Antivirus testing outfit: Microsoft Security Essentials makes the grade

[Howell, Paul]

At
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&;
articleId=9134753


Computerworld - Microsoft's free security software passed a preliminary
antivirus exam with flying colors, an independent testing company said
today.

AV-Test GmbH tested Microsoft Security Essentials, the free software
Microsoft launched yesterday in beta, on Windows XP, Vista and Windows
7, putting it up against nearly 3,200 common viruses, bot Trojans and
worms, said Andreas Marx, one of the firm's two managers. The malware
was culled from the most recent WildList, a list of threats actually
actively attacking computers.

"All files were properly detected and treated by the product," said Marx
in an e-mail. "That's good, as several other [antivirus] scanners are
still not able to detect and kill all of these critters yet."

AV-Test also measured Security Essentials against a set of in-house
false positives to see whether the software mistakenly fingers
legitimate files, a nightmare for users, who can be left with a crippled
computer, and a disaster to the reputation of a security company.

"None of the clean files were flagged as being malicious," noted Marx.
"Very good."

AV-Test also examined the program's anti-rootkit skills and its ability
to scrub a system of malware  is able to remove found malware very well,
but further tests against larger sets of samples are required before we
can come to a final conclusion."

Marx put to rest the once-rampant rumor that Security Essentials would
operate "in-the-cloud" by scanning PCs from Microsoft's servers. "The
scanner works with the locally-installed anti-virus and anti-spyware
databases -- it doesn't appear to use 'in-the-cloud scanning' methods,"
he said.

AV-Test's results will disappoint some rivals in the security market,
who yesterday knocked Microsoft's effort. "It just doesn't give you the
protection that you need," argued J.R. Smith, the CEO of AVG
Technologies, a company best-known for its free antivirus software.
"People aren't worried about antivirus anymore. Most of it is just
noise. [Security Essentials] will help, especially in emerging markets.
But it's centered around viruses, which the bad guys aren't really
pushing anymore."

Instead, cyber criminals increasingly rely on compromised Web sites to
hit incoming PCs with exploits against unpatched vulnerabilities, said
Smith. AVG packages LinkScanner, software that scans a URL for signs of
infection, with its paid products. A free version of LinkScanner can
also be downloaded from the AVG site.

Another noted antivirus testing lab, AV-Comparabives.org, said it would
formally test Security Essentials in August, and release its results the
next month.

Microsoft posted the beta of Microsoft Security Essentials to its site
yesterday, saying it would cap the downloads at 75,000, which it has
reached. As of early Wednesday, the site stated: "We are not accepting
additional participants at this time. Please check back at later a date
for possible additional availability."

The new software, formerly known as "Morro," replaces Windows Live
OneCare, the for-a-fee security package that Microsoft is tossing June
30.

Microsoft has not revealed a ship date for the software, but the
program's end-user licensing agreement (EULA) notes that it expires
Sept. 30 or when the program is released, whichever comes first.

It's likely that Microsoft will deliver Security Essentials before it
ships Windows 7, which is slated to debut Oct. 22.


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