The best antivirus 2012 in the world

December 20, VPN Tests. December 01, Antivirus for Windows. November 29, Antivirus for Windows. October 25, Antivirus for Windows. The best Windows antivirus software for home users During September and October we continuously evaluated 21 home user security products using their default settings.

Evaluation based on a point system All products can achieve a maximum of 6 points each in the three categories of protection, performance and usability. All tested manufacturers. Protection Solutions vs.

Ransomware in the Advanced Threat Protection AhnLab V3 Internet Security 9. Avast Free AntiVirus Avast One Essentials The password managers are often quite good, but the online storage can be paltry and the VPN services often don't give you unlimited data. We've collected the best premium antivirus packages on this list of the best internet security suites.

Our evaluations are based on each antivirus program's interface, performance, protection and extra features. Was the interface intuitive and user-friendly?

How badly did malware scans slow performance? How well did the program detect and remove malware? Does the program offer useful additional tools?

Some of our newer performance tests were done on a Lenovo ThinkPad T with a 2. To assess a program's impact on system speed on both Windows and macOS, we used our own custom tests, which measure how long a CPU takes to match 20, names and addresses on an OpenOffice or Excel spreadsheet.

The longer it took the laptop to finish either test, the heavier the performance impact. Each lab subjects the major antivirus brands' products to stress tests involving thousands of pieces of malware, including hundreds of previously unseen samples. Kaspersky antivirus products have been banned from U. Because the company is Russian and antivirus software can peer deep into a PC, using Kaspersky software would create an unacceptable risk for persons and organizations involved in national security and critical infrastructure.

However, we still think Kaspersky software is perfectly safe for home users. We've seen no evidence to convince us otherwise. Kaspersky researchers are well respected throughout the antivirus industry, and the company has publicly exposed Russian cyberespionage campaigns as well as those from the United States and other countries around the world.

Paul Wagenseil is a senior editor at Tom's Guide focused on security and privacy. He has also been a dishwasher, fry cook, long-haul driver, code monkey and video editor. He's been rooting around in the information-security space for more than 15 years at FoxNews.

If you use a Windows PC, you'll need to have one of the best antivirus programs installed, whether free or paid. View Deal. Bitdefender offers the best value in antivirus software. Norton packs in everything but the kitchen sink. Kaspersky Total Security. Specifications Anti-theft: Yes. Backup software: Yes. Firewall: Yes. Game mode: Yes. Hardened browser: Yes. Parental controls: Yes. Password manager: Yes. Ransomware rollback: Yes. Webcam protection: Yes. Virtual keyboard: Yes.

VPN: Limited upsell. Wi-Fi scanner: Yes. Bitdefender Antivirus Plus. Specifications Anti-theft: No. Backup software: No. Firewall: No. Parental controls: No. Webcam protection: No. Reasons to avoid - Heavy background system impact. Norton Deluxe. Hardened browser: No. Ransomware rollback: No. VPN: Unlimited. Reasons to avoid - Heavy slowdown during full scans - Pricey. McAfee Internet Security. Virtual keyboard: No. Reasons to avoid - Very heavy performance hit - No parental controls on mid-priced tier.

Trend Micro Maximum Security. Specifications Backup software: No. Reasons to avoid - Heavy performance hit during scans - Many false positives on some tests. Game mode: No. Password manager: No. Wi-Fi scanner: No. Reasons to avoid - So-so malware protection - Moderate performance penalty during scans - Lacks VPN, password manager, file shredder. Kaspersky Security Cloud Free. Specifications Email scans: Yes. Password manager: Limited. Ransomware reversal: Yes. Scan scheduler: Yes. Support options: FAQs, forums.

Upsell nag factor: Moderate. Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition. Specifications Email scans: No. Ransomware reversal: No. Scan scheduler: No. Upsell nag factor: Minimal. Reasons to avoid - No extra features whatsoever - No quick scans or scan scheduling. Windows Defender Antivirus.

Password manager: Yes, with other Microsoft apps. Upsell nag factor: Nonexistent. Reasons to avoid - Some features work only on Microsoft products - Hard to schedule scans.

Avast Free Antivirus. Specifications Email scans: Separate tool. Hardened browser: Separate tool. Password manager: Not any more. Ransomware reversal: Shield only.

Support options: : FAQs, forums. Upsell nag factor: Omnipresent. Reasons to avoid - Password manager discontinued - Mediocre malware protection - Heavy system hit during scans. Upsell nag factor: Inescapable. Reasons to avoid - Middling malware protection - Slow full-system scans - Almost no extra features. Malwarebytes Free. Reasons to avoid - Installs trialware of paid version - Manual definition updates. Paul Wagenseil. Topics Antivirus.

See all comments I will prefer Kaspersky antivirus licensed software. Review and where to download: Avast Free Antivirus. Microsoft Defender formerly Windows Defender was generally seen as a bit of a joke in the not-too-distant past.

It performed terribly by most measures and was a good advert for why you should really pay for antivirus. But as we explain further up this article, Microsoft Defender has come on leaps and bounds and can now legitimately be mentioned in the same company as Bitdefender, Norton and Kaspersky. As well as very solid virus protection, Defender has extra bits and bobs like a ransomware shield, webcam protection, privacy tools and even basic parental controls and cloud backup.

And the best bit No need to download a thing, just find it in your menu and get protected straight away. Read more and see how to use: Microsoft Defender review. The paid-for version of Kaspersky's Windows security software frequently tops charts of best virus prevention solutions and AV-TEST once again gave it full marks across the board in its latest round of testing.

As you would expect, Kaspersky Free is a scaled down version of the full program - a tool that we really like more on which below. The free version ditches additional features such as privacy protection and safe payment sandboxes to concentrate on powerful, no-frills and - most importantly - free protection for your PC. The result is a tremendously easy to use and navigate bit of software that does an effective job of keeping you protected from viruses.

Using the nuts and bolts real-world scanning engine of the paid-for suite, Kaspersky Free is fiendishly hard for viruses and trojan horses to break down. And we love that it doesn't constantly pester you with nudges to upgrade to the full version.

But, ironically, we will just for a moment, because Kasperksy Anti-Virus isn't expensive to buy and yet affords much better protection to your PC or PCs. Review and where to download: Kaspersky Free.

Marketing itself as "business-grade security", Sophos Home does a little more than most free antivirus software, and actually seems better suited to families.

You get standard virus protection and anti-malware protection, along with browser tools like anti-phishing and, most importantly, content control. Combined with central management of up to 10 PCs, this means you can effectively lock down your kids' browsing options. Although Sophos Home has always had desktop notifications, there was no premium version of the software for it to encourage an upgrade to. That changed in February with the launch of Sophos Home Premium.

Review and where to download: Sophos Home. Each entry in this list has been carefully chosen for its business features, such as remote installation and central management. The best business antivirus software will have enterprise-level protection against threats, but that doesn't mean they have to cost a lot of money, either.

The price per installation can sometimes be cheaper than even our recommended best antivirus packages. Avast Business Antivirus Pro An excellent business antivirus suite, giving you various tools such as virus protection, Firewall, email protection, anti-spam and the ability to sandbox applications for complete security. Avast Business Antivirus Pro as opposed to the standard Avast Business Antivirus also includes Sharepoint and Exchange protection, as well as a number of tools for your servers.

Bitdefender products are loved by the independent testing labs, highly rated for malware detection, removal, performance and usability. Most of the features work automatically — anti-malware, firewall, web advisor, URL filtering — but you can also customise the product to control user actions. Symantec Endpoint Protection Symantec's first benefit is the company's Insight file reputation technology, an effective way to detect and block even the very latest undiscovered threats.

Other layers of protection include virus protection, behaviour monitoring, intrusion protection, a firewall, and the 'Power Eraser' to remove stubborn threats and repair your system.

Avira Antivirus for Endpoint This is Avira's main small business product. It takes all the core features you'd expect — antivirus, baseline network protection, web filtering — and extends them with file server protection and optimisation, along with application whitelisting and blacklisting. The desktop side of the package has all the usual quality Kaspersky modules — antivirus, antispam, a firewall, more — but the mobile security technologies are even more impressive.

Mike began his career as a lead software developer in the engineering world, where his creations were used by big-name companies from Rolls Royce to British Nuclear Fuels and British Aerospace. He now covers VPNs, antivirus and all things security for TechRadar, although he still has a secret love of quirky open-source and freeware apps which find brand new ways to solve common problems.

North America. If you're looking for the best possible protection for your online devices in , then you've come to the right place - we've tested all of the best antivirus providers out there to come up with a definitive list of the absolute greatest. Today's best antivirus software is Bitdefender.

View Deal. Bitdefender Antivirus. Maximum devices covered: Stand out features: Safepay banking protection, privacy tools, multi-layered anti-ransomware, VPN. Reasons to avoid - Room for improvement on detection. Bitdefender Antivirus Plus 1 year.

Norton AntiVirus. Stand out features: Intelligent firewall, PC maintenance features, bundled backup tool with online storage. Reasons to avoid - Mixed results from the testing labs. Kaspersky Anti-Virus. Stand out features: Highly configurable virus scans, anti-ransomware, drive-by cryptomining infection prevention.

Reasons to avoid - Not a huge amount of features. Trend Micro Antivirus. Reasons to avoid - Not as many features as key rivals. Avast One. Reasons to avoid - Not a huge upgrade from free version. Microsoft Defender. Specifications Operating system: Windows only. Stand out features: Anti-ransomware, webcam and privacy protection, web filtering. Reasons to avoid Avira antivirus.

Stand out features: Proactive anti-ransomware, software updater, web protection. Reasons to avoid - Ratings from some independent test labs are a concern. McAfee antivirus. Stand out features: VPN, spam filter, intelligent firewall. Webroot SecureAnywhere AntiVirus. Specifications Operating system: Windows, Mac and Android options. Maximum devices covered: 5. Stand out features: Identity theft protection, real-time anti-phishing, firewall monitor. Reasons to avoid - Below average results in independent tests.

Sophos Home. Specifications Operating system: Windows and Mac.