Prevention is always better than cure. No computers should be without security software to protect against virus or digital attack - that could potentially wreck your data, or steal the passwords or credit card numbers from your system.
The Consumer Council, in collaboration with the International Consumer Research and Testing (ICRT), has found mixed performance in its latest test on 17 internet security software.
Some were clearly better than the others in such essential features as anti-malware (which prevents threats of malicious software from infecting your computer), anti-phishing (which blocks fraudulent websites designed to trick you into parting your personal information), and firewall (which prevents hackers accessing your computer and therefore your data).
Security software come in two main types; covered in the test were 13 pay security software suites and 4 free anti-malware products.
The former are usually with more functions such as firewall, anti-phishing, parental control and anti-spam, and from $199 to $535 a year; while the latter with basic functions of anti-virus and anti-spyware, and available for free download for personal non-commercial use.
The samples were evaluated and rated on the basis of ease of use (15%), resource use (10%), anti-malware performance (60%), and firewall performance (15%). Accordingly, the samples were rated between 2.5 and 4 points, on a scale of 5.
There were good performers in the pay security software as well as in the free category. Consumers can consult the test report for choice. Highlights of the report include:
All samples were shown to slow down computer boot-up by 2.7 to 18.7 seconds (9% to 61%) from the original 30.7 seconds. Four samples which prolonged boot-up time by 40% or more were given low scores.
In the file copy test, most performed satisfactorily but 2 samples disappointingly slowed down file copy by more than 90%.
The software were checked if they could detect in advance and efficiently block malware (i.e. malicious software) to the computer. Two samples were found obviously inadequate and inefficient in such protection.
The samples were also assessed how quickly they could react to new threats and release signature update. Four samples required 5 days or more on average to include new emerged malware in their database; such performance was deemed unsatisfactory.
In the URL (Universal Resource Locater) protection test, the samples were assessed for their efficiency to block online malware and phishing websites. Three samples stood out, with ability to block more than 83% of such websites.
For firewall performance, some samples were good performers but some fell far short of users' expectation - in some cases the performance was less than the built-in firewall provided by the Windows 7 operating system.
No internet security software can guarantee 100% safe. Some guidelines for consumers on their daily computer usage are recommended:
- Update security software frequently; when patches or new virus definition are uncovered by software developers, install the patches or update the software as soon as possible.
- Do not download or execute any suspicious file; be extra careful of suspicious files or data and deactivate those active contents such as ActiveX, JavaScript.
- Set up strong password in critical application. It is advisable to use different passwords for different applications and accounts such as e-banking. Use data encryption as much as possible especially for some sensitive data transfer.
- Be cautious about fraudulent e-mail and advertisement; be aware of those unsolicited e-mail and advertisements. Do not register with any personal information or click on any link attached.
- Take back-ups for data or files on a regular basis so that users can recover important system or personal files even when their computer is infected by viruses or attacked by hackers.
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- 2014.04.15