Four Internet Security Suites Compared

Whenever we do a banking transaction, a ticket reservation, online shopping or access e-mails over the Internet, we put our personal and valuable information at stake. Our systems need a comprehensive Internet Security suite because individuals are ideal targets for malware due to the wealth of financial and personal data usually kept on their systems. We list out the key features to check out before you choose one.

System protection

An Internet security suite should have the ability to counter threats that could damage the system. It should have the ability to neutralise viruses, macro viruses, worms, malware, spyware, rootkits, and trojans. Whenever any external device is attached to a system, the software should prompt for scanning. To detect new threats, the software can follow either of these approaches: one is 'signature-based', which automatically updates its virus definition in the database; while the other one, 'Heuristic approach' follows its own unique identity algorithm for threat detection.

Firewall protection

Whenever you use Internet, you are open to the outside world. Firewalls alert you about suspicious incoming traffic. Similarly, the firewall should be able to keep a check on out-going information. Any intruder that tries to gain access of your PC, will have to tackle the firewall first. The firewall will deflect the attack, and warn you about it. So, look for a two way firewall in your Internet Security.

Parental control

Kids regularly use Internet for chatting, listening to music or playing games, but they can easily fall prey to malicious websites. A good parental control feature in your Internet security suite shall block unwanted content like adult sites. Most of the Internet security software have this feature. But then, you need to configure it.

Website advisor

To getting information on a particular topic, we simply type the keyword in any search engine like Google, and in return get links to several websites related to that particular keyword. But then, how do you know whether those websites are malicious or not? Website advisors found within Internet security software are very helpful in such situations. They test websites for malware and spam and then rate the website accordingly. So, choose a software that contains a website advisor.

Anti adware & Anti spyware

Today we have a growing number of software developers who offer their code as “sponsored” freeware until you pay to register. This is usually done with the help of adware. Unfortunately, some freeware applications which contain adware track your surfing habits in order to serve ads related to you. When the adware becomes intrusive like this, then we move it in the spyware category and it then becomes something you should avoid for privacy and security reasons. So, look for a security suite which blocks unwanted advertisements and offers.

Other features

Apart from features stated above, there could be some other ones that you can look for. These could be data protection & anti-theft, cloud storage & back-up, social networking protection and PC tune up & maintenance tools.

Norton Internet Security 2013

Norton is one of the oldest and renowned names in this field. In this version, they have utilized their past experience to build an improved, quick and light version of an Internet security suite.

Installing the software was a breeze. It requires just one click, and within a minute, the product gets installed. Next you are prompted for product activation and email identification. The interface is neat, even though it is not very simple to understand. The three main tabs are: Scan now, Live updates and Advanced, placed in the center of the interface. Right above Scan now tab, is the system status indicator. It has a signature-based virus definition updation system. There is a two-way firewall as well which prevents cybercriminals from hacking into your PC and stealing personal information. Other features such as anti-spam, anti-malware and anti-spyware are also there to enhance security. The silent mode can be used for suspending alerts and updates to avoid interruption or slowing of games and movies. There is an added tool for data recovery which creates an emergency CD/DVD/USB that gets you back up and running when your computer is infected. You can use it even if your computer has become so infected that it won't work properly or even boot up.

Norton IS 2013 was the top performer in our tests. In the EICAR test, it completely removed all the test files which included DOS, .txt and compressed files. It took 20 minutes to scan the whole system and 4 min to scan the virus folder. The total number of threats uncovered was 48,395 with a success ratio of 96%. In the malicious sites test, Norton successfully blocked 47 sites. Meanwhile, the average CPU usage varied between 20-25% with 54% memory consumption.

Bottomline: A quick, light and feature-rich Internet security suite.

McAfee Internet Security 2012

It took us about 3 minutes to install this suite, which is a bit on the higher side. It checks your PC for malware before installation, and downloads the newest version of the software before it begins installation. The interface is packed with more text and drop-down menus than other security suites. Upfront, there is a status indicator, feature listing and actionable objects. It also has a signature-based virus definition updation algorithm. Other features are: a parental Control, email protection, anti-virus, anti-spyware, anti-malware, real-time safeguards, two-way firewall, PC tune-up and 1 GB online backup. You have to configure the account to use the backup feature.

In the EICAR test, it successfully removed all DOS and .txt files. While downloading the compressed files, it warned and suggested us to block the download. At the time of scanning, it completely removed the threat. McAfee was fast enough to scan the complete system in about 20 minutes and caught about 93% of the defects. It took another 4 minutes for uncovering the defects from the virus folder. The McAfee website advisor has great success ratio as well. It was able to block 46 malicious websites from opening up. The average CPU usage ratio (25-30%) was a bit higher as compared to that of Norton or Trend Micro Titanium. The memory consumption at 55% was almost on the same lines. Overall, the performance is not as great as Norton but is slightly better than that of Trend Micro.

Bottomline: Good Performance with website security and 1 GB online backup, makes it a good option to go with.

Trend Micro Titanium Internet Security

The installation is hassle free and it takes about 2 minutes to complete the installation. The interface is also simple to use. It includes security tools such as an antivirus, antispyware, email scanning, a firewall, rootkit detection and application protection. There are some extra features such as data theft protection and system tuner which increases its audacity. It protects from malicious links in email and Instant Messaging as well as in search results in Chrome, Internet Explorer and Firefox. It also finds and warns against unsafe links that appear in Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.

In the EICAR test, Trend micro was able to delete the DOS and .txt files only. It didn't show any warning or suggestion against the compressed files, and downloaded them. However, it was able to detect viruses, only when the file was extracted. It took 50 minutes for a full system scan and detected 45437 malware with a success ratio of 91%. 44 malicious websites were blocked by the website advisor. The average CPU usage was around 20% with memory usage of 52%. Overall, it lags behind Norton or McAfee in terms of performance but is ahead of Albion Secure.

Bottomline: Though a nice performer but there are other cheaper options which can find threats in Compressed folders automatically.

Albion Secure

This is a new entrant in the market. The installation is quite simple and within 2 minutes, your Internet security suite will be installed. The interface is quite simple, with all major features on the dashboard. Albion Secure is based on the heuristic analysis algorithm which means it will use typical malware behavior patterns to detect new and unknown malware, not yet present in the virus definitions. Also, the firewall is of application level type which is very secure. However, it lacks other necessary features like parental control and website advisor for malicious websites.

It doesn't score more than the other three Internet security suites. Like Trend Micro, it was not able to detect compressed files but was able to detect and remove the DOS and .txt file viruses. However, on extraction, it detected the virus successfully. It was able to completely scan the whole system in about 15 minutes with 44526 threats and a success ratio of 89%. But sometimes, it just became unresponsive for no reason. It does not have a website advisor. The average CPU usage (45-50%) and memory usage (58-60%) were also on the higher side.

Bottomline: Internet security with application level firewall and a low price tag make it an alluring option but performance requires improvement.

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