Security Essentials release creates expected storm of words.
Microsoft
‘s release of its free
Security Essentials
product this week sparked the expected barrage of views and opinions from all angles, from those hailing the release as the end of the AV industry to those slating the free product as inadequate and pointless.
The new release is designed as a pared-down, free-for-all replacement for the now defunct
OneCare
, and is intended to mitigate the global malware epidemic by providing protection to those least likely to have a solution in place. Users on lower incomes and in developing nations are hoped to be among those taking advantage of the free product, and its introduction should, its makers claim, reduce the number of infected systems pumping out spam and malicious attacks around the world. It is also hoped that the release will reduce the danger of ‘rogue AV’ scareware, which targets unprotected users in its attempts to con victims into installing its paid-for software, a threat currently rife on the internet.
While many have suggested that the appearance of
Security Essentials
on the scene may herald the demise of existing free-for-home-use solutions from the likes of
AVG
,
Alwil
(
avast!
), and
Avira
(
AntiVir
), and indeed the rest of the AV industry, others have pointed out the likelihood of healthy competition in the free AV market bringing increasing sophistication to these free products, while also encouraging those who have tried out free solutions to move up to more complete, full-featured products.
The suggestion that it will provide protection for the downtrodden masses has been countered with the argument that those with the urge to install free security have had plenty of options for some time, while those in less developed states, who are likely to be a major part of the botnet problem, are also likely to be running unofficial, unvalidated copies of
Windows
, which are not supported by the new
Microsoft
protection offering.
Initial reviews of the product have been generally favourable, with praise for its simple, pared-down design and usability, unobtrusive system impact and decent detection levels. The fact that the product shares a core engine and detection with
Microsoft
‘s corporate
Forefront
product – which has shown steady improvement in independent tests in recent years as
Microsoft
continues to invest in its security lines – bodes well for the product’s static detection abilities.
However, some commentators have criticised the apparent absence of advanced features such as dynamic detection, with one
Symantec
representative describing the solution as ‘behind the times’ after a set of test results showed
Norton
providing superior protection.
Microsoft
responded by insisting the product does include some sophisticated behavioural monitoring and reputation-based technology, and suggested that the solution is only intended as a component in an in-depth, multi-layer security regime.
“It seems unlikely that this release will revolutionise the security world the way some people have been suggesting,” said
John Hawes
, Technical Consultant at Virus Bulletin. “People aren’t going to stop investing in quality security suites with firewalls, intrusion prevention, spam filters and parental controls just because there’s another free bare-bones product available. However, with
Microsoft
‘s marketing weight behind it, it should hopefully find its way onto some of those untold millions of unprotected systems out there – it should provide decent protection for them and stop their systems spamming and attacking the rest of us. If
Microsoft
change their mind about not letting it run on pirated copies of
Windows
, it would make an even bigger difference.”
VB
will be providing an in-depth review of
Microsoft Security Essentials
in the November issue. Those interested in trying it out for themselves can find out more and download it from a
Microsoft
microsite
here
. Initial views and screenshots can be found in
The Register
here
, with summaries of an early test by
AV-Test.org
here
at
The Register
, at
ComputerWorld
here
and in the
Washington Post
here
.
More coverage is at
ZDNet
here
.
Symantec
‘s blog entry attacking
MSE
, including a link to the full test report from
Dennis Labs
, is
here
, with news coverage
here
and a response from
Microsoft
here
.
Posted on 02 October 2009 by
Virus Bulletin
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