AMTSO Widens Conversation Of Anti-Malware Testing With New Subscription Option

PRESS RELEASE

25th October 2010 - The Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization (AMTSO, www.amtso.org), an international organization that encourages improved methodologies for testing security programs, announced today the imminent availability of a new subscription model that will open up membership to a wider audience.

The new model, approved by the membership at the AMTSO workshop in Munich on 21st-22nd October, is expected to be available from 1st January 2011, and will allow individuals and small organizations to join in the sharing of knowledge in testing matters. Specifically, subscribers will have access to and be able to participate in discussions through AMTSO mailing lists, as well as the process of creating AMTSO documents. They will also have the right to attend meetings, though not as voting members.

"As a member of AMTSO's Advisory Board I've been privileged to interact and work with the group's members and committees,” comments Neil Rubenking. “AMTSO membership is open to individuals, but the 2,000 /year price puts full membership out of reach for all but the most dedicated. The new subscription model will now allow all interested parties to make a marked contribution to the development of better testing methodologies.”

The low cost fee, expected to be in the region of 20 Euros per person, will provide subscribers with additional benefits over and above the educational resources that are already freely available on the AMTSO website. In particular, the development of documentation and participation on AMTSO’s email discussion boards, where some of the world’s foremost experts in the anti-malware industry and the testing industry leave vendor bias aside, in order to pursue lively conversations on the intricacies of malware testing, its fallacies and real-world ways in which to improve it.

“While AMTSO recognizes that strict requirements for full membership are necessary to ensure it achieves its objectives, it also understands that the fees put it out of reach for many interested individuals that may have a valuable contribution to improving the objectivity, quality and relevance of testing methodologies,” says Philipp Wolf, of AMTSO member Avira. “Hopefully, the new low cost subscription model will widen the reach of the organisation and enable more people to have a say in the future of anti-malware testing.”

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About AMTSO AMTSO is comprised of 37 members, representing testers, vendors, academics and publishers involved in anti-malware research. Founded in 2008, AMTSO members have cooperatively developed and adopted standards, guidelines, educational materials, and a review analysis process aimed at improving the efficacy and reliability of anti-malware testing.

Media Contact: Sara Claridge Marylebone Media Relations [email protected]