ESET Press Center

ESET, the leader in proactive threat protection, has again secured a prestigious "Advanced+" rating from AV-Comparatives, an independent antivirus software research outlet. The new evaluation, completed in October 2008, studied the impact of antivirus software on system performance across four categories, and ESET finished first in three categories: file copying, encoding/transcoding and boot time.

The boot test measures the time it takes to boot up and shut down the software, and ESET had the fastest boot time, with results that showed 2-10 times less slowdown than its competitors. ESET also finished first in file copying, which AV-Comparatives called the most important test.

"For the past two years, ESET NOD32 has earned the title of "Best Antivirus Product" based on its malware detection rates," said Andreas Clementi, founder and chief researcher at AV-Comparatives. "However this was the first time we tested it purely on performance. ESET finished first in three of our four categories, further entrenching it as the dominant player in the space. ESET is well-deserving of its Advanced+ rating."

AV-Comparatives provides a three level ranking system (Standard, Advanced and Advanced+). For the performance test, the awards are given based on the overall impact assessment results from the four subtests. ESET finished in first place with a "very fast" rating.

ESET's industry-leading products, including the popular NOD32 Antivirus and ESET Smart Security, combine speed, accuracy and minimal computer system impact to deliver a significant improvement over traditional solutions in the marketplace today. ESET is powered by ThreatSense® technology, an advanced heuristics engine that enables proactive detection of malware not covered by even the most frequently updated signature-based products. Unlike traditional approaches, ESET solutions decode and analyze executable code in real-time, using an emulated environment. By allowing malware to execute in a secure virtual world, ESET is able to clearly differentiate between benign files and even the most sophisticated and cleverly-disguised malware.

About ESET
ESET develops software solutions that deliver instant, comprehensive protection against evolving computer security threats. ESET pioneered and continues to lead the industry in proactive threat detection. ESET NOD32 Antivirus, its flagship product, consistently achieves the highest accolades in all types of comparative testing and is the foundational product that builds out the ESET product line to include ESET Smart Security. ESET Smart Security is an integrated antivirus, antispyware, antispam and personal firewall solution that combines accuracy, speed and an extremely small system footprint to create the most effective security solution in the industry. Both products have an extremely efficient code base that eliminates the unnecessary large size found in some solutions. This means faster scanning that doesn't slow down computers or networks. Sold in more than 160 countries, ESET has worldwide production headquarters in Bratislava, SK and worldwide distribution headquarters in San Diego, U.S. ESET also has offices in Bristol, U.K.; Buenos Aires, AR; Prague, CZ; and is globally represented by an extensive partner network. For more information, visit www.eset.com or call (619) 876-5400.