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Reviewing antivirus software should be much more than loading it onto the system and running a few performance tests. While it's always nice to read about who has the fastest scan speed, at the end of the day the performance that really matters is its detection. If the product can't prove itself against modern day cyberthreats, no matter what features it has it won't do the job of properly securing your PC.

While there are various certifying agencies putting stamps of approval on various products, many of these focus on what is known as WildList (ItW) testing. Briefly, the WildList is comprised of contributions from at least two participants around the world who submit reports monthly. These reports stay on the list until a specified period of time has elapsed with no further reports or the original reporters request the virus be removed. Because the WildList is published monthly, the virus testing performed based on these lists may or may not accurately reflect threats currently circulating. While it is still important as a gauge of a product's effectiveness, it should not be considered as the sole criteria, particulary since some active threats - notably CodeRed and JS/Exception exploits, never seem to make it onto the official WildList though the threat itself is most certainly "In-the-Wild". Combining ItW testing with Zoo viruses provides a far better indicator of how a given product will perform under normal circumstances. Zoo viruses are those held in a collection by a virus researcher or testing agency. These viruses also may or may not be actively circulating.

AV-Test.org, a project of the University of Magdeburg and Andreas Marx, combines ItW testing with Zoo detection, publishing comprehensive results of which products performed best and under which circumstances. These test results are consulted when choosing the top antivirus products for home use and should be factored in when making your personal decisions regarding which antivirus to use. A second excellent source for comprehensive virus testing is the University of Hamburg. The University's VTC Test Team is headed by Klaus Brunnstein and, as is the case with AV-Test.org, incorporates both WildList and Zoo malware samples in the tests to more closely approximate threats a user might encounter.

Both AV-Test.org and University of Hamburg are independent labs and neither receive money from the antivirus vendors for product testing. Conversely, standard certification testing is paid for by the vendor. For various reasons, a vendor may choose to submit to only one or two of the certifying agencies. Thus, the absence of certification may not mean the product failed - it may simply have never been submitted. However, if a product has received no certification, or relatively few in comparison to its peers, this fact should not be taken lightly. Standard certifications are offered by Checkmark, ICSA Labs and Virus Bulletin. Offering the only magazine devoted specifically to antivirus security, Virus Bulletin also hosts the antivirus event of the year, the VB conference.