Antivirus programme - Protecting the system

As almost everyone has access to PCs, smartphones and tablets these days, and through them to the Internet, the dangers in the form of malware from cybercriminals have increased at the same time. An antivirus programme increases IT security and protects the system. Antivirus is the counter term to computer virus, which emerged with the introduction of computer systems in the 1980s. Antivirus software includes programmes that find malware and remove it from the system on their own. In the meantime, antivirus programmes prevent a wide range of cyberattacks and infections with malware such as worms, Trojans, keyloggers and ransomware in advance. Despite all the advantages, 27 percent of Windows users have no virus protection installed, although the choice and variety of functions are greater than ever. A suitable virus scanner and the ideal antivirus programme can be found on this page.

Different types of antivirus

Real-time antivirus

Real-time antivirus is active around the clock and in most cases runs unnoticed in the background. This type of antivirus programme scans all files, programmes and memory via a system interface. If the real-time scanner detects something suspicious, it informs the user and asks whether he or she should block access, delete the file or move it to quarantine. The user can do the same manually to check the entire system.

Online antivirus

Online antiviruses load the virus pattern to be checked via the Internet connection and thus keep an eye on current threats. This type of antivirus is often referred to as an online virus scanner. It is often used as an additional safeguard to the installed virus scanner if the user suspects that his system has been infected.

Other virus scanners

Numerous threats mean numerous protection options and thus virus scanners. Especially in the business environment, antivirus software is used for network analysis. However, the different types of virus scanners also have some disadvantages.

Disadvantages of antivirus programmes

Real-time antivirus often slows down the systemwhile other software applications are delayed. Furthermore, it is possible that the antivirus programme reports malware that is not actually malware. And this may delete files or applications incorrectly identified as computer viruses. Besides, it can be counterproductive to have two antivirus scanners in use at the same time because they can block each other. As a result, the desired IT security is endangered rather than secured. In some cases, antivirus programmes take things too seriously and block harmless software or block access to harmless websites . This is known as „false positives“ Tools that „tune“ or „clean“ the operating system are also of dubious use. This is because Windows already includes functions such as disk clean-up and memory optimisation to free up space on the hard disk. A so-called registry cleaner can even damage the operating system, and Microsoft is known for refusing support to customers who use such programmes.

The right virus protection

Home users of Windows have a viable antivirus solution in Windows Defender, which Microsoft developed and therefore integrates smoothly with Windows. Other free antivirus programmes are basically advertisements for their commercial brethren For business users, Windows Defender is probably not the best choice. Using the software requires active participation in Microsoft’s reputation service SpyNet. If Windows Defender finds suspicious files on a computer, it uploads them to Microsoft without asking – in case of doubt also confidential data. Professional users therefore tend to use a commercial antivirus solution instead . Most of them offer the option of preventing the upload of suspicious files, even if this can reduce the level of protection To find the right antivirus, one should first install a trial version . This way, one can try out the application extensively and decide whether the package meets the requirements.