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We recommend running an anti-virus/anti-malware application on all Windows machines, with Windows servers no exception. Below are our picks of the top free anti-virus programs for Windows Server editions. We have installed and tested each one to ensure they are compatible with Windows Server.
Immunet is a free AV for Windows Server that utilizes real-time cloud analytics drawn from millions of end-users to provide cutting edge virus detection. It is based on Clamwin, the Windows port of renowned open-source antivirus ClamAV. Works with Windows Server.
In our tests, Immunet detected and removed threats more effectively than any other solution. In addition to on-demand full scans, Immunet provides an unobtrusive real-time antivirus and quarantine that does not interfere with remote desktop (RDP), or with other antivirus programs.
Despite its outdated interface (as of writing in 2017), all of these benefits result in our recommendation of Immunet as the best free anti-virus for Windows Server.
Download: http://www.immunet.com
Ad-Aware Free Antivirus+ is supported by a trusted security company (Lavasoft), and includes live file checking and web protection in addition to anti-virus and -malware scanning. It works well with Windows Server editions, in addition to home versions of Windows.
The Free Antivirus+ edition is a perpetual free version of the Antivirus. Works with Windows Server.
Download: http://www.lavasoft.com/products/ad_aware_free.php
Malwarebytes is another trusted and long-standing program, and is specifically an anti-malware tool, which can be used alongside anti-virus applications.
The free version of Malwarebytes Anti-Malware is easy to install on all versions of Windows, including Windows Server editions. Works with Windows Server.
Download: https://www.malwarebytes.org/downloads/
Runners Up: Windows Defender & Microsoft Security Essentials
Windows Defender is included by default with editions of Windows newer than Windows Server 2012 R2 / Windows 8. It provides real-time filesystem scanning, and is usually running in the background of your Windows server or VPS, unless specifically disabled.This software helps identify and remove viruses, spyware, and other malicious software.
Download: Included with Windows Server 2016 and Windows 10.
For versions of Windows Server older than Windows Server 2012 R2, Microsoft Security Essentials is a very good security package distributed by Microsoft, compatible with all pre-Windows 8 versions of Windows. It’s easy to install, runs quietly, and integrates seamlessly with your Windows installation, getting updates directly from Windows Update.
Download: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/security-essentials-download
Non-working Software
Unfortunately, the following popular antivirus applications do not work with Windows Server operating systems:
- AVG Antivirus
- Avast Antivirus
- Comodo Antivirus
Avast 2016 free download - Avast Free Mac Security, Microsoft Office 2016 Preview, Avast Passwords, and many more programs. This vid explains how to uninstall avast Mac Security 2016 manually. Avast Free Antivirus 2016 Review - Duration: 21:11. The PC Security Channel [TPSC] 90,087 views. Easily Uninstall Avast Free Mac Security 2016 (Recommended) Wish to get rid of Avast Mac Security within a few clicks? Among numerous tools that support to uninstall applications on macOS, Osx Uninstaller stands out as a professional, reliable and handy utility. Avast Security (for Mac) delivers effective malware protection along with unusual bonus features. Phishing protection only works well in Chrome and Firefox, but this free utility is still worth a.
I have both McAfee Security Center and Avast antivirus (free edition) on my PC. McAfee just sent me a notice saying that my subscription will expire soon and an offer to renew it at $69.99 for another year. Avast is working fine and is free. Can I do without the McAfee and just keep Avast? Or do the other features of McAfee (anti-spam, anti-hacker, anti-abuse) worth the money? Are there other free software programs for these other features that could make up for what McAfee offers without paying $70.00/year? Thanks.
Review by Israel Torres Introduction avast! Mac Edition is an Antivirus software for Mac. The software offers the following features: On-Access Scanning User friendly interface Automatic updates Integrated email protection PowerPC and Intel supported Simple Installation This software is not free, however they offer a free 60 day trial version to download from their website.
Best Free Antivirus For Mac 2020
Macs may be a far less tempting target for malware and viruses, but they’re not immune from attack. Even if you don’t care about adware or being used as a means to infect users on other platforms, it’s still possible to fall victim to ransomware, password theft, or stolen iPhone backups.
Accordingly, good antivirus software will protect your Mac on all of these fronts. It’ll catch malware that’s still spreading or in circulation; block ransomware; protect older systems with out-of-date software from security vulnerabilities; prevent your Mac from acting as a carrier for malware aimed at other operating systems; and keep infected files off of any virtual machines you’re running.
Antivirus for Mac cheat sheet
Our quick-hit recommendations:
- Best paid antivirus for Mac:Sophos Home Premium for Mac[sophos.com]
- Best free antivirus for Mac:Avast Free Mac Security[avast.com]
Many antivirus suites provide a decent level of protection, but a few rise above all others by providing the very best in performance. Our top contenders dominate by posting perfect (or virtually near perfect) scores from security research labs, passing our own malware detection tests with flying colors, offering well-designed interfaces, and even throwing in extra features like a firewall or password manager.
Updated 08/15/19: Added our review of Avira Free Antivirus, a worthy free option that’s easy to use and effective.
Looking for Windows antivirus recommendations? You can read about the best antivirus suites for PC on our sister site, PCWorld.
Best overall antivirus software
Sophos Home Premium has the most extensive and up-to-date approach to fighting malware at an unbeatable price.
Sophos Home Premium has it all: Effective malware protection, ransomware monitoring, protection against potentially-unwanted-apps, and additional features that often require separately licensed software. Its cloud-based configuration and generous licensing (up to 10 Macs and PCs) also make it easy to shield friends and family from threats, no matter where they live. (Full details available in our review.)
Best free antivirus software
Though Sophos does offer a good free version of its software, Avast Free Mac Security edges it out as the best free antivirus software for macOS. In security lab tests, Avast detected 99.9 percent of macOS malware, and 100 percent of Windows malware. However, if you want more advanced protection (like ransomware detection), you’ll need to upgrade to paid software.
What to look for in antivirus software
By our reckoning, antivirus software should be able to neutralize a threat before it can begin wreaking havoc. That means preventing the download, installation, or execution of malicious software.
Since you can encounter threats by visiting compromised or malicious websites, receiving virus-laden attachments, or accessing USB drives with malware, good AV software should scan on a continuous basis unless you configure it otherwise. And ideally, files identified as malicious should be quarantined into a special storage area managed by the AV software, with the option to automatically delete files known to be malware or repair normal documents that also carry devious payloads.
Avast For Mac 2016 Review Images
Great AV suites also will monitor the filesystem for certain kinds of changes. Ransomware—which is malware that will rapidly encrypt user files like documents and mailboxes and then delete the originals—has become a huge moneymaker on other platforms. As a prime opportunity for attackers, it’s the greatest danger Mac users likely face as a category.
Detecting this pattern and halting it before any files are unavailable should be possible without an anti-malware system knowing the specific innards of a ransomware virus. Sophos, our top pick, includes this feature in the Home Premium version of its 2018 update. Other vendors, like Avast and Trend Micro Antivirus, offer an alternative feature that allows you to whitelist programs allowed to manipulate files in specific directories. So if this particular type of attack becomes rapidly popular, you’ll be protected.
Good antivirus software should also use minimal computational resources. That’s especially the case these days—AV monitoring hasn’t become much more complicated than when it first became available, and faster, multi-core CPUs can easily handle the demands of running AV software in the background without disturbing your active work.
Beyond these primary features, an easy-to-navigate interface and extra features are worth factoring into your decision. Some AV software are full-fledged suites that offer additional options like backup service for essential files, a password manager, parental controls, anti-tracking and privacy modes or options, a more advanced firewall, and the blocking of Potentially Unwanted Applications (PUAs).
How we test
Best Free Antivirus For Mac 2016 Update
Each software package is evaluated creating a clean installation of macOS Mojave, cloning it for each AV product, and then booting separately into each one to install a different package. This was to ensure that previous app installations didn’t interfere with new ones—sometimes AV software treats other AV software as an infection.
Avast 2016 Free Version
In addition to visiting malicious websites, downloading known malicious software, and even running said malware, we also reference the most recent reports from two labs that regularly cover macOS malware: AV Comparatives and AV-TEST. These laboratories test AV software against sets of known malware as well as products that are grouped as potentially unwanted applications (like adware).
Best Free Antivirus For Mac
The latter doesn’t damage or expose your computer or its files but may consume power and CPU cycles. Because the testing effectively looks at a combination of virus databases and behavior, they remain good gauges even after many months. When an antivirus software package lacks a rating from a known security research lab, we do more extensive testing with real malware.
Best Mac Antivirus
Finally, while we gave props for a lot of different features and behaviors, we marked products down if they lacked any or all of the following:
- A nearly perfect score on macOS malware detection
- Ransomware monitoring
- Native browser plug-in or system-level Web proxy
- A high score on Windows malware detection
Privacy concerns
Using an anti-virus product, especially any that includes tools to also improve your online privacy, may lull you into believing you’re safe from personal and private information leaking out. That’s not quite the case. While there’s no reason to panic, you should consider a few reasonable issues.
First, an antivirus product may upload the complete text of files flagged to the cloud, where it can be analyzed by separate tools hosted there. This practice is normal and sensible: Some malware can detect when a running process may examine it, and will then engage in subterfuge. Antivirus software makers also can access their massive databases to examine files with characteristics that trigger their algorithms—certain elements that match known malware. As a result, security researchers discover new viruses, worms, Trojans horses, and the like.
However, helping the greater good means you’ll have to be comfortable with trusting a third-party with your file contents. Where appropriate, we noted privacy policy issues in individual reviews.
Second, this software may also rely partly or entirely on cloud-based checks of URLs, malware, and the like. Accordingly, an AV package might upload every URL you visit, metadata about files, signatures of files, information about your computer’s hardware, a list of running or installed applications, and more. Companies vary on their disclosure of such policies, and may not let you opt out of this kind of sharing. We note issues in each review as available.
Third, anti-virus software makers also get a sense of what behavior is happening on your computer that’s being monitored or blocked, and may use that information for their own purposes. In some cases, you can opt out of this information gathering.
All of our antivirus for Mac reviews
If you have specific requirements or just wish to see other options, below is a list of all the antivirus software we’ve reviewed. We’ll keep evaluating new and refreshed software on a regular basis, so be sure to come back to see what else we’ve put through the ringer.