Microsoft Security Essentials (Windows Defender on Windows 8) was once on top. Over the years, it’s slid in the test results, but Microsoft argued the tests weren’t meaningful. Now, Microsoft is advising Windows users to use a third-party antivirus instead. This revelation comes to us from an interview Microsoft gave. Microsoft’s official website still bills MSE as offering “comprehensive malware protection” without any hint that they no longer recommend using it. Microsoft is not communicating well with its users. Update: Microsoft has now, saying “We believe in Microsoft antimalware products and strongly recommend them to our customers, to our friends, and to our families.” Their statement unfortunately doesn’t directly address Holly Stewart’s comments or MSE’s history of worsening test scores.

One of my friend recommended the use of Microsoft Security Essentials for Antivirus/Malware/Spyware protection, all these years I have been using NOD32 Antivirus. Oct 02, 2017 Microsoft Security Essentials helps guard your PC against viruses, spyware, and other malicious software.

Given MSE’s poor scores, all the stories we’ve heard about it failing people in the real world, and Microsoft’s inconsistent communication, we still don’t feel we can recommend MSE anymore. A Strong Start Microsoft Security Essentials was once on top of the rankings. In 2009, AV-Comparatives.org and said it was the best-performing free antivirus.

MSE was very appealing to Windows geeks like us, who quickly latched onto it. It received very good malware detection scores, was extremely speedy, and was free. Not only was it available for free — it wouldn’t hassle you and try to upsell you to paid antivirus solutions, like AVG and avast! MSE was a breath of fresh air — both in its interface and its speedy performance. Erick Sermon Chilltown New York Rar.

Its test results showed it was ahead of the pack, so it was best antivirus at the time. We’ve been recommending MSE as the free antivirus to use for years because of this. It’s included by default on Windows 8 and named “Windows Defender.” This is one of the — you have an antivirus included so every Windows user has protection. It would be nice if Windows users finally didn’t have to seek out a third-party antivirus.

Sliding Scores and Excuses Over the past several years, Microsoft Security Essentials has slid in the malware detection scoring tests. AV-TEST’s 2011 annual review ranked Microsoft Security Essentials last place in protection among all the products it tested.

In October 2012, Microsoft Security Essentials scored so low that it lost its AV-TEST certification. In June 2013, MSE received a zero protection score from AV-TEST — the lowest possible score. It’s also come last in other recent tests, including one by Dennis Technology Labs. The below chart shows MSE at the bottom of. When it comes to malware protection, it tested below every other antivirus program tested. At the time, Microsoft. They said they were focused on trying to stop real-world threats, not compete in tests where the detection of rare malware was a significant factor.

They argued that avoiding false positives was an important goal and that real-world experiences were more important than arbitrary test results. Geeks like us here at How-To Geek believed them, taking them at their word. We certainly had used Microsoft Security Essentials on our personal computers for years.

We hadn’t encountered any malware, even after. Iata City Codes more. We liked Microsoft Security Essentials for being so lightweight, unintrusive, and not trying to upsell us to. We liked the idea that Windows 8 users wouldn’t need any additional antivirus protection, eliminating another complicated system tool from Windows users’ lives. Microsoft Has Stopped Trying The Microsoft Security Essentials website promises “comprehensive malware protection” and “award-winning protection,” so users would be forgiven for believing that Microsoft was committed to making MSE a capable antivirus solution.