Computers have revolutionized almost every aspect of our lives for good, from helping students study while in hospitals, to monitoring patients and controlling crucial manufacturing processes. Cyberthreats like ransomware, viruses, malware and other malware have also increased due to the increased dependence on computers. Antivirus software can detect these threats to stop the computer from being damaged or stealing personal data.
When selecting an antivirus program it is crucial to look at its virus-scanning capabilities and, if it comes with a fire-wall, and how it performs on independent laboratory tests. You might also want look at its customer support, the frequency it updates, and the number of devices it will protect. Some programs, like Norton, include additional tools that can help to prevent identity theft and safeguard your privacy online.
The best programs offer various options for protection that include heuristic detection, which is a method data room services of identifying patterns in behavior typical of viruses or malware, and signature matching, which checks files against a list of known malware. Certain programs employ sandboxing to keep suspicious files out of an environment that is secure and safe from any harm.
Many of the best antivirus software is available for free, though they may not have as many extra features as paid-for alternatives. For example, Bitdefender’s free edition performed very well in our tests and has a firewall, while its premium version comes with parental controls, a file shredder and a password manager. Malwarebytes which is free and was a top performer in our AV Test for 2023, was not able to pass our usability test. Intego Mac Internet Security X9, however, has a solid combination of tools (VirusBarrier and NetBarrier) that caught and killed the majority of malware threats during our test.