Defense against 12,000 samples of zero-day malware as well as other malicious software

The test setup is relatively straightforward and easy to understand. The performance of each security solution is evaluated in two parts. The first part is the real-world test, which examines how well the products detect and fend off brand-new malware 500 times. The second part uses a reference set of recently detected malware, and the packages need to detect, block and eradicate the malware 24,000 times.

The lab performs these tests over the course of 2 months, once a month. For this reason, there are two detection values listed (as percentages) in the detection table.

8 products were able to detect all attackers without fail. The table depicts these products with a value of 100%: Avast, AVG, Bitdefender, ESET, F-Secure, McAfee, Norton and TotalAV.

The packages from Kaspersky and Microsoft made only one minor error in one month with the reference set, earning them a rating of 99.9 percent – with an otherwise exemplary detection rate. The product from Avira made the mistake in the real-world test in one month, garnering it a rating of 99.7 percent. It otherwise detected all other instances of malicious software.

All 11 of these security packages earned the full 6 points for their level of protection offered.

However, the solutions from K7 Computing, Malwarebytes and EnigmaSoft ran into several issues with detecting the malware. They ended up only scoring individual ratings of 91.7 and 96.2 percent for parts of testing. This led to point deductions for all of them: Malwarebytes scored 5.5 points and K7 Computing 5 points, trailed by EnigmaSoft with only 4.5 points.

When the systems are pushed to their limits

Many users have one big concern when it comes to the test: will the security software slow down my Windows computer? The answer to this pertinent question is found in the performance score. The testers use a Windows system without a security solution for this part of the test – one high-end computer and one standard home computer. They surf the internet opening 500 different websites, downloading files and installing apps, which they then also launch on the test system. What’s more, they copy many files to the computer’s hard drive and over a network. The time required for each of these processes is logged and used in later testing as reference values. Then the lab experts install each protection software on the computers and launch it. Each of the processes are repeated and the system’s performance is measured.

10 of the 14 packages passed the tests with flying colors. The security suites from Avast, AVG, Bitdefender, Kaspersky, McAfee, Microsoft, Norton, TotalAV, Malwarebytes and EnigmaSoft placed the systems under a slight load, but hardly enough to make a difference. For this, they all received the maximum 6 points.

The packages from Avira, ESET, F-Secure and K7 Computing caused minor peaks in the system load; however, they didn’t slow down Windows across the board. For this reason, there was only a tiny deduction for the 4 packages: 5.5 out of 6 points.

When the protection software is causing annoyance

Unfortunately, it happens time and again: a protection package suddenly flags a new freeware or a well-known tool as malware. This can sometimes occur when an update is installed from a less than reliable source. But what happens when the alarm and all of the uncertainty turns out to be a false alarm? A user’s faith in the Windows system and its protection software starts to falter.

To combat this, the lab experts copied more than 1.5 million harmless applications to each Windows computer in the test and observed how the security suites responded. They also installed and launched more than 100 programs. For a system watchdog, the best outcome would be no response whatsoever, because all of the processes are harmless.

13 of the 14 packages tested were of the same opinion and there were hardly any false positives. Only one or two out of 1.5 million apps were pulled aside here and there – an impressive outcome. As a result, the Windows watchdogs received the full 6 points.

EnigmaSoft was the only solution to be a little more suspicious, making a few more errors. The program overreacted raising the alarm 15 times and blocking two apps, so there were only 3.5 out of 6 points left for the package after all the deductions.

Many excellent security suites for Windows 11 

The final test table shows clearly that the vendors of protection software offer reliable and good products. 8 packages garnered the full 18 points, and the other 4 solutions an excellent score of 17.5 points. In addition to the security certificate for these results, the 12 security suites also earned the TOP PRODUCT label.

K7 Computing and EnigmaSoft completed the test with a score of 16.5 and 14 points, respectively.

If you have been following the latest series of test for Windows software, you’ll definitely have also seen the Advanced Threat Protection tests – or ATP tests, for short, which are released on a regular basis. The test experts look at all of the products in 10 live scenarios and evaluate how well they both detect and defend against ransomware and infostealers.