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Eset NOD32

84

Very Good
  • Pros
  • Superior proactive detection
  • Cons
  • Overly technical interface
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Eset NOD32 Review

by Ryan Naraine

NOD32 has the best proactive protection by far, but its overall malware detection is second-tier, and it has an overly technical interface.

When it comes to proactive protection, Eset's NOD32 was the hands-down winner in "Virus Stoppers," our eight-program antivirus roundup. In our tests, it caught 79 percent of unknown malware samples when using one-month-old signature files. The next-closest program, BitDefender Antivirus 10, came in with a distant 61 percent.

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NOD32's overall malware detection rate wasn't stellar, however. When pitted against AV-Test.org's nearly 900,000-strong "zoo" of Trojans, viruses, and other malware, NOD32 caught only 90 percent, compared to the 96 percent rate of top performers Kaspersky Anti-Virus 6, Symantec Norton AntiVirus 2007, and BitDefender Antivirus 10. It fared surprisingly poorly with 32-bit Windows viruses (approximately 1 in 11 samples in the zoo), catching only 73 percent.

In disinfection tests, NOD32 cleaned up all malware files but missed resulting changes to the Hosts network settings file and most of the less-important Registry changes, for a disappointing 55 percent success rate.

The program installed without a hitch, and the default settings were almost ideal for the average customer. One annoyance: NOD32 doesn't enable the full-system scan by default; you have to schedule it yourself. And when you set that up or want to change other settings, you might be turned off by an overly technical interface: For instance, you'll need to open up the 'DMON' interface module to figure out that it's responsible for scanning Microsoft Office documents. If you do need help, the program offers no guideposts for finding phone or e-mail support; you must go to the company's Web site.

The program ties into Outlook and Outlook Express for e-mail scanning, but doesn't directly integrate with any IM applications for scanning sent links or files. Plus, it offers integrated virus, spyware, and adware protection, where some other programs require two separate scans, one for antivirus and another for antispyware. The multithreat engine can also detect malware-hiding rootkits.

At $39 for a single-user license and $27 for yearly renewals, Eset NOD32's pricing is about average for the group. E-mail and phone support is free.

We tested the Vista version Eset NOD32 for our "Virus Stoppers" roundup. An XP version of the software is also available.

Ryan Naraine

User Reviews for Eset NOD32

  • Reviewed by: peterwl

    Duration of ownership: 6 Months

    Strengths:

    Weaknesses:

    Overall Evaluation: This is a review of the review. Caught 79% of unknown malware using 1 month old signature files? Who uses 1 month old sigs? I sure as hell don't! Caught 90% of everything but fared bad with 32-bit viruses? HUH? What version NOD32 were you testing? Why not compair apples to apples and oranges to oranges instead of putting all your results in a bag and shaking? I though malware was everything not classified as a virus or a trojan. So it gets rather confusing when throwing percentages around with no clear labels.

  • Reviewed by: MXRDriver

    Duration of ownership: 2 Years

    Strengths: 1. Speed 2. Set it and forget it 3. Stability 4. customer Service (a bit slow, but great)

    Weaknesses: UI not as "pretty" as the rest

    Overall Evaluation: PC World's reviewer's opinion of an overly technical interface is, I think, stretching for it a bit. The UI is admittedly not as intuitive or as easy on the eyes as Mcaffee or Norton, but it well within the average user's (me) ease of use. My old computer with XP and NOD32 finally crashed and burned. After I purchased my new computer with Vista installed on it, I downloaded NOD32's Vista version by contacting their customer service(via e-mail) and retrieving my current password and account name. I believe Norton charges extra for that service. With both of my most recent computer's I replaced Norton with NOD32. On both machines Norton crashed and generated error messages...NOD32 doesn't. Norton many times requires re-boot...NOD32 doesn't. Norton slowed both computers noticably...NOD32 doesn't. As far as which VS actually works best, I rely on PC World's experts...and it looks like a toss-up

See all user reviews

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