Labs provide alternatives in evaluating suites
By
Scott Dunn
My
Feb. 7
article explained that the WSN Security Baseline summarizes the top ratings of several respected computer publications, but it is only a starting point for those who want to do their own research.
One reader responded with an impressive list of independent labs that evaluate security software and publish the results online.
Finding credible security suite rankings online
The Known Issues column on Feb. 7 discussed the question of how we select the products that are listed in the
Security Baseline. To add to the conversation, reader Tunga Kiyak offers these comments:
-
"While I agree with your perspective that recommending a suite instead of individual components does make the software easier to use and maintain, and the trade-off in not having the 'best' of each component is inconsequential, I must disagree with your stated criteria of using PC World and PC Magazine Editors' Choices as the selection criteria.
"I think it is now widely accepted that both magazines, because of staff and budget cuts, do not fully evaluate the software but write cursory reviews based on the spec sheets and press releases that the software companies provide them. And, at times, when they do conduct tests, they conduct only very basic tests within their budget.
"So may I recommend that you include a few of the independent labs that do a very good job of testing this software?
"Of course, a caution is in order: these labs do not look at usability or stability or resource utilization of the software; they only look at how well the software does the job it is designed to do. So only using these lab results will also give you only half the picture, but admittedly a better picture than just using PC Magazine and PC World alone (and yes, in some reviews, both magazines refer to one or more of these labs' results, but not always and not consistently).
• ICSALabs (monthly anti-virus test results)
• Virus Bulletin (regular anti-virus tests)
• AV-Test
• AV-Comparatives
• Matousec (for firewalls)
• Firewall Leak Tester
"At the very least, you can share some of these resources with your readers so that they can judge the results themselves. But, if they do, many of them will see that Symantec usually rates very highly on most of the antivirus tests, but only slightly better than average in the firewall tests."
Readers, let's continue this discussion as we work to improve our overview of security products needed by individuals and small businesses. Send your comments via the Windows Secrets contact page.
Norton Removal Tool can damage QuickBooks
My Feb. 7 lead story included a discussion of the Norton Removal Tool, which Symantec provides for correcting incomplete uninstalls. However, as Charles Rathbun points out, this tool is known to cause problems for another product:
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"If you have QuickBooks 2005 or newer on your system, Symantec's removal tool can really screw things up. It messes with [Microsoft's] .NET [Framework] software, causing a nightmare when you're trying to figure out why QuickBooks suddenly stopped loading.
"Intuit has a warning and explanation about the Norton Removal tool on their Web site.
"I've stopped using this tool if I find any versions of QuickBooks, because of the problems I've experienced in the past. I've had to eat some serious tech-support time and spent multiple hours reinstalling and fixing QuickBooks due to problems the Norton tool has created."
Commercial software helps finish bad uninstalls
If you're looking for other tools to help remove inadequately uninstalled Symantec programs or other security software, several readers reported having good luck using commercial uninstaller utilities, such as the free Revo Uninstaller (among others) as well as reputable Registry cleaning utilities.
Like security software, you'll want to consult reviews and do your homework before using just any old utility for this job. For more information on Registry cleaners, start by reading the Mar. 1, 2007, article on the subject by Windows Secrets editor-at-large Fred Langa.
Readers Kiyak and Rathbun will each receive a gift certificate for a book, CD, or DVD of their choice for sending tips we printed.
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