Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization Publishes Testing Guidelines

AV-Comparatives

We believe the documents recently adopted by AMTSO, the "Fundamental Principles of Testing" and "Best Practices for Dynamic Testing," represent a significant step toward providing more meaningful tests and therefore better information for computer users and professionals. As a security software testing organization, we are willing to work within these AMTSO standards and will continue our work with AMTSO to help strength the security industry.

AV-Test.org

As a member of AMTSO, we believe that this new, unified approach will ultimately benefit computer users who use product reviews and other test results to help choose internet security software.

AVG Technologies

I welcome wholeheartedly the creation and publication of these global testing standards documents. With industry-wide agreement and media support for these standards, we can all move forward with a common set of goals and objectives, focused firmly on the needs of users. Whether individuals or CSOs of major corporations, consumers of anti-malware solutions can only benefit from being able to recognize instantly whether or not a test has been conducted using universally-accepted standards and make their purchasing decisions accordingly.

Avira GmbH

By agreeing and publishing the two documents "Fundamental Principles of Testing" and "Best Practice for Dynamic Testing," AMTSO made a significant step forward for anti-malware testing. The "Fundamental Principles of Testing" reflects the basic principles for testing anti-malware products and will help to increase the quality of any future testing. This step also means the general public will have access to the quality information that members of AMTSO decide is the industry standard for the dynamic testing of anti-malware products, a testing methodology that becomes more important every day. Tests structured on these standards may allow the end user to make a more informed decision about the capabilities of the products being tested.

Bit9

These documents are a great step forward in bridging gaps between Security Vendors and the Public. We strive to provide the best protection possible. We have a need and the desire to make our work verifiable and accessible to the World that is our customer.

Dennis Publishing

The really exciting thing about these guidelines is that, ultimately, they will lead to people making better informed choices when they come to buy or renew their anti-virus software.

ESET

I believe AMTSO's "Fundamental Principles of Testing" and "Best Practices for Dynamic Testing" to represent an important milestone in the maturation of the anti-malware industry. Historically, the industry has tended to be purely and negatively reactive in terms of tests it didn't like. Testers have sometimes felt, not unsurprisingly, that we were always ready to criticize, but reluctant to offer real help.

These documents represent a real step forward: they offer genuine high-level guidance on what we mean by good testing practice. The next step will, I hope, be to widen the range of informational and educational resources the organization will offer not only to testers, but to the general public.

We believe that the documents now provided by AMTSO will help secure a good level of testing which in turn will allow consumers to choose the security solution best suited for their needs. We are especially pleased that the "Best Practices for Dynamic Testing" guideline is now available. Dynamic testing is challenging and for that reason has not been carried out as much as it deserves to be.

International Business Machines Corporation (IBM)

We believe these documents, which provide guidance and best practices for testing and comparing today’s often complex harmful code protection technologies, are an important breakthrough for the vendors, buyers, testers and users of Anti Malware products.

Kaspersky Lab

The creation of two sets of guidelines on testing standards and best practice in dynamic testing is a significant milestone for both the anti-malware industry, and for everyone involved in anti-malware testing. The documents are expressly designed to help new and current testers to create better tests. Ultimately, better tests will benefit everyone by providing more accurate information to industry professionals and consumers alike.

McAfee, Inc.

While there have been many great security software reviews in the past, many poor reviews have confused or misled people. We are glad to see that the Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization has taken this problem by the horns and formalized the principles of fair testing. This is a significant milestone that should skew the balance towards fair and scientific testing, providing users with a true viewpoint on the security protection vendors provide.

Norman ASA

Having the first collective AMTSO results, being the "Best Practices for Dynamic Testing” and "Fundamental Principles of Testing” documents, is an important step forward. As the documents have been created as a combined effort between the industry and the testers, it will bring more clarity in test-methodologies used and the results of the tests, not only for the anti-virus industry, and the testers, but also for the consumers of these tests. Knowing that a test has been conducted following the AMTSO recommendations, guidelines and principles will ensure a balanced test-result for them.

Panda Security

After almost a year of hard work by the Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization finally anti-malware testers, researchers, magazine reviewers and media worldwide can count on a unified, industry recognized and agreed upon set of testing methodologies to perform the highest quality anti-malware tests possible.

Sophos Plc

Sophos is really pleased to have hosted this AMTSO conference and for it to have been so successful. The documents produced are foundations for a greater understanding and respect between testers and vendors. At last there is something that all parties can point to and say they are following industry best practices.

Symantec Corporation

These documents represent a significant step forward in the improvement of anti-malware technology testing. It is our hope that reaching a broad consensus in these important areas of testing will result in improved tests that are fair to the products tested and that produce truly meaningful results for the general public who rely on them to guide their decisions.

Trend Micro

Trend Micro wholeheartedly supports the industry-wide effort to promote more effective and ethical testing standards for anti-malware and computer security products. This is entirely for the benefit of and to protect the end user; to give the end user better choices on the desktop, at the corporate gateway, and in the cloud.

Virus Bulletin

It’s great that these documents have been finalized and made public – anti-malware testing is a complex and demanding business, and testers will benefit greatly from the support and advice of a community like AMTSO. It’s very encouraging to see such cooperation between industry experts and testing bodies, and hopefully AMTSO will continue to promote trust, respect and sharing of information and resources. This can only lead to better designed and better implemented testing, which should in turn encourage increased quality in products and the protection they provide – a huge benefit to computer users everywhere.

Webroot Software

Truly a giant step for the security industry in making sure that customers, and the people that advise them, are provided with fair and credible data and insights about security solutions.

— Jong Purisima, Security Product Manager, Webroot Software