Ridding a desktop or server of malware is like trying to kill kudzu, an out-of-control vine in the South that can grow 12 inches a day. Rootkit-based spyware is especially tenacious.

Using Task Manager doesn't help, because the spyware process inserts Registry entries that cause the spyware to restart automatically. Using the Registry Edit tool to remove autorestart insertions doesn't work, because the instance quickly reinserts the autorestart Registry entries before you can use Task Manager to end the process.

An Internet gateway that prevents malware from reaching clients and servers is a much better approach than installing antispyware tools on each device. To find the best gateway-based system (either software or appliance), we invited several vendors to our lab for testing.

We received FaceTime Enterprise Edition (RTG 500 device, IM Auditor software and Greynet Enterprise Manager), eSoft's ThreatWall 200 appliance and Gateway Anti-Spyware SoftPak, Barracuda Networks' Barracuda Web Filter 310, Aladdin Knowledge Systems' eSafe Gateway/Web/Mail V5.2 appliance and Web Security Pack, Trend Micro's InterScan Web Security Appliance 2500 and CP Secure's Content Security Gateway 1500 V2.0 with WebSense's Web Security Suite V6.2 (combination offering).

Click to see: FaceTime Enterprise Edition

We also downloaded Secure Computing's WebWasher Anti-Virus 5.3 and Secure Anti-Malware product. Three vendors (Sophos, Bluecoat and IronPort) were developing new product versions during our test cycle, and McAfee said it is retooling its antimalware appliances.

All products tested fared well, with FaceTime Enterprise Edition edging out a strong field (three products tied for second with 4.1 scores). FaceTime earns a Clear Choice Award for its zero latency and easy-to-use central console for managing multiple appliances. The table below summarizes the success rates and performance results for each product (see How we did it, page 54). See related story on new approaches to malware.

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