2012 Antivirus Software Ratings

Kaspersky Anti-Virus Software 2012

Kaspersky has continued to grow as a household name each year for good reason. They've completely re-engineered what it means to be an antivirus engine while increasing the overall user experience.

For basic antivirus protection, Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2012 comes up strong in independent testing. All of the major testing labs around the world have given Kaspersky top awards and certifications.

• West Coast Labs
• Anti-Malware
• OPSWAT
• Virus Bulletin
• AV-Comparatives
• AV-Test

However, there are still some nagging issues with the user interface that should have been easily spotted but weren't.

On the plus side, Kaspersky proved effective against zero-day threats, and emerging viruses according to tough, independent testing around the world. Their cloud-based antivirus protection is strong component as well.

Kaspersky's anti-phishing is one area of concern for us, however. The native antiphishing for Internet Explorer actually performed better in some cases compared to Kaspersky.

Resource usage during a manual scan was also higher than we'd like to see, but still manageable.

Overall, Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2012 is still a viable antivirus software this year. We like its sheer power even if some of its features aren't quite up to standard.

	Next: Virus & Spyware Protection

Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2012 Features

• Real-time Antivirus
  
  Monitors and blocks zero-day virus attacks and emerging threats.
• Antiphishing
  
  Blocks sites that want to steal your passwords and identity.
• Virtual Keyboard
  
  Helps stop keyloggers and screen-capture spyware from stealing login information.
• Vulnerability Detection
  
  Helps protect your system by making sure your OS and applications are up to date.
• Low Resource Scanning
  
  Helps increase system performance by scanning only when your computer is idle.
• Gamer Mode
  
  Keeps your antivirus from decreasing system performance while playing video games.
• Optimized for Netbooks
  
  Supports netbook screen resolutions with no extra drag on system performance.