10 Quick Tips about Antivirus Software

Antivirus is a highly essential security software to protect your PC, laptop or smartphone from malware such as viruses, Trojans, worms etc. When you choose any antivirus software, you should look for performance versus cost and the impact on your system resources before finalizing your purchase.

• Update your Antivirus Frequently with the Latest Signatures

When you install any antivirus software in your laptop or PC, you should frequently update it with the latest virus signatures. On a daily basis, new viruses, Trojans, worms, and ransomware are getting discovered and if you don’t update your antivirus software, you are vulnerable to the attacks of new malware containing signatures which cannot be identified by your outdated software. Bitdefender has an auto-update feature and it keeps checking for new virus definitions and updates its database automatically whenever you connect to the Internet. It makes the process of installing, updating and upgrading the antivirus software much simpler.

• Avoid downloading free Antivirus Software from the Internet

There are many free antivirus products available online and you can download it from web forums and Internet newsgroups. But you should be very careful when you download software from such unreliable sources as they might be indirectly inserting backdoors or rootkits to your PC.

• Schedule Periodic Scans on your System with Antivirus

Once you have installed a reliable Antivirus software like Bitdefender, you should schedule periodic scans on your Desktop or Laptop to ensure that your system is free from any security threats. Whenever you connect an external device, you should do a thorough scan of the device contents before you copy any files. It is generally preferred to run a full scan at least once in a week and you should never wait for months between scans.

• Email Protection

Most of the modern Antivirus software offers email protection to safeguard you from phishing emails and spam attacks. Whenever you get any emails from unknown people along with attachments, you should perform a thorough scan of these attachments using your Antivirus software. If you do not recognize the sender, there are chances you might receive Trojans, viruses or other malicious code through the attachments which can infect your system. So remember to scan all the attachments before opening them. Antivirus software will also protect you from phishing emails which might seem legitimate but are intended by hackers to steal your personal data.

• Web Filtering and Protection from Malicious URLs

You should avoid websites which contain pirated materials and clicking on any unknown URLs which you receive in emails. You should always hover over the short links which are shared through social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook or Instagram, as they might be deceiving and lead you to malicious websites which can infect your PC with malware. This will help you to validate the link before you click on it. Hackers use URL shorteners to hide malicious URLs and you should double check that your antivirus software has a web filtering feature to block such harmful URLs before you click on them.

• Real-Time Protection from Malware

You should always choose a product which can detect the malware attacks instantly and offer real-time protection. For example, Bitdefender antivirus software has advanced Hypervisor Introspection technology which sends out instant alerts when a memory violation is detected. It also offers detailed reports on the attack and infected process, the timeline of the attack and violation category.

• All-Inclusive Protection

Always check for antivirus products which offer complete protection from all possible cyber threats including viruses, malware, Trojans, ransomware, rootkits, spyware, adware etc. Some products in the market have very limited features, and so they can only detect viruses but not ransomware. Some products do not have any email protection or web filtering support. You should choose a product which offers complete protection from all security threats while connecting to the Internet. When you compare Bitdefender with McAfee, the former is more robust and is bundled with all features to offer end-to-end protection for your system. It safeguards you from kernel level malware, spear phishing emails and notorious gateway attacks which are not possible by McAfee.

• Multiple Platform Support

Some Antivirus products are designed to be used on specific platforms like Windows of Mac books. You should choose the best Antivirus software which is compatible with all platforms like Smartphones, MacBook or Windows Laptops. Bitdefender is one such reliable product which is available for Android, Windows and iOS platforms.

• Certified by Independent Testing Labs

Not all Antivirus programs are equal in terms of performance and features. You should check for certifications done by Independent testing labs before choosing the right product. Some products like Bitdefender have received “Product of the Year” award and is certificated by various labs like AV-Comparative, AV Testing labs etc.

• Protection from Zero-day Attacks

An important characteristic of any Antivirus product is the protection from zero-day attacks. Bitdefender Hypervisor Introspection is the only security solution which can expose memory violations and zero-day attacks which cannot be found in other traditional Antivirus software available in the market. Such products focus on the isolation techniques rather than payloads which help it to stay ahead of the attacks.