AV Comparatives Performance Test – Impact of Security Software on System Performance Report October 2015

AV Comparatives has released their Performance Test – Impact of Security Software on System Performance Report. Nineteen products were tested. Eleven products received three stars.  The top three products were in order,  Avira, Avast, and Kaspersky.   Congrats to these three!  Products tested were a combination of free and paid, antivirus, and internet security suites.  The hall of shame award for this test  goes to Fortinet and ThreatTrack; both received one star.  Windows 10 systems were used during the test.

Note that this test doesn’t test  an ability to protect against malware. For that, you would have to look at other tests by AV-Comparatives. In a tie-breaking situation between a few products that performed equally well at stopping and removing malware, the performance test could be a tiebreaker. 

To access the and download the report:  http://www.av-comparatives.org/performance-tests/ 

www.AV-Comparatives.org  used  the performance testing suite PC Mark 8 Professional, to measure system impact for the  test.

AV-Comparatives File Detection Test – September 2015

Av-Comparatives prolific team of writers and testers has released their File Detection Test – September 2015. Nine products received three stars. Avira and BitDefender topped the 21 products in the test.   Their false positive rate was only 0.2%. Other companies receiving three stars, in alphabetical order, were Bullguard, Emisoft, eScan, ESET, Kaspersky, Lavasoft, and Panda.  You can download the report  to see the actual order.

ESET, Microsoft, and Panda had zero false positives The hall of shame award for this test goes to AVG Technologies with a false positive rate 32 times larger Avira and Bitdefender, at 6.5%, (139 false positives).

About the AV-Comparatives  File Detection Test

The awards for the File Detection Test were based on a combination of detection rates and false positives.   The File Detection Test assesses the ability of antivirus programs to detect malicious files on a system. It can identify malware attacks from sources other than the Internet, and it  can identify  malicious files already present on the system.

 “With more than 130000 samples in the test, AV-Comparatives uses one of the largest sample collection worldwide to provide statistically valid results”, according to AV-Comparatives’ Andreas Clementi.

ABC Award for the  File Detection Test

The ABC award (Avoids Being Compared) goes to Symantec. The File Detection Test  is one of the core tests the organization performs. Companies cannot choose which of these core tests to be in. It's all or none.  The ABC award is not part of AV-Comparatives’ test   program!

The document can be downloaded at:    

http://www.av-comparatives.org/comparatives-reviews/ 

The  file detection rate of a product is only one aspect of a complete anti-virus product. AV-Comparatives also provides a whole-product dynamic “real-world” protection test, as well as other test reports that cover different aspects/features of the products.  For those interested, you can easily do a deep dive into individual company’s historical performances on tests or sign up for the newsletter.   Check them out.  Other documents are available for download from the AV-comparatives website  (www.av-comparatives.org ) website.

AV-Comparatives Malware Removal Test – September 2015

AV-Comparatives has released the results of their AV-Comparatives Malware Removal Test for 2015. Products tested were a combination of free and paid solutions.  Sixteen products were tested. Five received three stars or the Advanced Plus award. Kaspersky topped the list. BitDefender was third and the three “A’s”, Avast, AVG Technologies and Avira, rounded out the three star recipients.

AV-Comparatives Malware Removal Test

The Malware Removal Test focused only on the malware removal/cleaning capabilities of the products. The report was written with home users in mind and not administrators or advanced users.  These individuals  may have the knowledge and tools for removal of malware on the system.  To compare products for their protection and detection capabilities, you may want to download AV-Comparatives “Real World Protection Test” and “File Detection Test”.

The ABC or “Avoids Being Compared” Award

More data and testing by an unbiased test group help   consumers make an informed decision when selecting products to secure their devices.  The number of likes on a product’s web site doesn’t cut it for security when licensing  a product.  Comparative testing also motivates companies to improve their products.  It’s disappointing when companies decline to be tested.

For the AV-Comparatives Malware Removal Test, the ABC Award or “Avoids Being Compared” Award goes to Symantec, McAfee, and Trend Micro. All three of these companies have solutions with sizeable share in the antivirus/internet security consumer marketplace.  Perhaps they will step up for the next test. McAfee and Trend Micro are usually there. Symantec? Not so much.

The Malware Removal Test  document is located at  http://www.av-comparatives.org/removal-tests/

All of AV-Comparatives’ tests can be found at www.av-comparatives.org

When Being an “A” Company Rates a “D”. AV-Comparatives Releases “File Detection Test of Malicious Software” Report

Not a stellar performance by three firms beginning with A in AV-Comparatives March “File Detection Test of Malicious Software.”  Avast – 20th, missing 2.3% of the samples.  AVG Technologies – 21^st, misses 2.5% of the samples, and AhnLab 22^nd, missing 11% of the samples.  Baidu broke the A’s stranglehold on the bottom by leading all companies with 111 false positives, followed by Avast with 95.

Sixteen products did receive AV-Comparatives’ three star designation, led by Kaspersky, F-Secure, and eScan, respectively.  Avira, another A company, also received three stars. 

AV-Comparatives takes care to point out that for this test, “Although very important, the file detection rate of a product is only one aspect of a complete anti-virus product.  AV-Comparatives also   provides a whole-product dynamic “real-world” protection test, as well as other test reports that cover different aspects/features of the products”.

 

The “Whole Product Dynamic Real World Detection" and “File Detection Test of Malicious Software”  tests   are both   available on the AV-Comparatives web site, www.av-comparatives.org

One interesting thing about the products tested in this report is that nine of the engines under the hood in testing were licensed from two companies, BitDefender and Avira.  Details are available in the report.  BitDefender  has an overall detection rate of 99.5%.

About AV-Comparatives

AV-Comparatives is an independent not-for-profit organization offering systematic testing that checks whether security software, such as PC/Mac-based antivirus products and mobile security solutions, lives up to its promises.  Using one of the largest sample collections worldwide, it creates a real-world environment for truly accurate testing. 

AV-Comparatives File Detection Test of Malicious Software - March 2013

Test group AV-Comparatives has released their March 2013 File Detection of Malicious Software report.  Ten pages of nice reading.  The three star performers, in order, were Avira, F-Secure, BitDefender, BullGuard, and Kaspersky.  Congratulations to these five vendors for their performance!  G Data had the top detection rate, 99.9% but suffered in their overall performance due to false positives.  ESET finished 17^th in detection rate, which may have precipitated  their drop in the standings.  The only free product in the test was from Panda. 

There was some movement from the av-comparatives 2012 summary report.  The companies receiving Top Rated designation were,  in alphabetical order - Avast, Avira, Bitdefender, BullGuard, ESET, F-Secure, G DATA, and Kaspersky.  

The company with products in the yellow box, otherwise known as Symantec, was included in this report.  This was the first time in a long while.  Suffice it to say, Symantec has nowhere to go but up, finishing in the “tested” (not even one star) category.  They had the lowest detection rate of all products tested.  Shout out to CEO Steve Bennett; that is okay.  Next test. Eva, get those engineers out of the cloud and working on the engine and file detection ;)

What this report is showing is that the products with the most name brand recognition are not always the top performers.  Trend Micro only received one star, and McAfee two stars.  Average these scores with Symantec and you get one star out of three.  Ouch.  For the complete report, you will have to go to the www.av-comparatives.org  web site. 

Tests such as these are much more valuable than  looking at  “likes” on a company web site. People should look at the av-test and Virus Bulletin web site.  PC Magazine does extensive testing, as well.  Put something on your device.  You don’t have to install a toolbar to get a price break.  Look, also, for installing (in addition) one of the free products that helps protect you while surfing the web.  McAfee, Zone Labs, Blue Coat, are among the vendors providing these.  You may want to install an internet security product for more comprehensive protection than that provided by an antivirus product.

  

About AV-comparatives     www.av-comparatives.org

AV-Comparatives is an Austrian Non-Profit-Organization.  They provide independent Antivirus software tests free to the public.  Go to their website to view all the great comparative reports and surveys they publish.  A great number of their reports are free.

AV-Comparatives IT Security Survey 2013

AV-Comparatives released their IT Security Survey 2013.  It’s an interesting read for those following consumer antivirus and internet security providers.  Consumer AV and Internet Security providers may want to use some of the results to help them work on their next release instead of feature creep.  I’m going to mention some of the highlights but people really need to download the report

Market Share  

First – congratulations to the market share leaders in each portion of the world.

• Europe – Avast
• North America – Microsoft 
• Asia - Kaspersky
• South/Central America – Avast

In the global battle of the three A’s, the order was the same in every section of the world – (1) Avast (2) Avira (3) AVG Technologies.  Avast finished no lower than third in any section of the world, and Avira no lower than fifth.  AVG Technologies finished eight, eight, eight,  and seventh.  Therefore, Avast wins the Czech crown as well.

With the exception of Symantec finishing in second in North America, neither they nor McAfee fared very well in the market share report portion of the survey. People may want to look at this portion of the report with the market share reports from OPSWAT.

Kaspersky, who has their eyes on overtaking Trend Micro in the overall revenue race, topped Trend Micro in all regions of the world, including finishing first in Trend’s home turf in Asia.  That has to be a major ouch for Trend Micro.  You don’t lose in your own house. 

Testing

The top tests respondents were interested  in were  Malware Detection (83%) followed by “Real World” protection (64%).  Respondents got to pick four.  Engine developers - you now know your priorities.

Confidence in Test Labs

On a scale of 1 to 5, only three labs scored over four with the respondents, AV-Comparatives, Virus Bulleting, and AV-Test.  TopTenReviews was the only lab to score under 2.  Folks, you can remove that link as one of your favorites if you have it there.  People were only to rate labs that they were aware of. 

Confidence in Magazine Reviews

No publication scored over 3.5 on this.  The top 4.  CNET, PC World, Computerworld, and PC Magazine all scored over  3.3, a narrow band. 

What’s Important to You in a Security Product?

The top three, with none over 65% - Good detection rate (without having to be online), good malware removal, low impact on system performance (the gamers speak).  These results may not speak well for pure cloud solutions.  The bottom two – many customizable features (15%), and well –known product/software vendor (5.6%).  Symantec, McAfee, Trend Micro – take a look at your branding budget.  Those billboards on 101 in Silicon Valley may not be doing much for you ;).  People were to pick five out of fifteen.

What Does this Mean for the Vendors? 

Vendors - Detection rate!  Malware removal/cleaning!  Performance!  Nowhere in the survey did users ask for more features.  Customizability scored low.   You may want to rethink adding additional features to your antivirus or internet security product. I’d curtail  the development of the second, third, or fourth internet security suite.

Reduce/remove unnecessary gimmicks from the products (toolbars, registry cleaners, etc) which do not strictly belong on a security product scored six out of fifteen.  Hey, vendors with toolbar (?) checked yes, and/or make removable difficult.  A chance to earn some customer points.  Wait, a second, you revenue share with other vendors such as Google or Yahoo on the toolbar.  Never mind.

So how does   the above correlate to how well a product catches malware?

Another good read is AV-Comparatives Summary Report 2012, issued in December.  The top product – Bitdefender.  Gang, check it out.  The top rated products in alphabetical order were from Avast, Avira, BitDefender, BullGuard, ESET, F-Secure, G Data, and Kaspersky.  Some names for you folks to check out when your subscription is up for renewal or take advantage of a store’s “Free with competitive upgrade!” offer.  You may want to listen to your Facebook friends when it comes down to where to eat.  Unlike when it comes to what antivirus or internet security software to buy.  Trust no one owning a brass monkey. 

Download both reports.  They’re great reading.

About AV-Comparatives   www.av-comparatives.org  

AV-Comparatives is an Austrian Non-Profit-Organization.  They provide independent Anti-Virus software tests free to the public.  Go to the AV-comparatives website for complete details about the organization, the many tests they perform, and to download copies of test reports. 

Whole Product Dynamic Real World Protection Test – December 2012

It’ll be a few months before AV-Comparatives has a multi-month compilation for this test.  For the month of December though, Trend Micro topped all vendors with a score of 100%.  Congratulations to them!

The top five for the month were:

1. Trend Micro
2. BitDefender
3. F-Secure
4. G Data
5. Kaspersky

Among the best-known vendors known for their freemium products, Avira topped the field.  For the freemium vendors:

09. Avira  

14. Avast (Wins bragging rights for the Czech Republic for the month)

16. Panda

17. AVG Technologies

19. PC Tools (owned by Symantec)

As always, the Whole Product Real World Protection Test is one test.  Individuals or companies evaluating the ability of products to detect and capture malware should visit www.av-comparatives.org , www.virusbtn.com , and www.av-test.org    to view the results of other tests.  These   organizations   use relatively large samples in testing, which improves the legitimacy of the results.  All are more valid than the number of likes on a Facebook fan page.  There is more to product quality than a number of "likes" on a Facebook fan page.

Webroot isn't fond of most real world tests, commenting in a July blog “Webroot Bulletin Regarding AV-Comparatives Results" that,  "Currently most “Real World” tests rely on automation and AV scanners are only given a single chance at detection before the test system is reverted for the next round of testing.  Unfortunately this testing model doesn’t give WSA a chance to leverage our unique cloud approach as it has a very static view of the files being tested.”  They also stated that, "Webroot continues to drive innovation in our products though this isn’t always met with equal innovation in the testing process."  To read the complete blog, go to, http://blog.webroot.com/2012/07/19/webroot-bulletin-regarding-av-comparatives-results/

About AV-comparatives     www.av-comparatives.org

AV-Comparatives is an Austrian Non-Profit-Organization, which is providing independent Antivirus software tests free to the public.  Go to their website to view all the great comparative reports and surveys they publish.  

PC World Internet Security 2013 Showdown – Mashup with AV-Test and AV-Comparatives

PC World has published their test of  Internet Security 2013 products.  Kudos to F-Secure finishing on top with 4.5 stars in the review!!! Symantec/Norton, Trend Micro, and Bit Defender finished second through fourth, also with 4.5 stars in the PC World showdown.Other factors weighed in to determine the placings. Individual reviews are available.   AVG Technologies Internet Security 2013  and Avira Internet Security 2013  had their products finish in eighth and ninth respectively with 3.5 stars.  Companies with products in the PC World Test – Norton, F-Secure, Trend Micro, BitDefender, Kaspersky, Avira, G Data,  and AVG Technologies.

In a mash­-up with AV-Test.org January test results and AV-Comparative.org results from their “September File Detection Test 2012”, F-Secure Internet Security, Trend Micro Titanium Internet Security, and BitDefender Internet Security were the top  products.  Symantec was ineligible since they were not tested by AV-Comparatives last year.  Symantec wanted to choose which test s to participate in.  Companies had to agree to participate in all so…. Perhaps they will man up this year under their new CEO!  Products tested by AV-Test.org were Internet Security solutions and by AV-Comparatives, Antivirus solutions. The last column is the average of the rankings in the previous tests.

Table of Results

In the AV-Test.org test, several times, products had the same score. Since Symantec didn't participate in the AV-Comparative.org test, they were removed from the above table.

It’s kind of disappointing that the Internet Security products from freemium vendors finished eighth and ninth.  

From the PC World Individual Test Reports 

 PC stated about F-Secure, “With excellent protection and a user-friendly interface, F-Secure is definitely worth a look.  This security package adds a little extra weight to your system, but if you can get past those performance issues, it’s a great program.”

“AVG Internet Security 2013 is a perfectly respectable antivirus program with a great new top-level user interface.  But that’s the problem—in these malware tests, “perfectly respectable” doesn’t quite cut it and we saw several programs that outdid AVG at nearly every turn.”  The AVG Technology solution also had the lowest detection rate of the products tested.

“At the end of the day, Avira Internet Security 2013 is a competent antivirus program.  But being merely competent isn’t a great thing, especially when it’s combined with an interface that's for advanced users only.”

The following link takes you to the article, “Security software showdown!  9 antivirus suites empirically tested.”  From here, you can also reach links for detailed reports about all nine products tested.  http://www.pcworld.com/article/2025949/security-software-showdown-9-antivirus-suites-empirically-tested.html

Read the individual test reports, as well as Neil Rubenking and his test reports in PC Magazine. Beware the thumbs of   Facebook friends. Not the best way to select your security solution. Save James Surowiecki's    "wisdom of crowds" for something else.

 

About AV-comparatives.org     www.av-comparatives.org

AV-Comparatives is an Austrian Non-Profit-Organization.  They provide independent Antivirus software tests free to the public.  Go to their website to view all the great comparative reports and surveys they publish.  A great number of their reports are free.

About AV-Test.org http://www.av-test.org

 

The AV-TEST Institute is a leading international and independent service provider in the fields of IT security and anti-virus research.  The aim of the research work carried out by AV-TEST is to directly detect the latest malware, to analyze it using state-of-the-art methods and to inform their customers of the top-quality results obtained.