Install Security, Speed Up Your PC

When activities on your PC seem to bog down, do you blame your security suite? Maybe it's spending too much time scanning files in the background, or sucking up bandwidth exchanging details with its cloud database? Well, maybe you should think again. A new report from AV-Comparatives indicates that installing security can actually speed up your computer's operation.

To measure each tested product's impact on system performance, the researchers averaged multiple runs of scripts representing various real-world activities, with no security and with each security suite installed. These tests included copying clean files from drive to drive, zipping and unzipping files, downloading data from the Internet, and launching applications. They also employed Microsoft's Windows Assessment and Deployment Kit (Windows ADK) and Windows Performance Toolkit (WPT). To round out the test, they measured the PC's performance using PC Mark 8 Professional.

Faster How?
The speed benefit here comes when your security suite replaces the built-in Windows Defender, which itself has a noticeable impact on system performance. Of the 20 products tested, 12 displayed a lower impact than Windows Defender, some of them much lower.

One portion of each product's overall score was based on the impact it had on the various real-world activity scripts. Another was derived by dividing the PC Mark score of a security-equipped PC by the PC Mark score of that same PC with no security software. Summing the two values and subtracting from the maximum possible score yielded an overall impact score ranging from 4.1 to 25.7, with Windows Defender coming in at 18.1.

Twelve products earned an Advanced+ rating, meaning their impact score was lower than Windows Defenders. This group included Editors' Choice products Bitdefender and Kaspersky. AVG and Emsisoft vied for the low-impact crown, scoring 4.1 and 4.2 respectively.

Few Losers
Quick Heal and ThreatTrack Vipre displayed noticeably more impact than Windows Defender, but still passed the test with a Standard rating. The rest managed an Advanced rating. Looking at the results from last fall's performance test, there are no losers. Not a single product earned a lower rating than in the previous test, and half of them actually did better. Several products, among them Emsisoft and McAfee, leapt from a rating of Standard in the last test to Advanced+ this time around.

You'll want to read the full report for all the juicy details. Of course, you must remember that performance is just one measure of a securityproduct. Accurately detecting and removing malware is the main task, after all. But if the user turns off protection because it's interfering with day-to-day operations, its accuracy doesn't matter. Thanks, AV-Comparatives, for paying attention to performance as well.

Image courtesy of Flicker user Nathan E Photography.

About Our Expert

Neil J. Rubenking

Principal Writer, Security

My Experience

When the IBM PC was new, I served as the president of the San Francisco PC User Group for three years. That’s how I met PCMag’s editorial team, who brought me on board in 1986. In the years since that fateful meeting, I’ve become PCMag’s expert on security, privacy, and identity protection, putting antivirus tools, security suites, and all kinds of security software through their paces.

Before my current security gig, I supplied PCMag readers with tips and solutions on using popular applications, operating systems, and programming languages in my "User to User" and "Ask Neil" columns, which began in 1990 and ran for almost 20 years. Along the way, I wrote more than 40 utility articles, as well as Delphi Programming for Dummies and six other books covering DOS, Windows, and programming. I also reviewed thousands of products of all kinds, ranging from early Sierra Online adventure games to AOL’s precursor Q-Link.

In the early 2000s, I turned my focus to security and the growing antivirus industry. After years of working with antivirus, I’m known throughout the security industry as an expert on evaluating antivirus tools. I serve as an advisory board member for the Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization (AMTSO), an international nonprofit group dedicated to coordinating and improving testing of anti-malware solutions.

The Technology I Use

Much of the testing I do, particularly testing with real-world ransomware, is just plain dangerous. To perform such tests safely, I sequester them inside virtual machines managed by VMWare Workstation. For cross-platform testing, I use a MacBook Air, a Google Pixel 4, and a 6th-generation iPad.

I rely on my Delphi coding skills to create and maintain small applications. These include programs to check whether an antivirus correctly handled the malware it detected, launch dangerous URLs and record the security program’s reaction, and analyze the malware that I collect for use in testing. I also wrote a tiny browser and text editor for use in testing security apps that have predefined reactions for known products.

I do my writing and research on a Dell OptiPlex desktop, relying on Microsoft Word (my fingers know all the shortcuts). Many of my articles include charts and analysis; Excel is my go-to for those. When work hours end, though, I escape the bounds of Microsoft and Windows. There’s an iPhone in my pocket, I relax with my oversized iPad, and my Kindle Oasis is always loaded with the best science fiction and fantasy.

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