Secunia suite trial slates lack of PoC detection, but test methods called into question.
Vulnerability specialist
Secunia
published the results of a trial of internet security suites this week, with stark findings showing very poor detection rates of the selection of exploits and proof-of-concept overruns used. However, the test has run into considerable criticism from several angles.
Secunia
‘s test focused on 300 known vulnerabilities, around half of them based on file types and the other half based on web pages. These were represented mostly by payload-free proof-of-concept attacks designed to trigger vulnerabilities, and in some cases prove that code execution could be achieved, while some fully fledged exploits were also included. A dozen ‘Internet Security’ suites were lined up and set to scan the files and web pages in question, and of them only
Symantec
‘s
Norton
product put in any kind of a performance, achieving just over 20% of all samples and just over 30% of those deemed ‘important’. No other product detected more than 2.5% of the full testset, or better than 4% of the most dangerous items.
In the wake of the test’s publication, a range of criticisms have been levelled at
Secunia
, mostly focusing on the test methodology, which many claim failed to properly exercise any of the protection features included in these suites beyond the basic anti-virus scanner. Many product developers have claimed that if the vulnerabilities had actually been triggered, rather than scanned statically, other technologies would have kicked in to block any resulting exploits, and that in many cases payloads would be more likely to be blocked than the first stages of exploitation.
Others have criticised the lack of clarity and openness about how the testing was carried out, and some have seen the whole business as a stunt to promote
Secunia
‘s own vulnerability scanning products and services. A blogger at
Kaspersky Lab
points out
that it is a far better policy to patch vulnerabilities as soon as they are discovered, rather than leaving holes open and relying on other software to block anything that tries to wriggle through, an angle which
Kaspersky
‘s integrated vulnerability scanner, like those offered by
eEye Blink
and
BitDefender
, attempts to cover.
Secunia
representatives themselves claim, in a blog entry announcing their results, that there is a serious lack of proper and timely patching among home users and businesses alike.
Full details of the
Secunia
test are published in a PDF
here
, with some comment from the company
here
. Further comment is in
The Register
here
, on the
Sunbelt
blog
here
or at
Panda
here
.
Posted on 17 October 2008 by
Virus Bulletin
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