We set out to do a standard Wirecutter guide to the best antivirus app, so we spent months researching products, reading reports from independent testing labs and institutions, and consulting experts on safe computing. And after all that, we learned that most people should neither pay for a traditional antivirus suite, such as McAfee, Norton, or Kaspersky, nor use free programs like Avira, Avast, or AVG. The “best antivirus” for most people to buy, it turns out, is not a traditional antivirus package.
Information security experts told us that the built-in Windows Defender is good-enough antivirus for most Windows PC owners, and that both Mac and Windows users should consider using Malwarebytes Premium, an anti-malware program that augments both operating systems’ built-in protections. These options provide reliable protection without slowing your computer significantly, installing unwanted add-ons, or harassing you about upgrades.
Malwarebytes is not an all-in-one option for protecting your system against exploits, malware, and other bad stuff. But information security experts repeatedly recommended it as a useful anti-malware layer, one of multiple layers of security you need for your devices, coupled with good habits. Relying on any one app to protect your system, data, and privacy is a bad bet, especially when almost every security app—including Malwarebytes and Windows Defender—has proven vulnerable on occasion. You should have good virus and malware protection, yes, but you also need secure passwords, two-factor logins, data encryption, and smart privacy tools added to your browser. Check out our guide to setting up those layers here.
Why you should trust us
As writers and editors for Wirecutter, we have combined decades of experience with different computers and mobile devices, and their inherent vulnerabilities. We spent dozens of hours for this guide reading results from independent labs like AV-Test and AV-Comparatives, features at many publications such as Ars Technica and PCMag, and white papers and releases by institutions and groups like Usenix, Google’s Project Zero, and IEEE. We also read up on the viruses, ransomware, spyware, and other malware of recent years to learn what threats try to get onto most people’s computers today.
Then we interviewed experts, including computer-security journalists, experienced security researchers, and the information security team at The New York Times (parent company of Wirecutter), whose responsibilities include (but are not limited to) protecting reporters and bureaus both overseas and here in the US from hacking and surveillance:
Furthermore, every information security expert we talked to agreed that most people shouldn’t pay for a traditional antivirus suite: The virus and malware protection built into Windows and macOS, combined with good habits, are enough for most people. Malwarebytes is a nonintrusive additional layer, one that may catch things written to work around Windows Defender or the Mac’s inherent defenses. So we tested Malwarebytes on Windows and macOS to learn how easy the app was to use, if it noticeably slowed performance or interfered with other apps, or if it had any annoying notifications.
Two caveats to our recommendations on malware protection:
If you have a laptop provided by your work, school, or another organization, and it has antivirus or other security tools installed, do not uninstall them. Organizations have systemwide security needs and threat models that differ from those of personal computers, and they have to account for varying levels of technical aptitude and safe habits among their staff. Do not make your IT department’s hard job even more difficult.
People with sensitive data to protect (medical, financial, or otherwise), or with browsing habits that take them into riskier parts of the Internet, have unique threats to consider. Our security and habit recommendations are still a good starting point, but such situations may call for more intense measures than we cover here.
Information security experts told us that the built-in Windows Defender is good-enough antivirus for most Windows PC owners, and that both Mac and Windows users should consider using Malwarebytes Premium, an anti-malware program that augments both operating systems’ built-in protections. These options provide reliable protection without slowing your computer significantly, installing unwanted add-ons, or harassing you about upgrades.Malwarebytes is not an all-in-one option for protecting your system against exploits, malware, and other bad stuff. But information security experts repeatedly recommended it as a useful anti-malware layer, one of multiple layers of security you need for your devices, coupled with good habits. Relying on any one app to protect your system, data, and privacy is a bad bet, especially when almost every security app—including Malwarebytes and Windows Defender—has proven vulnerable on occasion. You should have good virus and malware protection, yes, but you also need secure passwords, two-factor logins, data encryption, and smart privacy tools added to your browser. Check out our guide to setting up those layers here.
Why you should trust us
As writers and editors for Wirecutter, we have combined decades of experience with different computers and mobile devices, and their inherent vulnerabilities. We spent dozens of hours for this guide reading results from independent labs like AV-Test and AV-Comparatives, features at many publications such as Ars Technica and PCMag, and white papers and releases by institutions and groups like Usenix, Google’s Project Zero, and IEEE. We also read up on the viruses, ransomware, spyware, and other malware of recent years to learn what threats try to get onto most people’s computers today.
Then we interviewed experts, including computer-security journalists, experienced security researchers, and the information security team at The New York Times (parent company of Wirecutter), whose responsibilities include (but are not limited to) protecting reporters and bureaus both overseas and here in the US from hacking and surveillance:
These experts helped us reach a more nuanced consensus than the typical table-tennis headlines: antivirus is increasingly useless, actually it’s still pretty handy, antivirus is unnecessary, wait no it isn’t, and so on. Although we often test all the products we’re considering, we can’t test the performance of antivirus suites any better than the experts at independent test labs already do, so we relied on their expertise.
- Brian Krebs, journalist and operator of Krebs on Security
- Bill McKinley, executive director of information security for The New York Times (parent company of Wirecutter), and others on The Times’s information security team: Neena Kapur, James Pettit, Runa Sandvik, and David Templeton
- Rich Mogull, CEO and analyst at independent security research firm Securosis
- Joseph Cox, writer on computer security and crime for Motherboard
- Whitson Gordon, former editor of Lifehacker and How-To Geek
- Alan Henry, editor of the Smarter Living section of The New York Times, and former editor of Lifehacker.
Furthermore, every information security expert we talked to agreed that most people shouldn’t pay for a traditional antivirus suite: The virus and malware protection built into Windows and macOS, combined with good habits, are enough for most people. Malwarebytes is a nonintrusive additional layer, one that may catch things written to work around Windows Defender or the Mac’s inherent defenses. So we tested Malwarebytes on Windows and macOS to learn how easy the app was to use, if it noticeably slowed performance or interfered with other apps, or if it had any annoying notifications.
Why we don’t recommend a traditional antivirus suite
It’s insufficient for a security app to just protect against a single set of known “viruses.” There are potentially infinite malware variations that have been crypted—encoded to look like regular, trusted programs—and that deliver their system-breaking goods once opened. Although antivirus firms constantly update their detection systems to outwit crypting services, they’ll never be able to keep up with malware makers intent on getting through.
A quick terminology primer: The word malware just means “bad software” and encompasses anything that runs on your computer with unintended and usually harmful consequences. In contrast, antivirus is an out-of-date term that software makers still use because viruses, Trojan horses, and worms were huge, attention-getting threats in the 1990s and early 2000s. Technically, all viruses are a kind of malware, but not all malware is a virus.
Although each expert we interviewed had their own preferred solutions to the endless stream of computer threats, none recommended buying a traditional antivirus app. So why shouldn’t you install a full antivirus suite from a known brand, just to be on the safe side? For many good reasons:
It’s insufficient for a security app to just protect against a single set of known “viruses.” There are potentially infinite malware variations that have been crypted—encoded to look like regular, trusted programs—and that deliver their system-breaking goods once opened. Although antivirus firms constantly update their detection systems to outwit crypting services, they’ll never be able to keep up with malware makers intent on getting through.
A quick terminology primer: The word malware just means “bad software” and encompasses anything that runs on your computer with unintended and usually harmful consequences. In contrast, antivirus is an out-of-date term that software makers still use because viruses, Trojan horses, and worms were huge, attention-getting threats in the 1990s and early 2000s. Technically, all viruses are a kind of malware, but not all malware is a virus.
Although each expert we interviewed had their own preferred solutions to the endless stream of computer threats, none recommended buying a traditional antivirus app. So why shouldn’t you install a full antivirus suite from a known brand, just to be on the safe side? For many good reasons:
For these reasons, we don’t recommend most people spend the time or the money to add traditional antivirus software to their personal computer. We didn’t consider newer antivirus products that have not yet been tested by known independent research labs or that aren’t available to individuals.
- Vulnerabilities: The nature of how antivirus apps provide protection is a problem. As detailed at TechRepublic, “Security software necessarily requires high access privileges to operate effectively, though when it is itself insecure or otherwise malfunctioning, it becomes a much higher liability due to the extent to which it has control over the system.” Symantec and Norton, Kaspersky, and most other major antivirus vendors have all had critical vulnerabilities in the past.
- Performance: Antivirus software is notorious for slowing down computers, blocking the best security features of other apps (such as the Firefox and Chrome browsers), popping up with distracting reminders and upsells for subscriptions or updates, and installing potentially insecure add-ons such as browser extensions without clearly asking for permission.
- Privacy: Free antivirus software has all of the above problems plus added privacy concerns. Good security is not free, and free-to-download apps are more likely to collect data about your computer and how you use it, as well as to install browser extensions that hijack your search and break your security and add an advertisement to your email signature.
Two caveats to our recommendations on malware protection:
If you have a laptop provided by your work, school, or another organization, and it has antivirus or other security tools installed, do not uninstall them. Organizations have systemwide security needs and threat models that differ from those of personal computers, and they have to account for varying levels of technical aptitude and safe habits among their staff. Do not make your IT department’s hard job even more difficult.
People with sensitive data to protect (medical, financial, or otherwise), or with browsing habits that take them into riskier parts of the Internet, have unique threats to consider. Our security and habit recommendations are still a good starting point, but such situations may call for more intense measures than we cover here.
by Kevin Purdy, Wirecutter | Read more:
Image: Kyle Fitzgerald
