AV software "too inconsistent"

**Glaswegian** · 06-08-2007, 02:24 PM

Anti-virus technologies are inconsistent when it comes to identifying attacks such as worms, phishing and botnets.

That's according to a report from the University of Michigan's Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Department and network security company Arbor Networks, antivirus products are inconsistent at best when it comes to identifying attacks such as worms, phishing and botnets.

http://www.techworld.com/security/ne...SS&NewsID=9095

**Kalim** · 06-09-2007, 12:05 AM

I can say malware defenses definitely are, no matter what you may have. Just found a keylogger that none of the conventional software blocked but Prevx 2.1 picked up on my system during a scan.

As for viruses, how can that be? I've not been infected (whilst having an AV installed) since ... ever.

And I use the Internet more than most do, 24/7 it's running on 3 systems here. But then again when you take an aggregate of many users, you start to generalize in many segments and overlook many important practices.

**Glaswegian** · 06-09-2007, 09:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kalim

But then again when you take an aggregate of many users, you start to generalize in many segments and overlook many important practices.

It's the old statistics thing again - either 99% of users are infected or 99% are clean...

**Cellus** · 06-09-2007, 11:13 AM

It is ridiculously difficult to provide protection for programs and operating systems in a strong and consistent manner for any real period of time. This is especially true with non-secure programming.

One thing to keep in mind is that you have some very intelligent and clever people on both sides of the fence and, more often than not, security is a reactionary game. Someone intelligent and/or clever comes up with a new way of defeating protection. Afterwards, someone else intelligent and/or clever comes up with a way of protecting against it.

Overall, with the vast capabilities and potential computing provides, there is an enormous amount of ground to cover. No security is perfect - it never will be. You will need to take an effort to protect your systems and networks as well as be aware.

I am not trying to be depressing, however this is the reality of it. If you try your best, stay informed, and practice good security you will most likely fare far better than many.

06-08-2007, 02:24 PM	#1 (permalink)
Glaswegian Moderator/ Rangemaster TSF Academy; Analyst, Security Team; Oor Wullie; TSF Surgeon and Resident Comic Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Glasgow Posts: 25,486 OS: Win XP Pro SP3 / Win 7 Pro My System Blog Entries: 10	AV software "too inconsistent" Anti-virus technologies are inconsistent when it comes to identifying attacks such as worms, phishing and botnets. That's according to a report from the University of Michigan's Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Department and network security company Arbor Networks, antivirus products are inconsistent at best when it comes to identifying attacks such as worms, phishing and botnets. http://www.techworld.com/security/ne...SS&NewsID=9095 __________________ Iain - Defender of the Haggis and all things Scottish. I don't help by PM - post in the Forums. PC Safety & Security::PC running a bit slow?::Donate::Photographers Corner

06-09-2007, 11:13 AM	#4 (permalink)
Cellus Moderator Networking Team Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Canada Posts: 2,664 OS: Windows Vista Business SP1, Windows XP Professional SP3 My System	Re: AV software "too inconsistent" It is ridiculously difficult to provide protection for programs and operating systems in a strong and consistent manner for any real period of time. This is especially true with non-secure programming. One thing to keep in mind is that you have some very intelligent and clever people on both sides of the fence and, more often than not, security is a reactionary game. Someone intelligent and/or clever comes up with a new way of defeating protection. Afterwards, someone else intelligent and/or clever comes up with a way of protecting against it. Overall, with the vast capabilities and potential computing provides, there is an enormous amount of ground to cover. No security is perfect - it never will be. You will need to take an effort to protect your systems and networks as well as be aware. I am not trying to be depressing, however this is the reality of it. If you try your best, stay informed, and practice good security you will most likely fare far better than many. __________________ TSF Networking Team Virus/Trojan/Spyware Removal Help Donate!

06-09-2007, 12:05 AM	#2 (permalink)
Kalim Roaming To Help Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 5,642 OS: Many	I can say malware defenses definitely are, no matter what you may have. Just found a keylogger that none of the conventional software blocked but Prevx 2.1 picked up on my system during a scan. As for viruses, how can that be? I've not been infected (whilst having an AV installed) since ... ever. And I use the Internet more than most do, 24/7 it's running on 3 systems here. But then again when you take an aggregate of many users, you start to generalize in many segments and overlook many important practices.