CNET

In one of the first independent tests of third-party security suites on Windows 8, nearly all antivirus and anti-malware software tested well. What may surprise you is that even without a third-party suite, Windows 8 is relatively resistant to modern threats like zero-day attacks, according to the report.

Independent German security suite evaluators AV-Test.org publish bimonthly tests that rate the effectiveness of the biggest Windows security suites out there and rated all 26 of the suites they tested on Windows 8 in January and February as "certified, " including Windows 8 itself. This is because Windows 8 comes with the antivirus and anti-malware measures of Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE) built in and turned on. Basically, there's no such thing as an "unprotected" Windows 8.

"Windows 8 comes with Windows Defender, " AV-Test CEO Andreas Marx said in an e-mail requesting clarification on the scores. "[It's] under a different name and quite nicely integrated in Windows 8, but the 'Protection' results are not much better when you compare Windows Defender (on Win 8) with MSE (on Win XP, Vista or 7), " he said.

Marx added that because it catches "a bit more than 80 percent of the 'zero day' attacks, " Windows 8 with Defender is better than no protection at all.

Several suites tested notably well. Bitdefender Internet Security 2013 (review) topped the paid suites, with a score of 17 out of 18. BullGuard Internet Security 13.0 and Kaspersky Internet Security 2013 (review) scored 16.5 and 16.0, respectively. Both of their weaknesses came during January's testing of zero-day threats but had corrected those misses in February.

On the free suite side, the best-performing software were AVG AntiVirus Free 2013 (review) with 15.5, and Avast Free Antivirus 7 (review) at 15.0. Avast's major-point upgrade to version 8 wasn't released until late February.

Source: www.cnet.com