Matousec
Encyclopedia
Matousec is a personal firewall
testing group, known also as Matousec Transparent Security.
and Internet Security
software.
Group's testing results are usually mentioned in reports "Comparative reviews of personal firewall software".
In April 2009, the group and project were acquired by unknown Internet and software-related company Difinex (Different Internet Experience) Ltd. under which it continues testing security software working under Microsoft Windows systems.
Matousec is often mentioned in IT security forums when talking about how secure a firewall-based software is. or at personal firewall
and Internet security
software producer's sites news (Comodo
, Kaspersky). Currently, more than 50 firewall-related products were tested by Matousec group.
Matousec tests an Internet Security
suites' or personal firewall
s' with HIPS engines ability to stop leaks, how well it protects itself from crashing, if it can stop spywares from spying and some other tests, the test used to include a performance test
, but that has been removed now.
All tests are performed on an administrator account on Windows XP
with recent version of Internet Explorer.
.
Matousec has also been criticized on the basis of conflict of interest, due to being paid by security software makers for re-testing. Results may then, at the discretion of the software vendor, be disclosed or kept private. However, Matousec is transparent about this, and the testing procedure is described in detail on the website:
Personal firewall
A personal firewall is an application which controls network traffic to and from a computer, permitting or denying communications based on a security policy. Typically it works as an application layer firewall....
testing group, known also as Matousec Transparent Security.
History
It was founded in March 2006 by Czech IT security researcher David Matoušek with a small group of university students (mostly) to find vulnerabilities in Windows PC security software. Nowadays the group's focus is on non-commercial public testing of personal firewallPersonal firewall
A personal firewall is an application which controls network traffic to and from a computer, permitting or denying communications based on a security policy. Typically it works as an application layer firewall....
and Internet Security
Internet security
Internet security is a branch of computer security specifically related to the Internet. Its objective is to establish rules and measures to use against attacks over the Internet. The Internet represents an insecure channel for exchanging information leading to a high risk of intrusion or fraud,...
software.
Group's testing results are usually mentioned in reports "Comparative reviews of personal firewall software".
In April 2009, the group and project were acquired by unknown Internet and software-related company Difinex (Different Internet Experience) Ltd. under which it continues testing security software working under Microsoft Windows systems.
Projects
The most known project of Matousec is an independent security software testing challenge called Firewall Challenge (in 2009 - Proactive Security Challenge). The group is also known by the development of Security Software Testing Suite used for the tests mentioned above.Matousec is often mentioned in IT security forums when talking about how secure a firewall-based software is. or at personal firewall
Personal firewall
A personal firewall is an application which controls network traffic to and from a computer, permitting or denying communications based on a security policy. Typically it works as an application layer firewall....
and Internet security
Internet security
Internet security is a branch of computer security specifically related to the Internet. Its objective is to establish rules and measures to use against attacks over the Internet. The Internet represents an insecure channel for exchanging information leading to a high risk of intrusion or fraud,...
software producer's sites news (Comodo
Comodo
Comodo Group, Inc. is a privately held group of companies providing computer software and SSL digital certificates, based in Jersey City, New Jersey, in the United States...
, Kaspersky). Currently, more than 50 firewall-related products were tested by Matousec group.
Matousec tests an Internet Security
Internet security
Internet security is a branch of computer security specifically related to the Internet. Its objective is to establish rules and measures to use against attacks over the Internet. The Internet represents an insecure channel for exchanging information leading to a high risk of intrusion or fraud,...
suites' or personal firewall
Personal firewall
A personal firewall is an application which controls network traffic to and from a computer, permitting or denying communications based on a security policy. Typically it works as an application layer firewall....
s' with HIPS engines ability to stop leaks, how well it protects itself from crashing, if it can stop spywares from spying and some other tests, the test used to include a performance test
Performance test
The performance test or "PT" is a section of the bar exam that is intended to mimic a real-life legal task that future lawyers may face. Of the three parts of most states' bar exams -- MBE, essay, and PT -- the PT is probably the most reflective of how well a candidate will perform outside of an...
, but that has been removed now.
All tests are performed on an administrator account on Windows XP
Windows XP
Windows XP is an operating system produced by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops and media centers. First released to computer manufacturers on August 24, 2001, it is the second most popular version of Windows, based on installed user base...
with recent version of Internet Explorer.
Criticisms
Some have criticized Matousec for demanding more of a firewall than what is traditionally expected . A PC firewall should stop leaks, and some argue that it must not protect against other vulnerabilities such as key loggingKeystroke logging
Keystroke logging is the action of tracking the keys struck on a keyboard, typically in a covert manner so that the person using the keyboard is unaware that their actions are being monitored...
.
Matousec has also been criticized on the basis of conflict of interest, due to being paid by security software makers for re-testing. Results may then, at the discretion of the software vendor, be disclosed or kept private. However, Matousec is transparent about this, and the testing procedure is described in detail on the website:
Every vendor has a right to request a paid Proactive Security Challenge testing, in which case its product will be tested in all levels regardless the results on each of the levels. After the vendor receives the results of the paid testing, it can either keep them private or request their publishing on our website, but such a request will be satisfied only if the previously published results for the tested product, if any, are at least one month old and if the tested version is stable and publicly available. There are no limits of the frequency of the paid tests.