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Anti-Virus Effectiveness Down from Last Year

Posted by Soulskill on from the getting-worse-at-getting-better dept.

juct sends us Heise Security's summary of an article detailing the abilities of 17 current anti-virus solutions. German computer magazine c't has found that, compared to last year, the virus scanners are having a more difficult time recognizing malware. Quoting Heise: "For real protection, however, in view of the flood of new malware, the way these programs cope with new and completely unfamiliar attacks is more important. And that's where almost all of the products performed significantly worse than just a year ago. The typical recognition rates of their heuristics fell from approximately 40-50 per cent in the last test - at the beginning of 2007 - to a pitiful 20-30 per cent."

2 of 201 comments (clear)

  1. Class Action risk from using Microsoft's Products by NZheretic · · Score: -1, Flamebait
    What of the risk to Microsoft's own customers from continuing to use Microsoft's demonstratively more insecure products?

    If a business or government body is not taking due care with the private information they hold on the public which could lead to identity theft then they are at risk of being sued.

    Get copies of the antivirus scanner logs from any business or governmental for their desktops and laptops. You will have a large list of all the malware that was cleaned up post infection. That malware was actually executed and run on the same computers handling your sensitive data. Some of that malware even exploited vulnerabilities in Microsoft applications and operating system prior to an update fix being made available by Microsoft.

    In comparison to any MacOSX or Linux based desktop, Microsoft's desktop operating systems and Microsoft's desktop applications face a disproportionate higher risk of being "infected" with hostile malware. Just relying on third party antivirus software to prop up a Microsoft flagging security record in no way puts you any closer to the level of security that a switch to another vendors desktop platform can provide. ( Just updating to Vista is no guarantee of better security in comparison to another vendors platform )

    A business or government body is not taking due care with the private information they hold on the public if they continue to use Microsoft desktop OS environments or Microsoft desktop applications. That is your credit card data, banking details , health care info and social security information. If switching to Linux or MacOSX based desktops would greatly reduce the risk of further intrusion why should not organizations be "encouraged" to make the move.

    If anyones customers are at greater risk of being sued for using a product it is Microsoft's own customers.

  2. Re:where are all the Linux server exploits .. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Flamebait

    Hahahaha... Thank you for giving such an honest response. Being a linux zealot - yes, I am, hate you M$ fags - I know for a fact it doesn't matter what you run, the real issue with security is the PEOPLE USING THE FUCKING SYSTEMS. Wake up world. You are the problem. Not the computer.

    Install linux, I dare you, oh noes, you gotzor a virii.

    If your computer was a game you would have in big red letters... PWNT!

    Enjoy.