In the latest antivirus software review from Virus Bulletin, the computer security company ESET, which operates out of Bratislava, has been awarded its 63rd VB100 award.

The Virus Bulletin report is regarded as one of the industry’s top antivirus software reviews. Virus Bulletin subjects the products it is testing to a number of rigorous examinations. Two essential criteria must be achieved to gain for a product the VB100 logo; one, the product must detect 100% of the viruses known to be ‘in the wild’ and two, the product must not flag up any files as dangerous when they are not, also known as generating false positives.

John Hawes, of Virus Bullet, said: "Memory usage was among the lowest in this month’s comparative, with CPU drain not breaking the bank either. Detection rates were as excellent as ever, with some superb RAP scores; no issues emerged in the WildList or clean sets, and ESET continues its monster unbroken run of VB100 passes.”

ThreatSense® technology is what drives the ESET antivirus capabilities; as an advanced heuristics engine, it means that the product is proactive in its rooting out of malware on a user’s computer. ESET deals with problems that may occur in real-time, and use a secure virtual world to analyse and deal with the danger. This means that even the most well-disguised pieces of malware are picked up and sorted out safely.

Ján Vrabec, security technology analyst at ESET, says: “ESET’s top priority is to protect the users at a maximum possible level, while minimizing false alerts system impact. All of these facts greatly contribute to our long-term success in Virus Bulletin testing.”

Whilst other products that have come through the Virus Bulletin tests have around a 50-70% success rate, ESET boasts an impressive 97% since 1998 when the VB100 awards were first created by the antivirus software review system Virus Bulletin review.

Guest Article by Neil Camp

Antivirus security company ESET is warning bank customers to be on their guard against a new Zeus Trojan Virus which is said to have been responsible for thefts of up to one million pounds.

It’s estimated by the antivirus security team that around 3,000 customers have become victims of the Trojan Virus. Companies such as ESET encourage UK internet users to be more responsible when banking online; far too many take a lenient approach to the security of their most personal details.

Mark James, UK technical manager for ESET, says: “This high profile cyber attack needs to be a wake-up call to UK internet users who must take more responsibility for their own internet security and safe.”

Many internet users are unaware of the dangers or how they can be addressed, and are too dismissive of the patches sent out by applications such as Microsoft and Adobe. Instead of downloading these vital upgrades, users ignore them, and their computers are left vulnerable to attacks.

Many believe that these updates are simply interfering with the workings of your computer, by slowing them down or making them less efficient and harder to run. This is a stigma antivirus software companies wish to dispel.

Antivirus software companies advise that users should continually check for updates to their antivirus software and to any application patches that are offered, and not to ignore them. Even more dangerous is to not have a piece of antivirus software at all; there are a significant number of internet users who remain unprotected in such a manner. Simply downloading the first free antivirus protection software one finds is not advisable either, with companies warning they many only provide the most basic level of security, and typically have no customer support network.

The three main things that any internet or computer user must do to maintain a healthy computer and a safe time on the internet – and thereby reducing the risk of losing vast amounts of money through things such as the banking Trojan Virus – are simple and easy to do.

First, users must ensure that they allow the updates that their antivirus security software. Second, they must check to make sure all patches for applications are downloaded. Third, and probably the most important, is that antivirus software that provides comprehensive protection against internet threats is downloaded.

Guest Article by Neil Camp