Symantec Corporation has earned an unprecedented 35th consecutive VB100 Award from Virus Bulletin. Symantec was one of only two vendors to receive a perfect detection score for all the December 2007 tests, while many security companies outright failed them. The core technology that was tested powers both Symantec’s Norton product line for consumers and enterprise products. Symantec has earned 41 VB100 Awards since 1998. To earn the VB100 designation, a product must detect—both on demand and on access, and in its default settings—all malware known to be “in the wild” at the time of the review and generate no false positives when scanning a set of clean files.
Virus Bulletin’s signature-based tests have long been considered the benchmark for gauging the quality of antivirus solutions in detecting a vast range of known viruses. There is a growing need, however, for behavioral-based tests as well. Such tests are imperative in assessing modern behavior-based systems, which detect malicious activity as it occurs, and they offer a more complete evaluation of the various ways an antivirus product can provide protection.
“It is gratifying to see the effectiveness of Symantec solutions continue to be acknowledged by well-established organizations such as Virus Bulletin. As security testing methods and technologies evolve and advance, Symantec looks forward to taking part in new opportunities that help ensure that consumers have the most comprehensive information with which to compare security products,” said Kevin Haley, director of product management, Symantec Security Response.