In December 2009, AV-Test.org, a worldwide operating provider for IT security testing and consultancy services, tested five market-leading enterprise endpoint solutions from Symantec, McAfee, Microsoft, Sophos, and Trend Micro. AV-Test.org tested zero-day attacks actually occurring in the wild by sourcing malicious URLs that had malware associated with them. Products were configured to block or detect the threats at multiple levels, thereby giving each vendor maximum ability to protect against these threats. The testing occurred simultaneously across all vendors’ platforms to ensure no biases during the test runs.
Trend Micro OfficeScan 10, powered by the Smart Protection Network - which includes both web reputation and file reputation capabilities - emerged as the overall winner with a decisive advantage in both exposure layer protection and time to protect. With an overall score at blocking zero-day threats of nearly 66 percent, OfficeScan 10 stands distinctly apart from other products, whose averages ranged from a mere 38 to 59 percent.