Internet Explorer 9's cloud security provides huge malware blocking boost

A test of browser security against socially engineered malware aimed at European computer users has shown Microsoft's Internet Explorer 9 to be vastly superior to the competition.

IE9 caught 92 per cent of threats in tests conducted online by NSS Labs in April, while IE8 caught 90 per cent. By contrast Safari 5, Chrome 10 and Firefox 4 all caught just 13 per cent, and Opera blocked just one in 20.

Rick Moy, president of NSS Labs, told V3.co.uk that Microsoft scored so highly because the tests were conducted online, rather than offline in a laboratory, allowing IE to use reputation engines in the cloud to boost effectiveness.

"This is where the cloud sourcing model really works. The sheer number of inputs Microsoft has from its market footprint means that the company can get a huge hit rate advantage," he said.

"Of all the Windows clients running IE, a large percentage are sending back information, so Microsoft knows where people are going and what to block."

Another point in Microsoft's favour is the application checking facility added to IE9 which uses a combination of software blacklists and whitelists to speed up the checking process.

All browsers registered an improvement in comparison to previous NSS Labs tests with the exception of Firefox. This may be because an older version of the browser was used, or a regional weakness in the European market, the report found.

The tests defined socially engineered malware as any contact that requires the victim to download malware, rather than a drive-by download where simply visiting an infected site with an unpatched browser is enough.

Moy estimated that between 50 and 75 per cent of all malware relies on social engineering.