Kaspersky Internet Security Awarded MRG Effitas Online Banking Browser Security Certification

According to the results of the quarterly efficacy assessment of online transaction security conducted by MRG Effitas, Kaspersky Internet Security has received certification for its effective protection of financial information. The Kaspersky Lab product successfully passed every test that assessed protection against malware, identity theft and Man-in-the-Middle attacks.

Unlike most independent labs conducting comparative tests of security solutions, MRG Effitas assesses the reliability and efficiency of each solution separately. In the second quarter of 2014, the study was conducted in three phases. The solutions are first tested on how well they cope with malware designed to steal financial data. A total of 322 samples were used, and all of them were successfully identified and blocked by Kaspersky Internet Security.

The second phase of the study deserves special attention, as it presented a unique challenge involving malware samples from three of the most dangerous botnets – ZeuS, Citadel and SpyEye. The test systems were infected using existing droppers for botnets whose command servers were located in an isolated environment. In order to successfully pass the test, the solution had to prevent leakage of logins and passwords when an attempt was made to pay via PayPal, and Kaspersky Internet Security successfully coped with the task.

The last phase of the study was to simulate a Man-in-the-Middle attack, during which the "attackers" hacked an SSL session between the client and financial websites. This type of attack allows criminals to gain access to confidential data such as passwords, credit card numbers, etc. Once again, the Kaspersky Lab product successfully repelled the attack.

Only four of the 18 participating solutions managed to pass all three stages and received certification. Of those four, the testers noted that only Kaspersky Internet Security protects financial transactions conducted via standard browsers; the other three solutions need to run a special browser, causing a certain amount of inconvenience for the user.

“We believe that users will find an Internet security solution that hardens their existing browser less intrusive on their daily activities than one that employs a separate proprietary browser that may appear alien and limit them from conducting other work while it is active,” commented Sveta Miladinov, CEO MRG Effitas.

“Protecting users’ online financial transactions is a top priority for Kaspersky Lab products. Practice shows that Kaspersky Internet Security not only protects transactions but also makes it as user-friendly as possible,” said Oleg Ishanov, Director of Anti-Malware Research at Kaspersky Lab.

Kaspersky Internet Security’s dedicated Safe Money technology for protecting financial operations has already demonstrated its effectiveness in numerous independent tests, receiving awards from the likes of AV-Test, MRG Effitas and Matousec.