquired by Intel. Hewlett Packard won a bidding war for 3PAR over Dell Computer. Hewlett Packard signed an agreement to acquire ArcSight, acquire ArcSight security and compliance management company. http://ir.arcsight.com/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=506759 There were also rumors about Trend Micro being approached for a takeover. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-09-09/trend-micro-shares-surge-in-tokyo-after-digitimes-takeover-approach-report.html. This activity could conceivably lead to a pop in the initial price when the stock goes public.
The end of September target launch date of the AVG 2011 set of internet security solutions is (obviously) well ahead of the company's IPO date. There will probably be a number of reviews by publications evaluating one or more of the products shortly after release. Test results by organizations such as www.virusbtn.com, www.icsalabs.com and www.av-comparatives.org will reflect the previous release of the products for awhile.
The translations below are from using “Google translate”.
Finance.cz
AVG is about to enter the Warsaw Stock Exchange
September 23, 2010
http://www.finance.cz/zpravy/finance/281364-avg-technologies-se-chysta-vstoupit-na-varsavskou-burzu-/
According to financial newspaper about a Czech producer of antivirus software, AVG their entry (IPO - a primary offering of shares) IPO would take place November 10, 2010. The value of the IPO would be between 400 mill and 800 million (EUR 2.5 billion to CZK 5 billion. Total Offer (IPO plus addition emissions (sic)) can be up to one billion PLN, ie about 6.3 billion CZK
Interia.pl
Czechs Rush Swiftly To Warsaw
September 25
http://biznes.interia.pl/gieldy/news/czesi-chyzo-pedza-na-warszawe,1536481
The Czech company AVG Technologies is incorporated in The Netherlands. Grisoft is a former founded in 1991 by John Gritzbacha and Tomas Hofer, author of the AVG antivirus program. The largest investor is a venture capital fund Polish Enterprise Investors.
AVG is planning to debut on November 10. It wants to collect one billion of the IPO zł.
Kurzy.cz
AVG Should Appear on the Warsaw Stock Exchange November 10th
September 22
http://zpravy.kurzy.cz/244684-avg-by-se-mela-na-varsavske-burze-objevit-10-listopadu/
Shares of Czech software company AVG would be on the Warsaw stock exchange were to occur the 10th November, write the Polish stock market Wednesday Parkiet Daily.
Warsaw Stock Exchange
The Warsaw Stock Exchange is the largest stock exchange in Eastern Europe. There are 384 companies on the exchange. 361 of them are domestic and 23 foreign. Roughly 1/3 of the market value of the WSE is based on the foreign companies’ value. The Warsaw Stock Exchange (WSE) operates based on the Act on Trading in Financial Instruments of July 29, 2005 under the supervision of the Polish Financial Supervision Authority http://www.gpw.pl/index.asp
September 30 Addendum
According to AVG CEO J.R. Smith in the September 29 edition of the Prague Post, there has been no decision to list shares of AVG Technologies on either the Warsaw or any other bourse.
"It's news to me," he said in response to reports by Reuters and the daily Hospodářské noviny that quoted unnamed sources. "The shareholders are always looking at options to get some liquidity. They weigh those decisions every day, but there has been no decision made by the shareholders or anyone else to list in Poland or Prague or anywhere else."
http://www.praguepost.com/business/5854-avg-boosts-product-ipo-vague.html
Public offering and high finance can have a sense of intrigue. Meanwhile, "Money Never Sleeps", the sequel to Michael Douglas's "Wall Street", opened last week in the United States and topped the box office. Gordon Gekko is back.
October 8 Addendum - PC Magazine Review of AVG Internet Security 2011 AVG IS 2011 PC Magazine Review http://tinyurl.com/366n5mg
-------------
Blog amended Sept. 30
It looks as if AVG Technologies Initial Public Offering (IPO) “may” take place November 10 with the stock appearing on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. The range of the initial market capitalization is unchanged from earlier articles in the press, 400 million to 800 million EUR. The November 10 IPO date appeared in the press in Europe in several publications during the latter half of the week of September 19. Nothing new about the stock appearing on the London Stock Exchange.
In the US, market activity in the security world has been high, as previously written. McAfee is being acquired by Intel. Hewlett Packard won a bidding war for 3PAR over Dell Computer. Hewlett Packard signed an agreement to acquire ArcSight, acquire ArcSight security and compliance management company. http://ir.arcsight.com/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=506759 There were also rumors about Trend Micro being approached for a takeover. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-09-09/trend-micro-shares-surge-in-tokyo-after-digitimes-takeover-approach-report.html. This activity could conceivably lead to a pop in the initial price when the stock goes public.
The end of September target launch date of the AVG 2011 set of internet security solutions is (obviously) well ahead of the company's IPO date. There will probably be a number of reviews by publications evaluating one or more of the products shortly after release. Test results by organizations such as www.virusbtn.com, www.icsalabs.com and www.av-comparatives.org will reflect the previous release of the products for awhile.
The translations below are from using “Google translate”.
Finance.cz
AVG is about to enter the Warsaw Stock Exchange
September 23, 2010
http://www.finance.cz/zpravy/finance/281364-avg-technologies-se-chysta-vstoupit-na-varsavskou-burzu-/
According to financial newspaper about a Czech producer of antivirus software, AVG their entry (IPO - a primary offering of shares) IPO would take place November 10, 2010. The value of the IPO would be between 400 mill and 800 million (EUR 2.5 billion to CZK 5 billion. Total Offer (IPO plus addition emissions (sic)) can be up to one billion PLN, ie about 6.3 billion CZK
Interia.pl
Czechs Rush Swiftly To Warsaw
September 25
http://biznes.interia.pl/gieldy/news/czesi-chyzo-pedza-na-warszawe,1536481
The Czech company AVG Technologies is incorporated in The Netherlands. Grisoft is a former founded in 1991 by John Gritzbacha and Tomas Hofer, author of the AVG antivirus program. The largest investor is a venture capital fund Polish Enterprise Investors.
AVG is planning to debut on November 10. It wants to collect one billion of the IPO zł.
Kurzy.cz
AVG Should Appear on the Warsaw Stock Exchange November 10th
September 22
http://zpravy.kurzy.cz/244684-avg-by-se-mela-na-varsavske-burze-objevit-10-listopadu/
Shares of Czech software company AVG would be on the Warsaw stock exchange were to occur the 10th November, write the Polish stock market Wednesday Parkiet Daily.
Warsaw Stock Exchange
The Warsaw Stock Exchange is the largest stock exchange in Eastern Europe. There are 384 companies on the exchange. 361 of them are domestic and 23 foreign. Roughly 1/3 of the market value of the WSE is based on the foreign companies’ value. The Warsaw Stock Exchange (WSE) operates based on the Act on Trading in Financial Instruments of July 29, 2005 under the supervision of the Polish Financial Supervision Authority http://www.gpw.pl/index.asp
September 30 Addendum
According to AVG CEO J.R. Smith in the September 29 edition of the Prague Post, there has been no decision to list shares of AVG Technologies on either the Warsaw or any other bourse.
"It's news to me," he said in response to reports by Reuters and the daily Hospodářské noviny that quoted unnamed sources. "The shareholders are always looking at options to get some liquidity. They weigh those decisions every day, but there has been no decision made by the shareholders or anyone else to list in Poland or Prague or anywhere else."
http://www.praguepost.com/business/5854-avg-boosts-product-ipo-vague.html
Public offering and high finance can have a sense of intrigue. Meanwhile, "Money Never Sleeps", the sequel to Michael Douglas's "Wall Street", opened last week in the United States and topped the box office. Gordon Gekko is back.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Internet Security 2011 – Rush To Release Part V
September 28 addendum - AVG 2011 should be available September 29.
October 8 Addendum - Link to PC Magazine AVG Internet Security 2011 Review AVG IS 2011 PC Magazine Review http://tinyurl.com/366n5mg
F-Secure has now joined the companies releasing their consumer Internet Security 2011 and Anti-virus 2011 solutions. The announcement for F-Secure Internet Security 2011 and F-Secure Anti-virus 2011 took place on September 15.
About F-Secure Internet Security 2011 and Anti-virus 2011
F-Secure promotes multi-layered protection with their F-Secure Internet Security 2011 product. They state that their Browsing Protection feature will warn you which sites are safe to enter. F-Secure utilizes multiple scanning engines for the antivirus protection.
F-Secure’s DeepGuard in the cloud protection is designed to provide instant protection again new threats. F-Secure DeepGuard 2.0 incorporates a feature called Network Lookups to enable instant protection against emerging threats. It detects when a Windows application is launched and F-Secure’s Network Look-up feature asks about the application. If “the cloud” replies that the application is good, it’s allowed.
Their products also relies on some local decision logic, so there is still protection, even when there is no working network connection.
PC Magazine’s Neil Rubenking gave F-Secure Internet Security an overall score of 3.0 out of 5. He liked the interface and the small footprint of the product. Overall, he felt that the security components were “good” and that the product had potential. He favored Kaspersky or Norton over F-Secure. However. Rudimentary found fault with the product's parental control and found that the test systems were sluggish at times.
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2369358,00.asp
F-Secure Anti-virus 2011 scored a slightly higher at 3.5 out of 5.0 with Rubenking complimenting the product for its cloud based and reputation based detection. http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2369143,00.asp
F-Secure Product Testing and Certification (2010 Releases)
F-Secure has received VB100 status for the last 4 recent tests it has submitted for. http://www.virusbtn.com/vb100/archive/results?display=summary . Its Internet Security 2010 product has been certified by ICSA Labs for both cleaning and detection - https://www.icsalabs.com/products?tid_1[]=4264&x=35&y=12&=Apply . ICSA Labs' web site - www.iscalabs.com
2011 Internet Security Solutions Released
The lines below contain feature checklists for a number of each of the company's products.
• BitDefender Total Security 2011 was released around August 16. For product details - http://www.bitdefender.com/solutions/total-security.
• Kaspersky - Kaspersky announced Kaspersky Internet Security 2011 on August 16 For product details -http://usa.kaspersky.com/products_services/compare/
• Panda Security – Panda Internet Security Suite 2011 was announced on July 27. For product details - http://www.pandasecurity.com/usa/homeusers/solutions/
• Webroot - Webroot Internet Security Complete 2011 was announced on July 26. For product details http://www.webroot.com/En_US/consumer-compare.html
• Symantec – Symantec introduced their Norton consumer security solutions in early September. For product details: http://www.symantec.com/norton/products/charts/comparison.jsp?pcid=mp
• Trend Micro - Trend Micro introduced their Titanium product line in early September. For product details: http:// Trend us.trendmicro.com/us/products/personal/titanium-maximum-security/ and click on “product comparison”
• F-Secure - F-Secure announced their internet security product line on September 15. For product details: http://www.f-secure.com/en_US/products/home-office/internet-security/ and then click on compare products.
2011 Internet Security Solutions That Haven’t Been Released
• AVG – Should be releasing the AVG 2011 product line around the end of September.
• McAfee – No official release date has been announced for the next release of McAfee Total Protection.
• Avast – No official release date has been announced.
• Avira – No official release data has been announced.
As an aside, AVAST Software gained its 130 millionth user at 7:52:52 (Central European Time) on September 7 according to a September 14 press release. http://www.avast.com/pr-avast-software-crosses-the-130-million-user-threshold
AVG Technologies’ Initial Public Offering (IPO)
No firm date from AVG Technologies as to when they will have their initial public offering. Originally slated for the London (UK) exchange, it may now take place on the Warsaw exchange and one other, in fact. This is according to a Reuters article dated September 15, “Czech AVG's IPO to be worth 400-800 mln EUR-sources” The Initial Public Offering may now take place in the first quarter of 2011. http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSWSF00947520100915
A September 12 Financial Times article where “bankers have signaled they are aiming for an autumn listing.” “UK tech sector poised for deal flurry” http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/eed0f540-be9c-11df-a755-00144feab49a.html
The August 13 issue of the IFR European ECM Briefing had mentioned the IPO taking place in Q3/Q4. They had listed the estimated capitalization in the range of US $300m-400m. It appears as if Q3 will not happen. http://www.ifrbriefings.com/examples/euro_ecm.pdf
The flurry of acquisitions over the summer – Intel acquiring McAfee, and Hewlett Packard acquiring 3Par (at a substantial premium) and Arcsight, may have motivated AVG to slow down the offering.
See also: "AVG Technologies Prepares To Go Public" http://kensek.blogspot.com/2010/07/avg-technologies-prepares-to-go-public.html
October 8 Addendum - Link to PC Magazine AVG Internet Security 2011 Review AVG IS 2011 PC Magazine Review http://tinyurl.com/366n5mg
F-Secure has now joined the companies releasing their consumer Internet Security 2011 and Anti-virus 2011 solutions. The announcement for F-Secure Internet Security 2011 and F-Secure Anti-virus 2011 took place on September 15.
About F-Secure Internet Security 2011 and Anti-virus 2011
F-Secure promotes multi-layered protection with their F-Secure Internet Security 2011 product. They state that their Browsing Protection feature will warn you which sites are safe to enter. F-Secure utilizes multiple scanning engines for the antivirus protection.
F-Secure’s DeepGuard in the cloud protection is designed to provide instant protection again new threats. F-Secure DeepGuard 2.0 incorporates a feature called Network Lookups to enable instant protection against emerging threats. It detects when a Windows application is launched and F-Secure’s Network Look-up feature asks about the application. If “the cloud” replies that the application is good, it’s allowed.
Their products also relies on some local decision logic, so there is still protection, even when there is no working network connection.
PC Magazine’s Neil Rubenking gave F-Secure Internet Security an overall score of 3.0 out of 5. He liked the interface and the small footprint of the product. Overall, he felt that the security components were “good” and that the product had potential. He favored Kaspersky or Norton over F-Secure. However. Rudimentary found fault with the product's parental control and found that the test systems were sluggish at times.
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2369358,00.asp
F-Secure Anti-virus 2011 scored a slightly higher at 3.5 out of 5.0 with Rubenking complimenting the product for its cloud based and reputation based detection. http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2369143,00.asp
F-Secure Product Testing and Certification (2010 Releases)
F-Secure has received VB100 status for the last 4 recent tests it has submitted for. http://www.virusbtn.com/vb100/archive/results?display=summary . Its Internet Security 2010 product has been certified by ICSA Labs for both cleaning and detection - https://www.icsalabs.com/products?tid_1[]=4264&x=35&y=12&=Apply . ICSA Labs' web site - www.iscalabs.com
2011 Internet Security Solutions Released
The lines below contain feature checklists for a number of each of the company's products.
• BitDefender Total Security 2011 was released around August 16. For product details - http://www.bitdefender.com/solutions/total-security.
• Kaspersky - Kaspersky announced Kaspersky Internet Security 2011 on August 16 For product details -http://usa.kaspersky.com/products_services/compare/
• Panda Security – Panda Internet Security Suite 2011 was announced on July 27. For product details - http://www.pandasecurity.com/usa/homeusers/solutions/
• Webroot - Webroot Internet Security Complete 2011 was announced on July 26. For product details http://www.webroot.com/En_US/consumer-compare.html
• Symantec – Symantec introduced their Norton consumer security solutions in early September. For product details: http://www.symantec.com/norton/products/charts/comparison.jsp?pcid=mp
• Trend Micro - Trend Micro introduced their Titanium product line in early September. For product details: http:// Trend us.trendmicro.com/us/products/personal/titanium-maximum-security/ and click on “product comparison”
• F-Secure - F-Secure announced their internet security product line on September 15. For product details: http://www.f-secure.com/en_US/products/home-office/internet-security/ and then click on compare products.
2011 Internet Security Solutions That Haven’t Been Released
• AVG – Should be releasing the AVG 2011 product line around the end of September.
• McAfee – No official release date has been announced for the next release of McAfee Total Protection.
• Avast – No official release date has been announced.
• Avira – No official release data has been announced.
As an aside, AVAST Software gained its 130 millionth user at 7:52:52 (Central European Time) on September 7 according to a September 14 press release. http://www.avast.com/pr-avast-software-crosses-the-130-million-user-threshold
AVG Technologies’ Initial Public Offering (IPO)
No firm date from AVG Technologies as to when they will have their initial public offering. Originally slated for the London (UK) exchange, it may now take place on the Warsaw exchange and one other, in fact. This is according to a Reuters article dated September 15, “Czech AVG's IPO to be worth 400-800 mln EUR-sources” The Initial Public Offering may now take place in the first quarter of 2011. http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSWSF00947520100915
A September 12 Financial Times article where “bankers have signaled they are aiming for an autumn listing.” “UK tech sector poised for deal flurry” http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/eed0f540-be9c-11df-a755-00144feab49a.html
The August 13 issue of the IFR European ECM Briefing had mentioned the IPO taking place in Q3/Q4. They had listed the estimated capitalization in the range of US $300m-400m. It appears as if Q3 will not happen. http://www.ifrbriefings.com/examples/euro_ecm.pdf
The flurry of acquisitions over the summer – Intel acquiring McAfee, and Hewlett Packard acquiring 3Par (at a substantial premium) and Arcsight, may have motivated AVG to slow down the offering.
See also: "AVG Technologies Prepares To Go Public" http://kensek.blogspot.com/2010/07/avg-technologies-prepares-to-go-public.html
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