I'm Still Going to Use Microsoft Security Essentials

This article came up the other day, and it’s a little jargon-full, but it seemed like a very important topic for the average user. This is particularly important because Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE) is one of the most popular virus protection programs, and now that it’s built into Windows 8 that is only likely to increase. I know that since its release, I have always recommended it to friends and family. It’s free, easy to use, and updates along with your Windows OS. Now, based on the article headline, you might think that I’m changing my mind, but I’m not, and here’s why.

The article in question: http://www.ibtimes.com/microsoft-security-essentials-fails-antivirus-certification-test-second-time-row-microsoft-disputes

The main point here is the difference in goals of the certification test and Microsoft’s own testing goals, summarized most succinctly in the article that Blackbird is looking at the viruses that are missed by the software by category, whereas Microsoft designs its software based on consumer impact. To me this means that while this certification test is important and useful, it is also biased by being more artificial. Microsoft’s own tests too are by definition artificial, but the company is striving to obtain real world results.

The second major thing to look at when talking about all these percentages of malware, is the encountered numbers. What this means is that malware might affect your machine, but you may never come into contact with it. And this hits on one of the points that I have always emphasized, this is about the person using the machine and not the machine. Even if MSE was 100% effective, a person can still mess up a machine. If you are using safe browsing habits, not opening links from spam emails, or browsing untrustworthy websites, you’re not going to encounter this malware. The point is, no one should be depending entirely on their antivirus software to completely protect them. There are many other ways for your data to be compromised, such a phishing and other social engineering scams.

At the end of the day, my take away is this, I’d rather Microsoft fail an artificial certification and continue to focus on real word tests than for the company to design their software in an artificial setting that scores 100% in the lab, then completely fails the consumer in the real world. (Ahem, video card benchmarks, cough).