August 2005 — Features
Print this article | Email this articleClick here to receive your FREE subscription to T.H.E. Journal
How to Keep Your Campus Safe from Infection
The problem is that these malicious programs technically are not spyware either, so they are not detected by any of the spyware programs I have tested. And until these programs are removed, a computer user’s system will become overloaded with spyware and will eventually cease to be functional. For instance, I once saw a computer that had more than 300 processes running simultaneously, and took more than 20 minutes just to bring up the Task Manager. In the information security age, antivirus programs that do not detect these spyware/virus crossbreeds simply won't cut it. Users need a complete antivirus solution combined with a good spyware solution with real-time protection. See my results and you tell me where the real threat is.
The Setup
The antivirus software programs were tested on a fully patched Windows XP Professional machine loaded with Service Pack 2 and the latest software versions and definitions from each company. Only consumer products having some presence in the US (or at least I thought they did prior to testing) were tested. I did not read any manuals. Like most of you, I just want to install my antivirus product and know that I am protected so that I can continue with my chosen activity. The following products were tested on the same night. The viruses were then e-mailed that same night to each company (using a distribution list). Exactly a week later, I updated all antivirus definitions and retested; those results follow as well.
Additional supporting charts and graphs:
- Success Rate of Products
- Amount of Memory Used When Resident Protection is Idle
- Viruses Detected Before Submission
- Viruses Detected One Week After Submission With Updated Definitions
- Number of Viruses Each Company Added to Their Definition Files in the Testing Week
Antivirus Software Vendor Breakdown
Web site: www.sophos.com
Local office: Lynnfield, MA
Virus samples: support@sophos.com
Download file size: 14.5MB
Support: 800-355-3220 (24/7)
Comments: This program has very few options, no manual update, and no way to unload from memory, which may or may not be a bad thing. It d'es have an option to scan for Mac viruses. However, it did lock up when extracting my zipped viruses, which made testing tough. The program is also fairly resource-intensive. When I called on a Saturday night, a technician answered the phone and was very helpful. He e-mailed me a nice script to help capture new viruses. It stated that they do not detect any Trojans used for spyware. This product has no online update service. When I downloaded the new definitions dated November, it was only the third week in October.
