Is Antivirus Software Ineffective?

[Petrovic]

How come those of us who have antivirus software sometimes still find ourselves victims of malware? Unfortunately, simply installing antivirus technology isn't enough to protect you and your devices. In their recent study, Lastline Labs decided to see if they could determine how fast anti-virus scanners could catch up with new malware.

The Woes of Antivirus TechnologyLastline Labs' malware researchers tested new malware they found from May 2013 to this year against 47 vendors that were featured in VirusTotal. VirusTotal is a website that provides free file checking for viruses, using up to 52 different antivirus products and scan engines to check for viruses that a user's own antivirus solution might have missed.

According to the study's results, most of the newly detected malware went undetected by nearly half of the antivirus vendors. After two months, one third of the antivirus scanners still failed to detect many of the malware samples. The malware that Lastline Labs dubbed "least likely to be detected" indeed went undetected by the majority of antivirus scanners for months, or was never detected at all. This malware is probably the advanced kind created and exploited by cybercriminals targeting larger organizations and businesses.

Only 51 percent of the antivirus scanners detected the malware samples found in the past year on the first day of the study. For malware samples that initially eluded all of the scanners, the average time for at least one to achieve detection was two days. None of the antivirus scanners had a perfect day in which they caught every new malware sample, but after two weeks there was an increase in detection rates. Ten percent of the scanners still do not detect certain malware samples.

The Next Steps ForwardLastline Labs concluded that standard antivirus technology should still be used, but needs to be complemented with other approaches, like network anomaly detection, that provides additional signals for finding security threats. Network anomaly detection continually monitors a network for unusual trends or behaviors, offering a helpful boost to traditional cybersecurity.

While the study warns users that antivirus technology isn't enough to combat emerging new malware, it's still a good idea to install it on your devices. There's a wide array of good options out there; one of the many we'd recommend is our Editors' Choice Bitdefender Antivirus Plus (2014). Antivirus technology might not provide total protection, but it's still a good tool to combat the malware it will find.
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[Deleted member 178]

There's a wide array of good options out there; one of the many we'd recommend is our Editors' Choice Bitdefender Antivirus Plus (2014). Antivirus technology might not provide total protection, but it's still a good tool to combat the malware it will find.

as i keep saying , Real-time modules of Avs are worthless against zero-days, what really protects you is their Proactive components ( HIPS, BB, Sandbox, etc...)

 

[yigido]

as i keep saying , Real-time modules of Avs are worthless against zero-days, what really protects you is their Proactive components ( HIPS, BB, Sandbox, etc...)

Good point Default Deny System

 

[John Elbert]

What I feel is that usually free version is much less effective than the paid version. While Microsoft Security Essentials instead of being free is quite good antivirus protection. But it is not that much effective for malware as it is an antivirus program. I have purchased paid version of Optimo AV. This is actually a good security shield against malware and adware, since its installation I didn't encounter any of such problems.

 

[yigido]

What I feel is that usually free version is much less effective than the paid version. While Microsoft Security Essentials instead of being free is quite good antivirus protection. But it is not that much effective for malware as it is an antivirus program. I have purchased paid version of Optimo AV. This is actually a good security shield against malware and adware, since its installation I didn't encounter any of such problems.

Why did you pay for it ? If you want to pay there are better and better options on the AV market.

 

[Littlebits]

I like how they add the commercial for BitDefender (Editors' Choice) at the end of the article after stating that none offer good protection. In other words it can't protect you but go ahead but buy it anyway and waste your money.

Never fully depend on any AV no matter what rating they receive from AV tests or reviews.

Thanks.

 

[Malware1]

What I feel is that usually free version is much less effective than the paid version. While Microsoft Security Essentials instead of being free is quite good antivirus protection. But it is not that much effective for malware as it is an antivirus program. I have purchased paid version of Optimo AV. This is actually a good security shield against malware and adware, since its installation I didn't encounter any of such problems.

@John Elbert
You lost your money. Optimo AV uses ClamAV engine which is free.

 

[Cats-4_Owners-2]

I like how they add the commercial for BitDefender (Editors' Choice) at the end of the article after stating that none offer good protection. In other words it can't protect you but go ahead but buy it anyway and waste your money.

Never fully depend on any AV no matter what rating they receive from AV tests or reviews.

Thanks.

Agreed.
..and whatever you do, do not give them your credit card number even if Britney Spears shows up on your doorstep offering you free pizza!