RoboForm is one of the best password managers, first released in 2000. In 2009, it introduced a dedicated Enterprise version for business users. It offers a rich and complex set of features that compete well with other premium password managers. It was relaunched as a software-as-a-solution (SaaS) solution, named RoboForm for Business, in 2015.

Security is a top priority, with military-grade encryption, flawless security records, and other features enhancing its offering. After trying RoboForm, you may want to check our list of the best business password managers to explore alternatives.

RoboForm ensures that your passwords are always synced and accessible, regardless of whether you’re using Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, or Android. This simple yet powerful tool makes managing passwords easy for both beginners and tech-savvy users. With industry-standard encryption protocols, RoboForm secures your data against unauthorized access, ensuring that only you can unlock your vault.

Roboform: Plans and pricing

RoboForm offers a range of options for individual, family, and business users, providing secure and easy-to-manage password protection for personal online activity.

The free version is ideal for new users and includes many features other companies usually charge for. These include unlimited logins, the ability to fill out web forms, a password audit, and two-factor authentication (2FA).

For personal use, the RoboForm Premium plan offers additional features at a competitive price point. It includes all the free version features plus cloud backup, sync across all devices, secure shared folder, web access, and priority 24/7 support. The RoboForm Premium plan is available for as little as $1.66 monthly.

RoboForm Family is designed for households with multiple users and includes all the features of RoboForm Premium for up to five members in a single package. The family plan is priced at $2.66 per month.

For businesses and teams, RoboForm offers plans that cater to the unique needs of companies, including centralized employee onboarding, secure group sharing, role-based permissions, Active Directory integration, advanced reporting, and dedicated technical support. RoboForm for Business operates on a per-user pricing model, with costs starting at $3.33/user/year.

For larger organizations, there’s also an Enterprise edition that offers customized, volume-based pricing, and a self-host option for installations that have over a thousand users.

Roboform: Setup

Setting up RoboForm for businesses is a straightforward process that ensures a smooth transition and minimal workflow disruption.

The journey to heightened security begins with setting up RoboForm on your company's workstations and devices. RoboForm’s installation process is user-friendly and straightforward, requiring RoboForm's time and technical knowledge. Administrators can quickly deploy the RoboForm business solution across multiple devices using standard deployment methods such as MSI installers or management platforms compatible with your IT infrastructure.

Once installed, RoboForm's administrative console becomes the command center for overseeing the use of RoboForms and permissions. Here, you'll initiate onboarding employees by creating new RoboForm accounts or integrating existing ones. The centralized control ensures all users adhere to the company's security policies, streamlining the management process and maintaining the board.

RoboForm enables administrators to enforce robust security policies, such as mandatory Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) and strict password generation rules. You can assign role-based permissions, ensuring that employees have access only to the credentials and passwords relevant to their role within the organization.

One of RoboForm's key benefits for businesses is the ability to securely share login credentials and other sensitive information within the company. Efficient sharing mechanisms, such as creating shared folders, allow teams to collaborate without compromising security, increasing productivity without risking data breaches.

To maximize RoboForm’s benefits, staff should be encouraged through organized training sessions to understand cyber hygiene and the practical usage of the password manager. User buy-in is crucial, and straightforward tutorials will help employees become comfortable and proficient in using RoboForm's features, leading to a smoother transition and better compliance.

With RoboForm for Business, you're backed by robust technical support tailored to handle any questions or issues arising during and after implementation. Continuous updates and a dedication to customer service mean your business can rely on uninterrupted service and state-of-the-art security features, ensuring your password management system remains at the cutting edge.

By following these steps, your business will implement a reliable and effective password management system that strengthens your cyber defenses and enhances operational efficiency. RoboForm’s commitment to security and user experience makes it a wise choice for RoboForm's aim to protect its digital assets and streamline password management processes.

Roboform: Interface and performance

RoboForm includes features such as a password generator for creating strong and unique passwords of sufficient length and complexity, one-click login, cross-platform password syncing, and offline access. This feature has been further strengthened with the addition of a passphrase option that can add random words, not only a string of random characters. It can also auto-fill data fields for time savings on sites that need long web forms completed. As of January 2023, the company also added the much-anticipated 2FA generator into the experience so there’s no need for users to rely on third-party apps to generate codes.

We also love RoboForm’s integration of folders, enabling users to organize passwords in whatever way is most useful to them. For example, you can easily create separate folders for work-related passwords and personal passwords.

The app itself, in our experience, lacks the intuitiveness of some other offerings on the market but is more of a personal preference based on the numerous password managers tested. However, we did find ourselves digging around for options and trying to figure out how to best navigate the app. With time, the usage does get easier as you figure out where things that you use all the time are located.

We tested the RoboForm app on Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android, and were impressed by the speed of syncing. Although we had to conduct a manual sync, it took less than three seconds for data uploaded on the mobile app to appear on our desktop device. You can also enable automatic syncing.

Another strength of RoboForm is the high degree of account control. Users can make loads of customizations to security protocols and account settings when using the desktop or mobile apps. These advanced controls are one of the reasons RoboForm is one of our favorite password management solutions for businesses.

It’s worth mentioning that, unlike some of its rivals, this is purely a password manager. Other companies tend to bundle in some additional functionalities, or offer more services as a company, which makes RoboForm look a little bit expensive in comparison. For example, there’s no VPN service so you’ll either have to pay extra for one of those or go for a password manager that has one.

Companies that constantly evolve their offering are usually the ones that tend to be near and dear to users' hearts. RoboForm takes this seriously with another recent addition, where the app now supports passkeys, allowing users to store, autofill, and securely share passkeys in RoboForm. Passwordless logins have become increasingly popular, though the initial pick-up was slower than expected. With competitors also having the passkey option available, it is nice to see that RoboForm listens to the users and the market while adding new features to strengthen its offering.

Roboform: Security

As with any password management solution, a top-notch security framework is integral. Luckily, RoboForm doesn’t disappoint. As a standard, all data stored on RoboForm’s platform is encrypted end-to-end with AES 256-bit encryption. 2FA is also available for all businesses, further enhances data security, and supports third-party authentication apps.

Moreover, there’s an entire page on the company’s site dedicated to exposing the security measures and features, which is a major green flag for us. Companies that are open about how they operate inspire confidence, and subject themselves to more scrutiny.

RoboForm Business: Team and Admin Features

RoboForm Business gives admins adequate control over password management. Like its peers, it offers a centralized admin console to help you with all tasks from user onboarding, and single sign-on (SSO) integration, to access control, and password policy enforcement. You can also use it to monitor user activity, track weak passwords, manage groups, and view reports.

One of RoboForm's key benefits for businesses is the ability to securely share login credentials and other sensitive information within the company. You can use the admin interface to organize users into teams, or departments, like Sales, Engineering, Finance, and such. You can also create shared folders that are accessible only to designated groups, which is ideal for sharing team/department-wide credentials.

RoboForm Business enables you to assign permissions at both the folder and individual credential level. You can assign role-based permissions, ensuring that employees have access only to the credentials and passwords relevant to their role within the organization. Employees can either have full access to view and edit the credentials, or just limited access to only use the credentials, and not view them.

RoboForm enables administrators to enforce robust security policies, such as mandatory 2FA and strict password generation rules. By default, RoboForm also doesn’t allow users to export their data. You can also further tighten the screws by restricting access based on device type.

For example, if you don’t have any Mac users in your organization, you can ensure no one can connect to the server from that OS even if they try logging in with the right credentials.

You can also log off users forcibly after a defined period of inactivity. Similarly, you can log them out when they switch to a different Windows user, or lock their computers.

The admin interface also has adequate monitoring and reporting options. You can use it to monitor password health, get breach alerts, and generate detailed activity reports that track events like login attempts, credential changes, password sharing activity, and more. These can also be exported for internal audits or for compliance checks in SOC 2, HIPAA, or GDPR-aligned environments.

RoboForm Business: Integrations and Compatibility

You can integrate RoboForm Business with various essential business platforms and tools.

In addition to SAML-based SSO, RoboForm also integrates with popular identity providers (IdPs) for SCIM provisioning. You can plug the platform with Okta, OneLogin, and Microsoft Entra ID to automate user account provisioning and management.

RoboForm also offers an Active Directory (AD) Connector that you install on a local on-premise Windows server. Once installed it enables you to sync your AD users and groups to your RoboForm Business account. This will help you provision, suspend, and remove user accounts based on their AD membership status.

While not essential for everyone, these integrations are essential for organizations that use IdPs and AD, as they help ease the onboarding process, and ensure employee access aligns with their organizational status.

As we’ve already mentioned, RoboForm offers clients and apps for Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS, with browser extensions for the best web browsers including Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge, and Opera.

While there is no desktop app for Linux, RoboForm rather offers Chrome and Firefox extensions for Linux users. Even Chromebook users are offered a Chrome extension instead of a native client.

RoboForm Business: Ease of Use and Deployment

The RoboForm for Business admin console is well laid out and intuitive to navigate, which makes it fairly approachable even for first time users. It lists key functions on the left side of the screen, some of which, such as Users, Groups, and Data, display detailed information in sortable tables on the right.

On the dashboard you get a snapshot of the number of active users, and groups, shared folders, an overall company security score, and other useful information. The security score (higher the better), available for the entire company, individual groups, and individual users, is computed based on the strength of a user’s password.

The dashboard also offers buttons to add users, groups, data, such as logins, and folders, and more. As an admin you can either add users manually, in bulk via CSV, or through automated provisioning, via SCIM or AD.

Once invited, users receive email invites with easy to follow setup instructions that’ll help them setup a master password, import existing credentials, and install the browser extension.

As we’ve said, RoboForm offers clients, apps, and extensions for all popular desktop and mobile platforms, which makes it fairly simple to roll it out in diverse environments, while ensuring consistent use. RoboForm also offers MSI installers that can quickly deploy the client app to all users in an organization by creating a Group Policy Object (GPO) in AD.

The process for creating and managing user groups is intuitive as well. You can easily add users to groups, review its data, get an overview of its security score, tweak its settings, take a backup of its data, and more.

Defining security policies is just as straightforward. They are broken into three broad categories, namely Security & Access, RoboForm Data, and User Settings. Just scroll through the settings listed within each, and toggle the ones you want to enable. In addition to company-wide policies, you can also define separate policies for the different groups.

The Reports section gives useful insights about the users and groups. For instance, it helps break down users by their security score, helping you identify users that use weak passwords.

Roboform: Support

RoboForm has a detailed manual for its desktop users. You can also look for quick solutions to common issues in the Help Center, which also has a separate section for RoboForm Business. While that platform doesn’t offer a forum board to ask questions, you do get the option to raise a support ticket.

RoboForm provides superior customer support for its subscribers and business customers. IT administrators or employees can contact the RoboForm team either via their online support system or by phone during business hours, 9AM to 5 PM EST.

Roboform: The competition

Although RoboForm is close to best in class, it still faces competition from some of its competitors. LastPass, often considered the top provider, offers advanced administrator controls and centralized account management comparable to RoboForm’s platform.

Small and medium-sized businesses can also look at comparable options such as RememBear, Sticky Password, NordPass or Dashlane.

If security is of great important to you, you may want to consider the recently launched Proton Pass, or if you want to take it a step further, Bitwarden users can opt for self-hosting to keep their data in a location they know and trust, even behind a firewall or proxy, which is a really exciting option that isn’t typically seen in password management, and beyond.

Roboform: Final verdict

RoboForm is an exceptional password management app that offers top-notch security features and a user-friendly interface. It competes with the best in its class and is particularly cost-effective, with a range of plans to suit different needs. For individual users seeking a secure online experience without unnecessary complexities, the free version of RoboForm is a perfect fit.

In terms of security, RoboForm ensures data protection with 256-bit AES encryption, two-factor authentication (2FA), and secure vaults. The recent successful completion of a thorough security audit and penetration test by a third party demonstrates the company's commitment to maintaining high security standards. Additionally, RoboForm has a clean track record with no reported breaches, reaffirming its reliability in safeguarding sensitive data.

The company provides reliable customer support and consistently updates the app with new features, such as support for passkeys, an improved TOTP authenticator, and enhanced password change history. Regular communication through their blog and FAQs ensures users are well-informed about updates and improvements. While not the absolute best option available, RoboForm certainly offers competitive features that rival even premium offerings in the market.

What to look for in a password manager

In the era of increasing digital threats, the importance of robust cybersecurity practices cannot be overstated. Central to these practices is password management, which can significantly enhance a company's data security posture. However, with numerous options available, deciding on the right password manager for your business can be daunting. It requires careful consideration of several critical factors to ensure that the chosen solution protects your digital assets and aligns with your business processes.

Security Features: A password manager's primary purpose is to secure sensitive data. Look for advanced encryption standards, such as AES-256, which is the cornerstone of robust security. Two-factor authentication (2FA) or Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) capabilities are essential, adding an additional layer of security beyond just the master password. The ability to audit password health and enforce strong password policies across your organization is also vital, ensuring that all users adhere to best practices in password security.

User Management and Access Control: The ability to easily manage user access is crucial for businesses. The ideal password manager should offer granular access controls and user permissions, allowing administrators to define what employees can view or edit. Role-based access enhances operational efficiency by ensuring employees have the proper access for their roles, reducing the risk of internal data breaches.

Integration and Compatibility: Operational harmony requires seamless integration with your existing IT infrastructure and compatibility with a wide range of devices and platforms. The chosen password manager should work across different operating systems and integrate well with other tools your business uses, such as directory services for automating user provisioning and de-provisioning.

Ease of Use: Adopting across the company may be challenging if the password manager isn't user-friendly. The solution should offer an intuitive interface and straightforward functionalities that do not disrupt employees' workflows. Features like autofill and auto-login can significantly enhance productivity, reducing the friction of adopting new security measures.

Scalability: As your business grows, so do your password management needs. The selected password manager must be scalable, accommodating an increasing number of users and storing a growing volume of sensitive information without degradation in performance or security.

Cost Effectiveness: While cost should not be the primary factor in choosing a password manager, it's undeniably essential. Evaluate the password manager's pricing structure against the features and security it offers. Consider the return on investment, focusing on how much potential downtime and data breaches could cost your company in comparison to the password manager's subscription fee.

Customer Support and Training: Reliable customer support and access to extensive training materials are invaluable. Responsive technical support ensures that any issues can be promptly addressed, minimizing potential disruptions. Training resources like tutorials and webinars can facilitate smoother onboarding and ongoing use.

Selecting the right password manager is a critical decision that can significantly impact your company's security posture and operational efficiency. By carefully evaluating each password manager against these criteria, companies can make an informed choice that best fits their unique needs, ensuring the protection of their digital assets and the productivity of their teams.

We've listed the best password recovery software.

For almost 20 years, Malwarebytes has been the top malware removal tool for many hoping to clean their device from various nasties. In the last few years, the company has extended its offering to include antivirus software, making Malwarebytes more effective at protecting against all kinds of present and future threats. With a few advanced features and some additional privacy tools, the package looks convincing, to say the least.

But looks aren’t everything, as they say - which is why a deeper look is highly warranted.

First up is Malwarebytes Free, the basic malware removal offering we recommend for infections already cozied up in your computer. That’s about all it does, though it certainly has enough merit to find itself on all your devices.

Moving on to paid subscriptions, within ‘Malwarebytes Premium Security’ offerings (a bit confusing, I know), Malwarebytes Standard gets you an upgrade in the form of AI-powered antivirus defenses, including real-time protection against robocalls, phishing, and the like. It covers up to 20 devices.

Malwarebytes Plus ups the ante and throws in a virtual private network (VPN) for the same maximum number of devices. A VPN shields your online movements so they can't be tracked or traced back to you.

I’d be remiss not to mention Malwarebytes Total as an option geared towards those who want an encompassing security solution that comes with identity theft protection - and a hefty price tag that makes the package too far off for the purposes of this review.

So, how good is Malwarebytes in safeguarding you from the ever-present online dangers? We took the software for a spin and set it side by side with its AV peers to see how well it performs. We also looked at independent antivirus test labs to see their findings and compared them with our data. Keep on reading to learn if Malwarebytes is right for you.

Plans and pricing

With no cost of use, it’s important to think about potential consequences. Basically, you're left open to attacks since Malwarebytes Free is limited to malware removal. As such, it’s good enough to dispose of unwanted software that is currently on your machine(s).

On the other hand, Malwarebytes Standard starts at $44.99/yr for a single device. For 35 bucks more, you can extend the protection to five devices in total. You get real-time protection against the broad -ware spectrum, along with the ad and scam blocker extension called Browser Guard for Chrome, Edge, and Firefox.

If you fancy more privacy for your online activities, Malwarebytes Plus comes in at $59.99 per year for one device or $99.99 for five. The difference in pricing is solely due to unlimited access to a no-logs VPN.

Compare Malwarebytes Subscriptions

Malwarebytes Free

The sad reality is that some antivirus programs fail to detect current malware infections. Typically at this point, most users turn to Malwarebytes for help. The caveat here is that this is a malware removal tool, not full-fledged AV software. It employs uninstall protections to both install itself onto your device and prevent whatever is plaguing your machine from blocking its use. And it finds and removes malware with great success, mind you.

When you first install Malwarebytes (and it scans and cleans your computer), you’re given a two-week trial of paid features. These include 24/7 threat protection, automatic scanning, and a Trusted Advisor responsible for instant insights into your security status and recommendations to optimize both protection and device performance.

Besides doing it manually, you can set the program to conduct a scan of your device every few days. If you forget, a little message will pop up to remind you how long it’s been since your last malware scan. Malwarebytes is compatible with Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS devices.

Mobile apps

The free Android offering works on the same basis as its desktop version. Correspondingly, you get alerts on SMS phishing links and a small perk in Privacy Checker that shows which apps can access your information. This is a standard feature you’ll find in other apps, but it’s nice to have it nonetheless.

It’s pretty much the same thing with the free iOS app, supported by ad blocking for Safari and automatic filtering of fraudulent texts. Do note that the malware scanner isn’t available on iOS due to the nature of Apple’s operating system - though risks of getting infected are low, to begin with.

Final verdict

Malwarebytes provides decent help in combating online dangers. It’s far from a great AV and you won’t get the best protection, but then again, it won’t cost you a penny either. When paired with real-time protection from Windows Defender (or something similar), Malwarebytes offers a relatively safe haven with its malware-busting mechanism, so that counts for something.

Malwarebytes Standard

The best part of using Malwarebytes Standard is access to top-of-the-range malware removal and immediate AV protection. This means security against exploits, ransomware, and potentially unwanted programs (PUPs), as well as Brute Force Protection that kicks in when someone tries to guess your login information.

You can tinker with rules for specific apps and programs, schedule scans at the most convenient times, and configure the tool’s MO when playing games or streaming movies.

The question now is - does this combo of malware removal and antivirus work as advertised? Here’s what we found.

Protection

For reasons unknown, Malwarebytes has a habit of not allowing most third-party test labs like AV-Comparatives and AV-Test (last results are from 2023) to regularly evaluate its software. When you do find fresh independent data (like on AVLab), it’s almost always only the Windows version, so there isn't any info on how it protects Mac users.

The mishmash of historical and recent data from independent labs and our testing shows that Malwarebytes is fairly average in blocking a fair share of threats. This is likely due to the company’s decision to rely on user feedback running its apps. It collects information on the threats and builds its own database, as opposed to tapping into the same threat databases as other antivirus software.

Our first test involved specially designed apps of our own creation to simulate malware that exploits common Windows tools to create processes, download malicious files, and behave in a suspect way. Malwarebytes ignored the behavior and allowed the files to download. It blocked them all on launch or when they were ready to open, keeping us safe.

While that's good, other programs are more cautious. For example, Trend Micro spotted our test app's dodgy-looking actions and closed their processes before they could download anything. Bitdefender also recognized some of the behavior and stopped the potential threats in their tracks before having a chance to download. In both cases, if anything was missed, malicious files were still spotted either during download or shortly afterward and removed before the malware could do its bidding.

As a second, more high-stakes test, we pitted Malwarebytes against a simple ransomware simulator, once again made by our team. The idea was to throw at its behavior monitoring something it hadn’t seen before and check if it could detect the threat.

Sadly, Malwarebytes sat idly by as our simulator encrypted thousands of test documents.

Other vendors fared far better on our test. Trend Micro and Bitdefender not only spotted our simulator by its actions alone, but they also killed the process and recovered the handful of lost files, ensuring we didn't lose a byte of data.

We normally don't treat failing this test as a major black mark since it’s a single sample and not even real malware. As such, it would be unfair to draw big conclusions from so little data.

That said, the poor results broadly match the sentiment of independent labs and other testers: Malwarebytes simply doesn't deliver the protection you'll get elsewhere, and that has to be a concern.

Performance

In terms of user-friendliness, Malwarebytes does well. It runs in the background and protects you immediately, with everything turned on and ready to go right out of the proverbial box.

A simple double-click on the Malwarebytes icon and another click on the Scan button will run an on-demand scan. The process is very straightforward so that even newbies will feel at home right away.

The main Scan feature swiftly checks memory, startup items, and key areas of your file system. It made sensible choices on our test system, examining enough areas to be useful but not so many that we were kept waiting for results. If you're in a real hurry, a Quick Scan checks RAM and startup objects blazingly fast.

With the Custom Scan option, you can choose items you'd like checked, including specific files and folders. It provides a bit more control over the entire process, including what to do with PUPs. It's a welcome touch, albeit not at the level of control you'll see with more geek-friendly products from Avast, Avira, and others.

You're able to scan files, folders, or drives from the right-click Explorer menu. The Windows client can't handle simultaneous on-demand scans, which isn't a huge issue by any means. Malwarebytes' algorithms still pick up threats as they appear, even if another scan is running - but it's a hassle you don't get with the best AV solutions.

Extra features

If you're hoping for a pile of bonus features and additional stuff, you're out of luck. There's no specialist banking protection here, no password manager, and all that jazz you might get with some of Malwarebytes’ peers. Truth be told, this focus on the fundamentals keeps the tool undemanding to use, so if you can live without all the bells and whistles, you’ll likely appreciate the simplicity and lack of clutter.

Final verdict

While Malwarebytes Premium Security has enough charm and wits to make your PC a little safer, it falls short of being a complete antivirus replacement. Its protection score isn’t all that great as it misses a little bit of this and that here and there, but it certainly passes off as a capable AV solution for basic users and needs.

Malwarebytes Plus

In case you want to beef up your protection and privacy, Malwarebytes Plus adds the company's VPN product, Privacy VPN, to the paid offering.

Compared to most “proper” VPNs on the market, the network is quite modest, with 500+ servers in almost 50 countries. However, with an even global spread and 19 locations in the US alone, there's a good chance you'll have a server near you.

The general VPN offering is basic in the extreme (this goes for mobile, too), but there are some technical pluses underneath. Privacy VPN connects via the fast and secure WireGuard protocol, you can route your connection through two servers, and there is a kill switch to block all network traffic in case the connection drops.

Privacy VPN

If you’ve ever used a VPN, you’ll be right at home with the simple but familiar interface of Privacy VPN. The dashboard shows the current server location, while you can choose another server from the list of countries and cities without closing the active connection first. Once connected, your new IP shows up, highlighting its location on a world map.

And that’s the gist. The apps lack numerous common features, like a Favorites system to group your most commonly used locations. You have no idea the ping or load of each server, so you just have to wing it when choosing the best ones. You can’t switch protocols, either: it's strictly WireGuard-only.

Nonetheless, a deeper look reveals plenty of useful touches.

For instance, the app can automatically connect when you access insecure networks. It supports split tunneling to set which items use the VPN and which don't, and if you know what you’re doing, you can set an alternate DNS server for more privacy. We were impressed, briefly, until we spotted another big omission.

Performance

The thing is, Privacy VPN doesn't have an 'Automatic' or 'Fastest' option - a staple in most VPNs today. For some reason, Sweden is set as a default regardless of where you are, which means you have to pick your preferred location manually.

The saving grace is that the connection times were rather sensible, at around 5 seconds. With performance-oriented WireGuard protocol in tow, UK download speeds reached a commendable 780Mbps - though we've seen faster with Surfshark in recent testing.

Plus, the core VPN engine is tuned well. Case in point: when connecting from one location to another, most VPN apps close the first connection, leaving you unprotected until they establish a new one. Malwarebytes’ Privacy VPN seems to employ a temporary kill switch, blocking internet traffic for just those few unprotected seconds until the VPN is restored. Smart.

Unfortunately, the actual kill switch was less useful. Sometimes when it was on, the app couldn't connect - to the point it couldn't even get online itself. Not so smart.

The bad news continued with our final unblocking tests, with Privacy VPN failing to get us into BBC iPlayer, US Netflix, Amazon, or Disney+.

Final verdict

Adding a VPN with great speeds for just $15 more seems like a great deal, but poor unblocking results and assorted technical troubles make it difficult to recommend Privacy VPN instead of a specialist VPN provider. For under $40 a year, you can get a lot more with the best-value long-term contracts.

We've also highlighted the best antivirus

Norton has long had the reputation of a strong antivirus software provider, and it keeps packing in the security industry, even into its most basic packages. All its antivirus tiers are dedicated to keeping your digital and physical identity protected, while secure online cloud storage and password management complement the already robust offering.

Among its great extras is Norton Secure VPN, which is available with all of Norton’s higher-tiered programs. As for the other aspects of its antivirus service, Norton works on all devices and does a solid job of stopping malware, making it an excellent Mac antivirus and Android antivirus.

Norton 360 subscriptions are equipped with dark web monitoring that keeps an eye out for your email addresses, passwords, and other information that may be compromised. If it finds any, you’ll get an immediate alert.

Combining a Norton 360 subscription with LifeLock identity theft protection brings another layer of digital safety. Additional tools include parental controls and privacy monitoring. If you auto-renew, you’re covered by the company’s 100% Virus Protection Promise, a guarantee that it will keep your system clean and its support team will work to clear it up if it ever does become infected.

• You can sign up for Norton antivirus solutions here

Plans and pricing

Norton AntiVirus Plus starts at $29.99 for the first year, after which it jumps to $59.99 for every subsequent year. This covers only one device, but you do get access to 2GB of cloud backup and Norton’s password manager.

With Norton 360, you get its Secure VPN and dark web monitoring. This package protects a maximum of three devices and starts at $39.99 for the first year for one device, after which it increases to $94.99, depending on the package.

Norton 360 Deluxe protects up to five different devices for $49.99 during the initial year and then rises to $119.99 per year. The package builds on the offering of its Standard program by protecting against unauthorized access to your webcam, alongside parental controls and 50GB of cloud backup.

Signing up to Norton 360 Select Plus with LifeLock for $99.99 in the first year, and then at $189.99 a year, provides the ultimate security for your devices and identity. LifeLock is a full identity theft protection service that also helps restore your identity in case of any wrongdoings. It also increases your cloud backup access to 250GB and covers up to 10 devices.

Not sure which subscription to get? No worries, you don’t have to make up your mind just yet. Norton’s antivirus solutions are available to try for free for 7 days. There’s also a 60-day money-back guarantee.

Compare Norton Subscriptions

Norton AntiVirus Plus

Setup

Installing Norton AntiVirus Plus is very straightforward, even for users who aren’t very tech-savvy. The platform takes up just 805 MB of storage. It also won’t affect your device’s performance a lot. Notably, in AV-Comparatives’ September 2024 Performance Test, Norton was rated as ‘very fast’ in all of the observed categories, scoring an outstanding 90 points in AV-C performance and receiving the ‘Advanced +’ award.

Antivirus

Immediately after opening, you’re greeted by a sleek window from where you can instantly run the Smart Scan. The left-hand side lists the major categories: Home, Security, Performance, Search, and Settings.

On the right, there’s a control panel from where you can run highly flexible scans - Smart, Quick, Full, Targeted, or Startup. This is also where you manage your Cloud Backup and update the software and malware data.

Heading over to the Security tab, you’ll see all the options from above, as well as get access to Advanced Security features, Security History, Quarantine, Browser Extensions, and Password Manager.

The Advanced Security options provide an overview of your security status in terms of the physical device (Antivirus, Exploit Prevention, Ransomware Protection, and Sandbox), network (Smart Firewall, Intrusion Prevention, Wi-Fi Security, and Automatic Program Control), and online activities (Safe Web and Download Intelligence).

As for the Performance tab, it features the platform’s Software Updater, File Cleanup, Startup Manager, and the useful Optimize Disk option.

Finally, the Settings tab brings together all of the above options and other settings.

Protection

Norton’s results at a recent AV-Comparatives' Malware Protection Test is a comprehensive benchmark were impressive, earning a 99.96% overall protection score. The only place it seemed to struggle was false positives, earning it the ‘Standard’ award.

Moreover, the latest AV-Test’s Windows 11 Home User gave it outstanding marks across the board for malware detection. With the overall industry standard of 100% detection, Norton clearly made sure to keep up.

Browsing protection

Norton AntiVirus Plus deploys multiple layers of protection to help you stay safe online. These include the Norton Safe Search powered by Ask in the form of a browser extension, and the Norton Home Page. The former shows you a website’s safety rating before you visit, while the latter starts each browsing session on a secure page.

That said, when we tried downloading the browser extension for Chrome using the links provided on the website and inside the desktop app, we kept landing on a page that said it didn’t even exist. We didn’t get any results when manually searching the web store either. There were no such issues with the Firefox or Microsoft Edge Safe Web apps.

Smart Firewall

An intelligent firewall lets you know if untrusted programs are trying to make an internet connection and asks if they should be allowed. It also gives plenty of information to help you decide. You can allow or block the connection in a couple of clicks, or choose to have the firewall remember your decision.

If you’re a tech pro Norton AntiVirus Smart Firewall lets you get your hands dirty with under-the-hood low-level technical details - all the way down to the rules governing each protocol and traffic type.

Backup

Norton AntiVirus Plus offers 2GB of online backup space, while you can also create a local backup on an external or local drive. That said, it doesn’t really offer much in the way of features like encryption, archiving, or versioning.

It’s easy to use, backing up your documents, pictures, music, contacts, internet favorites, and more, by default. If this totals less than 2GB, you can back up your data to the cloud. If it's more, you can exclude individual files and folders, or choose a local drive as the destination.

Backups can be launched on demand, or scheduled to run automatically every day.

Performance

Norton’s Optimize Disk can run automatically on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis, or you can just fire it up once.

The Software Updater keeps your installed apps up to date for increased security. Running the tool identifies the applications in need of updating, and offers the option to update or ignore them.

As a junk file finder and removal tool, Norton’s File Cleanup is pretty straightforward, informing you about the type, amount, and size of the files it deems unnecessary, deleting them with a single click. It cleans up browser history, cache, and temporary files.

Finally, the Startup Manager displays the apps set up to launch alongside Windows, informing you of their resource usage and how commonly they’re found across Norton’s customer community. It lets you delay the app’s start or disable it entirely.

Final verdict

There’s a lot to like about Norton AntiVirus Plus. It has a powerful platform and boasts more features than even some of the high-end suites. Overall, it’s a quality antivirus app and security package that’s well worth its price, at least for the first year.

Norton 360 Standard

Norton 360 Standard, the baseline plan of the Norton 360 range, is essentially Norton AntiVirus Plus with webcam protection, dark web monitoring, and unlimited use of its Norton Secure VPN on a single device.

Prices start at $39.99 for a one-device, one-year license, rising to $94.99 on renewal. The first-year price is a good deal, especially if you’ll use the VPN, as most VPN providers would certainly charge more.

VPN

The VPN can automatically run when connecting to compromised or unsecured networks or P2P, while split tunneling allows you to decide which apps use the VPN and which don’t. There’s also a kill switch that blocks all internet access if the VPN drops.

Extras include automatic reconnecting after device restart, VPN access to local devices on private networks, and the use of Norton VPN even if another VPN is active. Ad and tracker blocking help preserve your web privacy, providing you with records of blocked stuff in the last month.

Norton Secure VPN’s performance is good, connecting in a couple of seconds and achieving solid speeds upon testing, albeit expectedly slowing down the internet connection. Altogether, it’s an okay service that doesn’t really compete with the best of the specialist VPN providers.

Webcam protection

Norton’s SafeCam feature alerts you to any untrusted apps trying to access your camera and gives you the option to allow or block them. By default, it allows known good apps to access it.

If it asks permission for something, you can choose to ‘always allow’ or ‘always block.’ You can also turn off the ‘automatically allow good apps’ option to be prompted for everything, or even shut down the SafeCam entirely.

Mobile apps

Norton 360 Mobile Security for Android packs a punch with all the key tools from the desktop edition and a pile of mobile-friendly extras. They include automatic and on-demand scanning that catches malware before it can launch, while Safe Web keeps you away from hazardous links.

Testing shows Norton’s engine is very accurate, with AV-Test’s Android security reports rating it a maximum 6/6 (‘outstanding’) protection in all six tests over the majority of the past year (November 2023 - November 2024).

The app includes Norton’s Secure VPN, SMS spam and phishing filtering, and the ability to detect if you’re connecting to an unsecure or suspicious network. It also shows key app details from within Google Play before download, like privacy risks, intrusive ads, excessive battery and data use, and more.

Norton Mobile Security for iOS is simpler, featuring excellent web protection, SMS filtering, and a Wi-Fi security layer to alert you to dangerous networks.

Dark Web Monitoring

Meanwhile, Norton's Dark Web Monitoring, one of the features of its LifeLock Identity Theft Protection service, is available in certain countries alongside the 360 suite.

There's no manual searching required. Just set it up and LifeLock will monitor dark web sites where stolen data is regularly traded, and raise an alert if your email address shows up.

Final verdict

Norton 360 Standard is all about its Secure VPN. If you’ll use it, it’s a very good buy. But if you don’t need it, then there isn’t much here to justify choosing the suite. Either pick a higher Norton 360 plan with full identity theft protection or consider other solutions.

Norton 360 Deluxe

Upgrading to Norton 360 Deluxe is mostly about the numbers. You can forget the measly single-device license - it covers up to five PCs, Macs, phones, or tablets. You can install and use the VPN on all those devices, too. Moreover, your online backup space leaps to a generous 50GB.

Then there’s Norton’s Parental Control system that goes beyond the usual. It adds detailed content filtering, mobile GPS tracking, and in-depth monitoring, allowing you to see anything from your kids’ search queries to the websites they visit and videos they watch.

If there's a slightest chance that you’ll benefit from covering more than a single device and staying on top of your family’s internet activities, then Norton 360 Deluxe looks like the best general-purpose option in the range.

Norton 360 with LifeLock

Upgrading to Norton 360 with LifeLock Select Plus gets US users full-featured identity theft protection and other welcome benefits.

The baseline Norton 360 with LifeLock Select Plus plan covers 10 devices, 250GB cloud backup, and identity theft basics - credit monitoring, SSN and credit alerts, stolen wallet protection, up to a million dollars compensation for lost funds and expenses, and identity theft restoration specialists.

Additional features in Norton 360 with LifeLock Advantage plan include the ‘buy now pay later’ alerts, identity lock, and bank and credit card activity locks. It also increases the compensation for ID theft expenses and losses.

Finally, the top-of-the-range Norton 360 with LifeLock Ultimate Plus supports unlimited devices, 500GB of backup, increases the compensation even more, and adds credit reports from three bureaus, and 401(k) and investment activity alerts.

We've also highlighted the best antivirus

Microsoft Defender Antivirus doesn’t get much respect when it comes to security, but it’s been around defending our Windows devices for a long time. Originally released as Windows Defender in 2016 and later rebranded to Microsoft Defender, it’s been part of every Windows release since Vista, and now is a regular built-in free security tool.

There isn’t a need to download anything and most tools, especially malware protections, are already enabled. There is some setup necessary for optimizing particular tools to be at their highest strength, but even if you don’t touch anything, you’ll be protected from threats, including ransomware.

Indeed, some of Microsoft Defender’s features include on-demand and real-time malware protection, automatic detection and blocking of known URLs and files, a simple firewall to keep hackers and snoops from sneaking onto your device and swiping files or important information saved there, which can also be customized to strengthen its protections or to only watch certain files.

Then, there are some unexpectedly sophisticated low-level exploit protection options, adding another tier of difficulty for malware to attack your system. These include the webcam monitor to ensure you’re the only one that can access it and no apps can use your webcam without your explicit permission.

The platform’s basic parental controls are more intelligent than before as well, with features such as content filtering for the Microsoft Edge browser, the ability to control how much time your kids spend on their devices, as well as the capability to monitor all your family’s devices from one spot. Time controls are a blanket shield that locks down your child’s PC account so they can’t get on the computer at all rather than shutting down the internet but still allowing them to play locally saved games.

As for the web protections, they only work on Microsoft Edge and not on other popular browsers (say, Firefox, Chrome, or Opera). When these web protections are enabled in Edge, it sends information to Defender about online files and possible threats for it to look at before allowing them to download.

Notably, Microsoft Defender has only recently started to earn high enough scores to be mentioned as a legitimate antivirus solution and be part of the same list as Bitdefender or Avast. It still lags behind and doesn’t score as high in malware detection and blocking tests, but it doesn’t mean it lacks some good protection tools. It’s also found itself a nice spot on our list of the best free antivirus apps.

Since Microsoft Defender is included as part of the Windows operating system, it doesn’t create any lag on your computer either. It doesn’t take up additional space and only uses the resources Microsoft has allocated to it.

Considering it comes pre-installed and ready to go, running with your Windows operating system, it’s great for those who don’t want to bother with downloads. On top of that, it gives you tools to filter content and set time limits for your kids without paying extra for them, as other free tools out there might require.

On the other hand, Defender lets more threats through than our top picks, so adding Bitdefender or Avast will plug up those holes. Additionally, its web protections only work with Edge whereas, say Bitdefender’s extensions work with Chrome, Firefox, and other browsers.

Ultimately, it’s not the best for stopping malware threats, especially in browsers other than Edge, but it does come with useful advanced options like webcam protection and very basic parental controls.

• Want to try Microsoft Defender? Check out the website here

Interface

One of the major benefits of Microsoft Defender Antivirus is that it comes built-in with Windows - no installation required, no hassles, and very little chance that it’ll conflict with anything else: it simply works quietly and seamlessly with your system. It’s simple and unobtrusive.

In fact, most users will never even see its interface, other than the occasional alerts. Sensible default settings protect you out-of-the-box, automatic scanning upon download and its execution keep you safe from most threats, while idle and scheduled scans aim to detect everything else.

Like with many other security apps, the main dashboard displays your security status, while the sidebar provides access to various functions: antivirus, account protection (how you log in), firewall and network protection, malicious URL and app blocking, parental controls, and more.

However, this isn’t always intuitive. For instance, while many antivirus apps have a Scan button on the dashboard, the Defender’s are two clicks away and located at the bottom of the Scan Options panel.

That said, these initial hassles don’t cause too much trouble and it doesn’t take long to figure out where everything is. Overall, Microsoft Defender Antivirus isn’t difficult to use.

Antivirus

Microsoft Defender has a full range of scanning options, and more - a quick scan, a full system scan, a custom scan to check the specific files and folders you pick, and even a boot scan that runs before Windows fully loads to remove the most stubborn threats.

Quick scans take around a minute on our test PC, whereas a full scan expectedly takes longer, but its completion times may vary significantly, anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes to scan roughly about 100GB of files and folders.

AV-Comparatives’ September 2024 Performance Test has placed Microsoft Defender at 13th place among 17 competitors, with an impact score of 18.9, which is a solid performance for a free security tool that already comes pre-installed with your system, especially considering the fact that it did better than Bitdefender, F-Secure, and Total Defense in this matter.

In particular, it did great in areas such as file copying, installing and launching apps, downloading files, and browsing websites, while only performing slowly in terms of archiving/unarchiving. As such, AV-Comparatives gave it two stars and an ‘Advanced’ performance award.

In the meantime, AV-Test’s January-February 2025 analysis reveals that Microsoft Defender performs well within the industry average (if not better) when it comes to performance as it slows the device down 22% when launching popular websites on a standard PC (the industry average is 23%),

Where the launch of standard software applications on a standard PC is concerned, the recorded impact is 11% (with the industry average also being 11%), and Microsoft Defender delivers the same results for installing frequently-used applications on a standard PC, doing a bit better in case of high-end PC performance.

As it happens, AV-Test’s Windows analyses have highlighted speed issues in the past, but now they’re mostly gone, and Defender nowadays typically scores a best-possible 6/6 for speed in most AV-Test reports.

Protection

In terms of that which really matters where any antivirus is concerned - protection - Microsoft Defender has had mixed results from independent labs in the past. However, it seems to have improved in recent years and now outperforms many commercial competitors.

Specifically, AV-Comparatives’ Real-World Protection Test July-October 2024 ranked it equal fifth (alongside Total Defense) out of 17, with a protection rating of 98.3%. Although that’s not leading-edge - Avira, F-Secure, McAfee, and Norton all blocked 99.8% of threats - we can’t really complain about an antivirus that ‘only’ does as well as Total Defense, and better than Trend Micro, Panda, and Quick Heal, especially for free.

AV-Test’s Window Consumer reports awarded Defender a maximum of 6/6 points for protection, performance, and usability in its January - February 2025 Product Review and Certification Report. The platform had no false flags for legitimate websites in either month, whereas in January it only had one false detection of legitimate software as malware during a system scan - a great score considering that the industry average is three false flags here.

At the same time, SE-Labs’ 2024 Q4 Home Anti-Malware Protection report tells a similar story, in which Microsoft Defender ranks seventh out of nine in its Total Accuracy rating of 98%. Here, it performed better than Webroot Antivirus, albeit not as well as Avast Free Antivirus, Kaspersky Premium, McAfee Total Protection, Norton LifeLock Norton360, Sophos Home Premium (all boasting 100%), and Panda Dome (at 99%).

Other features

Microsoft Defender doesn’t just provide antivirus, as there are a few other useful features to explore.

At the top of the list has to be the firewall. It does a fair job of protecting you from incoming network attacks, but it’s less interested in controlling outbound access. In other words, if an app manages to run as an administrator, it will also be able to customize the firewall by adding its own rules.

Microsoft Defender also has capable ransomware protection, although it isn’t exactly sophisticated. Controlled Folders simply blocks everything it doesn’t recognize, including legitimate programs that refuse to run until manually added to the Exceptions list. Admittedly, it does its core job, which is keeping you safe from a threat that the antivirus engine has missed.

Moreover, Windows’ OneDrive integration helps a bit as well. The standard 5GB of free online storage space isn’t that much, but it’s free and it’s 5GB more than you’ll get with most security apps, helping you protect your most important data from attacks.

Additionally, Defender’s reputation-based SmartScreen protection allows it to block access to malicious websites, files, and apps. That said, its URL filtering is less accurate and only works with Microsoft Edge. SmartScreen’s file and download checks work system-wide though, and they’re a handy extra layer of protection.

Digging deeper, Windows reveals a bunch of extremely low-level exploit defense and device security features, largely focused on how the operating system handles memory. They’re important, but they’re best left alone, even by expert users, as playing around with CFG, DEP, ASLR, and Memory Integrity settings can, in some situations, break your PC to the point it won’t even boot.

Device performance and health is something that many paid antivirus platforms have, and Windows has its own version bundled in the Windows Security app, allowing you to monitor and maintain the device’s storage, battery life, apps and software, and Windows Time service for any issues.

Here, you can also do a ‘Fresh start’ (reset your PC) with a clean and up-to-date installation of Windows to potentially improve your device’s startup and shutdown speeds, memory usage, Store apps, performance, browsing experience, and battery life - if all else fails, that is.

Finally, there’s the Family Options page, a collection of parental control features. Its positives include quite a few options, including the ability to filter websites by content, control when your kids can use their devices and which apps they can buy, as well as getting regular reports on their activities.

On the other hand, these system settings are mostly very basic and the Windows browser options are Edge-only, so bypassing them is as easy as downloading Google Chrome or any other browser, like Firefox or Opera, and accessing them from there.

As an alternative, you can install a free Microsoft Family Safety app on Android and iOS to help control screen time, as well as web and app use across the platforms. It only covers the very basics, but it’s nonetheless a welcome addition to the package, and if you’re looking for parental controls, then it’s certainly worth checking out.

Final verdict

All things considered, Microsoft Defender isn’t really as feature-packed as the top antivirus competition, but it’s more accurate than some big-name commercial products and is much less likely to cause issues with your other applications. If simplicity (or price) is at the top of your priority list, then it’s a reasonable choice.

We've also highlighted the best antivirus or, you can take a look at the best free antivirus apps before you fully commit! 

• Our Microsoft discount codes can help you save on your next purchase.

Microsoft Defender Antivirus doesn’t get much respect when it comes to security, but it’s been around defending our Windows devices for a long time. Originally released as Windows Defender in 2016 and later rebranded to Microsoft Defender, it’s been part of every Windows release since Vista, and now is a regular built-in free security tool.

There isn’t a need to download anything and most tools, especially malware protections, are already enabled. There is some setup necessary for optimizing particular tools to be at their highest strength, but even if you don’t touch anything, you’ll be protected from threats, including ransomware.

Indeed, some of Microsoft Defender’s features include on-demand and real-time malware protection, automatic detection and blocking of known URLs and files, a simple firewall to keep hackers and snoops from sneaking onto your device and swiping files or important information saved there, which can also be customized to strengthen its protections or to only watch certain files.

Then, there are some unexpectedly sophisticated low-level exploit protection options, adding another tier of difficulty for malware to attack your system. These include the webcam monitor to ensure you’re the only one that can access it and no apps can use your webcam without your explicit permission.

The platform’s basic parental controls are more intelligent than before as well, with features such as content filtering for the Microsoft Edge browser, the ability to control how much time your kids spend on their devices, as well as the capability to monitor all your family’s devices from one spot. Time controls are a blanket shield that locks down your child’s PC account so they can’t get on the computer at all rather than shutting down the internet but still allowing them to play locally saved games.

As for the web protections, they only work on Microsoft Edge and not on other popular browsers (say, Firefox, Chrome, or Opera). When these web protections are enabled in Edge, it sends information to Defender about online files and possible threats for it to look at before allowing them to download.

Notably, Microsoft Defender has only recently started to earn high enough scores to be mentioned as a legitimate antivirus solution and be part of the same list as Bitdefender or Avast. It still lags behind and doesn’t score as high in malware detection and blocking tests, but it doesn’t mean it lacks some good protection tools. It’s also found itself a nice spot on our list of the best free antivirus apps.

Since Microsoft Defender is included as part of the Windows operating system, it doesn’t create any lag on your computer either. It doesn’t take up additional space and only uses the resources Microsoft has allocated to it.

Considering it comes pre-installed and ready to go, running with your Windows operating system, it’s great for those who don’t want to bother with downloads. On top of that, it gives you tools to filter content and set time limits for your kids without paying extra for them, as other free tools out there might require.

On the other hand, Defender lets more threats through than our top picks, so adding Bitdefender or Avast will plug up those holes. Additionally, its web protections only work with Edge whereas, say Bitdefender’s extensions work with Chrome, Firefox, and other browsers.

Ultimately, it’s not the best for stopping malware threats, especially in browsers other than Edge, but it does come with useful advanced options like webcam protection and very basic parental controls.

• Want to try Microsoft Defender? Check out the website here

Interface

One of the major benefits of Microsoft Defender Antivirus is that it comes built-in with Windows - no installation required, no hassles, and very little chance that it’ll conflict with anything else: it simply works quietly and seamlessly with your system. It’s simple and unobtrusive.

In fact, most users will never even see its interface, other than the occasional alerts. Sensible default settings protect you out-of-the-box, automatic scanning upon download and its execution keep you safe from most threats, while idle and scheduled scans aim to detect everything else.

Like with many other security apps, the main dashboard displays your security status, while the sidebar provides access to various functions: antivirus, account protection (how you log in), firewall and network protection, malicious URL and app blocking, parental controls, and more.

However, this isn’t always intuitive. For instance, while many antivirus apps have a Scan button on the dashboard, the Defender’s are two clicks away and located at the bottom of the Scan Options panel.

That said, these initial hassles don’t cause too much trouble and it doesn’t take long to figure out where everything is. Overall, Microsoft Defender Antivirus isn’t difficult to use.

Antivirus

Microsoft Defender has a full range of scanning options, and more - a quick scan, a full system scan, a custom scan to check the specific files and folders you pick, and even a boot scan that runs before Windows fully loads to remove the most stubborn threats.

Quick scans take around a minute on our test PC, whereas a full scan expectedly takes longer, but its completion times may vary significantly, anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes to scan roughly about 100GB of files and folders.

AV-Comparatives’ September 2024 Performance Test has placed Microsoft Defender at 13th place among 17 competitors, with an impact score of 18.9, which is a solid performance for a free security tool that already comes pre-installed with your system, especially considering the fact that it did better than Bitdefender, F-Secure, and Total Defense in this matter.

In particular, it did great in areas such as file copying, installing and launching apps, downloading files, and browsing websites, while only performing slowly in terms of archiving/unarchiving. As such, AV-Comparatives gave it two stars and an ‘Advanced’ performance award.

In the meantime, AV-Test’s January-February 2025 analysis reveals that Microsoft Defender performs well within the industry average (if not better) when it comes to performance as it slows the device down 22% when launching popular websites on a standard PC (the industry average is 23%),

Where the launch of standard software applications on a standard PC is concerned, the recorded impact is 11% (with the industry average also being 11%), and Microsoft Defender delivers the same results for installing frequently-used applications on a standard PC, doing a bit better in case of high-end PC performance.

As it happens, AV-Test’s Windows analyses have highlighted speed issues in the past, but now they’re mostly gone, and Defender nowadays typically scores a best-possible 6/6 for speed in most AV-Test reports.

Protection

In terms of that which really matters where any antivirus is concerned - protection - Microsoft Defender has had mixed results from independent labs in the past. However, it seems to have improved in recent years and now outperforms many commercial competitors.

Specifically, AV-Comparatives’ Real-World Protection Test July-October 2024 ranked it equal fifth (alongside Total Defense) out of 17, with a protection rating of 98.3%. Although that’s not leading-edge - Avira, F-Secure, McAfee, and Norton all blocked 99.8% of threats - we can’t really complain about an antivirus that ‘only’ does as well as Total Defense, and better than Trend Micro, Panda, and Quick Heal, especially for free.

AV-Test’s Window Consumer reports awarded Defender a maximum of 6/6 points for protection, performance, and usability in its January - February 2025 Product Review and Certification Report. The platform had no false flags for legitimate websites in either month, whereas in January it only had one false detection of legitimate software as malware during a system scan - a great score considering that the industry average is three false flags here.

At the same time, SE-Labs’ 2024 Q4 Home Anti-Malware Protection report tells a similar story, in which Microsoft Defender ranks seventh out of nine in its Total Accuracy rating of 98%. Here, it performed better than Webroot Antivirus, albeit not as well as Avast Free Antivirus, Kaspersky Premium, McAfee Total Protection, Norton LifeLock Norton360, Sophos Home Premium (all boasting 100%), and Panda Dome (at 99%).

Other features

Microsoft Defender doesn’t just provide antivirus, as there are a few other useful features to explore.

At the top of the list has to be the firewall. It does a fair job of protecting you from incoming network attacks, but it’s less interested in controlling outbound access. In other words, if an app manages to run as an administrator, it will also be able to customize the firewall by adding its own rules.

Microsoft Defender also has capable ransomware protection, although it isn’t exactly sophisticated. Controlled Folders simply blocks everything it doesn’t recognize, including legitimate programs that refuse to run until manually added to the Exceptions list. Admittedly, it does its core job, which is keeping you safe from a threat that the antivirus engine has missed.

Moreover, Windows’ OneDrive integration helps a bit as well. The standard 5GB of free online storage space isn’t that much, but it’s free and it’s 5GB more than you’ll get with most security apps, helping you protect your most important data from attacks.

Additionally, Defender’s reputation-based SmartScreen protection allows it to block access to malicious websites, files, and apps. That said, its URL filtering is less accurate and only works with Microsoft Edge. SmartScreen’s file and download checks work system-wide though, and they’re a handy extra layer of protection.

Digging deeper, Windows reveals a bunch of extremely low-level exploit defense and device security features, largely focused on how the operating system handles memory. They’re important, but they’re best left alone, even by expert users, as playing around with CFG, DEP, ASLR, and Memory Integrity settings can, in some situations, break your PC to the point it won’t even boot.

Device performance and health is something that many paid antivirus platforms have, and Windows has its own version bundled in the Windows Security app, allowing you to monitor and maintain the device’s storage, battery life, apps and software, and Windows Time service for any issues.

Here, you can also do a ‘Fresh start’ (reset your PC) with a clean and up-to-date installation of Windows to potentially improve your device’s startup and shutdown speeds, memory usage, Store apps, performance, browsing experience, and battery life - if all else fails, that is.

Finally, there’s the Family Options page, a collection of parental control features. Its positives include quite a few options, including the ability to filter websites by content, control when your kids can use their devices and which apps they can buy, as well as getting regular reports on their activities.

On the other hand, these system settings are mostly very basic and the Windows browser options are Edge-only, so bypassing them is as easy as downloading Google Chrome or any other browser, like Firefox or Opera, and accessing them from there.

As an alternative, you can install a free Microsoft Family Safety app on Android and iOS to help control screen time, as well as web and app use across the platforms. It only covers the very basics, but it’s nonetheless a welcome addition to the package, and if you’re looking for parental controls, then it’s certainly worth checking out.

Final verdict

All things considered, Microsoft Defender isn’t really as feature-packed as the top antivirus competition, but it’s more accurate than some big-name commercial products and is much less likely to cause issues with your other applications. If simplicity (or price) is at the top of your priority list, then it’s a reasonable choice.

We've also highlighted the best antivirus or, you can take a look at the best free antivirus apps before you fully commit! 

• Our Microsoft discount codes can help you save on your next purchase.

Our series on identity theft protection apps will evaluate the features, pricing options, competition, and also the overall value of using each app. However, these are not full hands-on reviews since evaluating identity theft protection apps is almost impossible. It would require several months of testing, purposefully hacking accounts to see if the protection app works, handing over personally identifiable information, performing multiple credit checks, and risking exposure of the reviewer’s personally identifiable information.

In the digital age, identity theft often goes unnoticed amidst our carefree use of social media, internet platforms, and credit card-based services. However, once you fall victim to this crime, it can quickly transform into a harrowing ordeal. Victims find themselves grappling with the frustration and confusion of having their bank accounts or credit cards fraudulently used, leaving them with the daunting task of repairing their credit.

Zander Identity Theft Protection prioritizes loss prevention and notifications due to Zander's primary role as an insurance provider. This is a key differentiator from other identity theft products like Norton LifeLock or Complete ID. The backing of an insurance company provides added peace of mind in the unfortunate event of identity theft, a significant benefit not typically found in most other identity theft products.

Zander Identity Theft Protection's emphasis on cost-effectiveness comes at the expense of distinctive features and thorough identity protection measures. The website provides minimal information about the program, giving the impression that identity protection is merely a tactic to draw attention to Zander Insurance's other prominent offerings like disability, vehicle, and health insurance. While Zander Identity Theft Protection may offer basic protection at a low cost, it lacks the extensive features, user-friendly interface, and robust identity theft safeguards found in competing products. Without these essential elements, it's challenging to recommend Zander Identity Theft Protection for anything beyond fundamental protection.

Zander Identity Theft Protection: Plans and pricing

The main selling point here is the price. For just $6.75 per month, this app provides essential features like fraud alerts, bank compromise notifications, and social security theft protection. Opting for an annual plan at $75—equivalent to $6.25 per month—offers additional savings. You also get access to phone-based customer support for resolving any issues.

While the features aren't groundbreaking, the app does offer coverage for Home Title Fraud and Dark Web monitoring. It includes protection for up to $1,000,000 in Stolen Funds & Expenses. The lost wallet service stands out by quickly deactivating credit cards and replacing items lost from your wallet or handbag.

This combination of affordability and comprehensive basic coverage makes it a practical choice for those looking to protect their identity without breaking the bank.

The family plan offered is a supplementary option that comes with a monthly fee of $12.90 (which translates to an annual cost of $145). This plan is designed to cater to families, providing coverage for two adults and an unlimited number of children.

A key advantage of the family plan is the enhanced coverage for Stolen Funds & Expenses, which is increased to a substantial $2,000,000. However, it's important to note that each participant in the plan has a coverage cap of $1 million.

By opting for the family plan, individuals can enjoy the peace of mind that comes with knowing that their family's financial well-being is protected in the event of unauthorized transactions or fraudulent activities. The coverage offered can help mitigate the impact of financial losses resulting from stolen funds or unexpected expenses, providing families with a safety net in challenging situations.

For families who value comprehensive financial protection and want to safeguard their finances against potential threats, the family plan is a valuable consideration. It offers an expanded level of coverage at an affordable monthly or annual cost, ensuring that all family members are covered under a single plan.

The Elite Plan is a premium-tier option that offers similar minor savings when paid annually. It is accessible at $11.99 per month for an individual or $21.99 per month for a family. This plan encompasses all the features of the lower-tier plan, along with notable additions. These include UltraVPN, which supports up to 20 devices and normally costs $2.99 per month when paid annually, UltraAV Antivirus, Experian Credit Lock, monitoring for new accounts, and account takeover monitoring. This combination of features makes it an attractive package for individuals seeking both a VPN and an antivirus solution.

Zander Identity Theft Protection: Interface

Zander Identity Theft Protection's straightforward, white interface is a testament to its dedication to the basics. The app presents alerts related to your identity protection, such as suspicious activity on your bank account or credit card. While it excels in terms of interface and design, falling short when compared to our top choice, Norton LifeLock, which offers a more refined appearance.

Unlike Norton LifeLock, Zander Identity Theft Protection lacks engaging wizards that provide detailed explanations of various aspects of identity protection. It also falls short in providing frequent status updates, leaving users uncertain about their progress in safeguarding their identity. This lack of guidance can be particularly frustrating for those unfamiliar with identity theft protection measures.

Furthermore, Zander Identity Theft Protection's limited features may not cater to users seeking comprehensive identity protection. It lacks certain essential tools, such as credit monitoring, which is a crucial component of identity theft protection. Without credit monitoring, users are unable to track changes in their credit reports and may miss out on potential indicators of identity theft.

While Zander Identity Theft Protection offers a simple and easy-to-use interface, its lack of robust features and user guidance may leave users wanting more. For a more comprehensive identity theft protection solution, it may be advisable to consider alternatives such as Norton LifeLock or other providers that offer a wider range of features and a more engaging user experience.

The Zander Identity Theft software for iOS smartphones has faced criticism from users who have expressed their dissatisfaction through negative reviews. The app, which aims to protect users from identity theft, has received an overall score of 2.4 out of 5 stars, with a significant number of 1-star reviews.

One of the main issues highlighted by users is the app's account creation process, which is described as challenging and confusing. The process reportedly involves multiple steps, including providing personal information and setting up passwords, which can be frustrating for users.

Furthermore, users have expressed concerns about the requirement for online logins to view phone alerts. This means that in order to access important security notifications and alerts related to potential identity theft attempts, users must log in to their account on the Zander Identity Theft app. This additional step can be inconvenient and time-consuming, especially in situations where users need to respond quickly to potential threats.

Another significant problem mentioned in user reviews is the difficulty of canceling the app's subscription. Users have reported encountering obstacles when attempting to cancel their subscription, such as complex cancellation procedures, lack of clear instructions, and unresponsive customer support. This can lead to frustration and difficulty in discontinuing the service.

The negative reviews received by the Zander Identity Theft software reflect the challenges users have faced with the app's account creation, online login requirements, and cancellation process. These issues undermine the app's intended purpose of providing identity theft protection and highlight the need for improvements to enhance the user experience.

Zander Identity Theft Protection: Features

The primary takeaway from Zander Identity Theft Protection is that its features are fairly ordinary. This suggests that while you may be paying a lower price, you are not receiving exceptional features. The app provides standard fraud warnings and safeguards similar to those found in other identity theft protection applications. Additionally, most of these applications offer a hotline number to speak with an agent, which is not a unique feature of Zander.

Concerning theft protection insurance, Zander Identity Theft Protection offers reimbursement for stolen funds and related expenses. The base-level plan provides coverage up to $1 million, while the higher-tier plan covers up to $2 million.

Zander Identity Theft Protection: Support

Zander Identity Theft Protection offers support services to help use its service. Included is 24/7/365 support that provides round-the-clock support from U.S.-based recovery specialists who can assist with various identity theft issues. Their customer support team can be reached by phone at 1(888) 210-32743.

Unfortunately, individuals seeking alternative support resources, such as a comprehensive support portal, informative videos, interactive chat support, or an engaging community forum, may be left wanting. Our evaluation did not uncover the presence of any of these options within the platform. A support portal serves as a centralized hub where users can find a wealth of documentation, tutorials, FAQs, and troubleshooting guides, enabling them to resolve issues independently. Helpful videos, on the other hand, provide visual demonstrations and step-by-step instructions, catering to various learning preferences. An interactive chat feature allows users to connect with support representatives in real-time, offering immediate assistance and resolving complex queries efficiently. Moreover, an interactive forum, where users can interact, share experiences, and seek advice from peers and experts, fosters a collaborative problem-solving environment. The absence of these features limits the platform's ability to cater to users who prefer alternative support channels, potentially hindering their experience and satisfaction.

Zander Identity Theft Protection: The competition

Of all the identity theft protection services we reviewed, Zander offered the most affordable option. However, its feature set was limited. While Zander's pricing might seem low, a Costco membership is required to access their lowest-priced package. If you have the Costco Exec plan, which costs $120 per year, Complete ID is more expensive at $8.99 per month.

At its core, Zander's coverage serves as a platform for monitoring fraud alerts and facilitating collaboration with customer service to resolve issues. While it may not directly compete with established identity theft protection companies such as Equifax, Experian, or Norton, Complete ID emerges as the closest rival solely due to comparable pricing.

Zander's higher tier offering includes a VPN and antivirus software, making it a more comprehensive choice for those seeking a bundled solution. The inclusion of a VPN from a reputable provider like UltraVPN is a significant advantage, as many ID theft protection services offering VPNs don't specify the provider or whether essential features like a kill switch are included.

Zander Identity Theft Protection: Final verdict

Zander's basic Identity Theft Protection plan, while affordable, may not provide the same level of comprehensive support and features as more specialized options like IDNotify, Complete ID, Norton LifeLock, or IdentityForce. Its generic nature might not be as appealing to those seeking a highly customized or advanced solution.

Choosing an identity theft protection service based solely on price leaves you at risk for insufficient protection. While the service offers basic alerts and protections, the website lacks detailed information about its features. A more comprehensive explanation of the alerts and customer service hotline would enhance transparency. Identity theft is a serious issue, and selecting a product based solely on low cost may not be the best course of action to provide adequate security for you and your family.

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