Avira cleans up in malware removal test
October 2015 by Marc Jacob
When it comes to a malware infection, someone has to clean up the mess afterwards. That’s why Avira, the German security company, is so proud that its Avira Antivirus Pro won the top “Advanced +” rating in malware removal from independent testing authority AV Comparatives.
Independent researchers from AV Comparatives created an all-too-common test scenario. Starting with a clean computer, they infected it with a live sample of malware – then tried to install various antivirus software, to see how completely and easily the infection could be removed.
Each AV software was judged on two major areas: malware removal and user convenience. For malware removal, security providers were rated on how completely the malware was removed, with the highest scores going to the solution that left only negligible traces behind. For user convenience, the highest ratings were awarded if the malware mess could be cleaned away with the computer in normal operating mode – without requiring rebooting in Safe Mode, using a Rescue Disk, or contacting Support.
After successively running through a battery of 35 Trojans, backdoor malware, and worms, AV Comparatives totaled up the scores for each antivirus software. For Avira Antivirus Pro, the result was enough points to rank it in the highest “Advanced +” bracket.