AV-Test.org: Free Antivirus Apps for Android Are ‘Near to Useless’

Kaspersky Lab, a leading developer of secure content and threat management solutions, announces that its mobile security technology has been evaluated as highly efficient by AV-Test.org, a world-renowned independent testing institute. The tests, performed in October 2011, compared Kaspersky Lab’s mobile protection effectiveness against a number of free security solutions available for smartphones – and the results show that users who are tempted to cut costs are also cutting corners with their information security.

The dismal performance of the most popular free products led AV-Test.org’s experts to conclude that these free products actually put users in more danger, by lulling them into a false sense of security. Kaspersky Lab’s mobile security, one of two commercial solutions included for comparison, successfully detected all 10 malicious programs at the point of launch or installation.  By contrast, three out of seven free products could not detect a single malicious program, and the best result was a mere 80 percent success rate.

Testing was conducted on a Samsung Galaxy Tab (GT-P1010) tablet running Android 2.2.1. The testing process included scanning the external storage, which contained more than 170 samples of malicious programs. This “on-demand” test was supplemented with a further “on-access” evaluation, which assessed how well antivirus products blocked malicious apps launched by the user

Quote:

Victor Dronov, Senior Product Manager, Mobile Product Department

Kaspersky Lab

“Android has recently become the primary target for cybercriminals, with a double-digit growth in the number of malicious programs. Therefore, protection against malware for your smartphone or tablet is essential, just as it is on your PC. We are delighted that independent testing has showed our ‘on-access’ facilities are 100% efficient. Kaspersky Mobile Security also provides diverse anti-theft functionality to keep your data secure under all circumstances.”

The full report on the tests conducted by AV-Test.org can be found here: http://www.av-test.org/fileadmin/pdf/avtest_2011-11_free_android_virus_scanner_english.pdf

Where to Buy

Kaspersky Tablet Security  – supports versions 2.2 and higher of the Android operating system, including the “Honeycomb” 3.x version made specifically for tablets.  A one-year license of Kaspersky Tablet Security can be purchased online at usa.kaspersky.com/store for $19.95.

Kaspersky Mobile Security 9 – designed for smartphone security and is available for purchase through the Kaspersky online store at www.kaspersky.com for $29.95 per license, renewable annually.  The software is compatible with all smartphones using the Symbian OS (versions 9.1 through 9.4 or higher), Windows Mobile (5.0, 6.0, 6.1 or 6.5), BlackBerry (4.5 – 6.0), and Android (1.6 – 2.2).

About Kaspersky Lab

Kaspersky Lab is the world's largest privately-held Internet security company, providing comprehensive protection against all forms of IT threats such as viruses, spyware, hackers and spam. The company's products provide in-depth computer defense for more than 300 million systems around the globe, including home and mobile users, small and medium sized businesses and large enterprises. Kaspersky Lab technology is also incorporated inside the products and services of nearly 100 industry-leading IT, networking, communications and applications solution vendors. For further information about the company, please visit http://www.kaspersky.com/. For the latest in-depth information on security threat issues and trends, please visit http://www.securelist.com/.