Best Security Software

2010 Internet Security Smackdown!

This year's contenders------slug it out for the top spot.

Is there such a thing as "the best security software"? The answer doesn't depend on opinions, vendors' claims, or how much money is in it for the reviewer. Only independent tests by large testing firms can shed enough light for real comparisons. Read up on this on the Internet Security Reviews page.

What's more, just installing a security product on your Windows PC doesn't allow you to just sit back, smoke a stogie, and bask in the imperviousness of your fortified computer. There's a LOT more to security and that's what this site is all about. You need to learn how to LOCK DOWN your computer from the evil side of the Internet. Check out the Best Internet Security pages for more information.

There are literally thousands of new security threats released on the Internet EVERY DAY and you could become a victim in the next heartbeat. All of us know more than one person who has lost everything to some bloody virus turning their computer into a paperweight. More on this in the Internet Security Threats section.

The table below only includes products that were tested by three big, independent testing labs. There were others that were not tested by all three labs but may be just as effective. More on that process at the Independent Testing Labs and Triple E Key Awards pages.

I like Internet Suites that include antivirus, antispyware, and a firewall. You can certainly get more features in some packages but these three are essential in my view. So, take a look around and enjoy your visit here at best-security-software.com

Update: On June 5th, 2010, AV Comparatives released the Retrospective test for the products it tested in February 2010. This affects the scores for the "blocking" category below. This caused GDATA and Avira to swap places. Don't read too much into it though. The difference is only 10 points. They're both good products but Avira improved enough in this test to climb up a step.

Triple E Key Award   ?	#1 Platinum Key	#2 Gold Key	#3 Silver Key
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Product	Norton Internet Security 2010	F-Secure Internet Security 2010	Kaspersky Internet Security 2010
Effective AV-Test	Detection: 98% FP: Almost None Blocking: 92.8% FP: None	Detection: 85.8% FP: Almost None Blocking: 80.2% FP: None	Detection: 97.5% FP: Few Blocking: 89.8% FP: Few
Effective AV-Comparatives	On-demand: Advanced+ On-access: Advanced	On-demand: Advanced+ On-access: Advanced+	On-demand: Advanced+ On-access: Advanced+
Effective Virus Bulletin	VB100 (Win 7): Pass VB100 (Vista): Pass	VB100 (Win 7): Pass VB100 (Vista): Pass	VB100 (Win 7): Pass VB100 (Vista): Pass
Easy	Install/Remove: A Setup & Use: A Get Help: A-	Install/Remove: A Setup & Use: A Get Help: A-	Install/Remove: A Setup & Use: A- Get Help: B
Efficient	System Drag: B+ Cost: B	System Drag: B Cost: A	System Drag: B Cost: B
Written Review	Go to review	Go to review	Go to review
Prices	3 computer license: $69.99	3 computer license: $59.99	3 computer license: $79.95
Operating Systems	Win 7, Vista, XP	Win 7, Vista, XP	Win 7, Vista, XP

Winners	#4	#5	#6
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Product	Avira Premium Security 9.0	G-DATA Internet Security 2010	McAfee Internet Security 2010
Effective AV-Test	Detection: 87.7% FP: Many Blocking: 87.2% FP: None	Detection: 90% FP: Many Blocking: 83.0% FP: Few	Detection: 87.2% FP: Few Blocking: 86.7% FP: None
Effective AV-Comparatives	On-demand: Advanced On-access: Advanced+	On-demand: Advanced+ On-access: Advanced+	On-demand: Advanced On-access: Standard
Effective Virus Bulletin	VB100 (Win 7): Pass VB100 (Vista): Pass	VB100 (Win 7): Pass VB100 (Vista): Pass	VB100 (Win 7): Pass VB100 (Vista): Pass
Easy	Install/Remove: B Setup & Use: B Get Help: B	Install/Remove: B Setup & Use: A Get Help: B	Install/Remove: B Setup & Use: A Get Help: B
Efficient	System Drag: B Cost: B	System Drag: B Cost: A+	System Drag: B Cost: A
Written Review	Go to review	Go to review	Go to review
Prices	3 computer license: $79.95	3 computer license: $39.95	3 computer license: $44.99
Operating Systems	Win 7, Vista, XP	Win 7, Vista, XP	Win 7, Vista, XP

Winners	#7	#8
Image			Theses eight Internet security suites were included in all three lab tests. Of course, there are others that may be just as effective but were not included in all three tests and you should definitely try them out. This is intended as a starting point only.
Product	AVG Internet Security 2010	BitDefender Internet Security 2010
Effective AV-Test	Detection: 92.2% FP: Few Blocking: 84.2% FP: Few	Detection: 84.3% FP: Few Blocking: 77.8% FP: None
Effective AV-Comparatives	On-demand: Advanced On-access: Advanced	On-demand: Advanced+ On-access: Advanced+
Effective Virus Bulletin	VB100 (Win 7): Pass VB100 (Vista): Pass	VB100 (Win 7): Fail VB100 (Vista): Pass
Easy	Install/Remove: B Setup & Use: B Get Help: A	Install/Remove: A Setup & Use: B Get Help: B
Efficient	System Drag: B Cost: B	System Drag: B Cost: A
Written Review	Go to review	Go to review
Prices	3 computer license: $68.99	3 computer license: $49.95
Operating Systems	Windows 7, Vista, XP	Windows 7, Vista, XP

Legend: FP = False Positives

Best Security Software

"What is the most over-hyped topic in the security field? It's a serious problem with our industry. Companies emerge selling one thing: firewalls, public key infrastructure, biometric login, or whatever. In order for them to convince customers, as many as possible, to buy their stuff, they have to over-hype it. They have to claim that their solution is the one solution everyone needs. " -- Bruce Schneier from the article at csoonline.com