This is unique among anti-virus software we tested, and it looks for devices on a network engaged in malicious behavior.

Outside of core anti-virus features, the Pro version also offers a Wi-Fi Inspector. (Avast could expand the list to include a few more locations by default, too.) Still, it worked well in testing, and most users keep their most precious documents in a few locations. This is an effective way to protect most users’ critical files, but we prefer Sophos’s active monitoring approach, which looks for patterns of behavior and keeps files from being deleted than one that requires anointing folders. Here, it blocks TextEdit, which hasn’t been whitelisted. Go there for details about competing products and how we tested them.īy restricting specific folders from having files modified by any but approved apps, Avast can reduce the potential for any ransomware attack. Note: This review is part of our best antivirus roundup. Siccing it on drives loaded with other anti-virus products, Avast found test malware I’d downloaded that had wound up in cached files that the anti-virus software on those volumes missed. It did as well with malicious files on the web, though it didn’t detect some items at the WICAR test site that require active local components to be dangerous. Immediately on decompression of macOS malware from an encrypted archive, Avast detected it, deleted it, and notified me. AV Comparables says Avast detected 99.9 percent of macOS malware and 100 percent of Windows malware. The software is a rare breath of fresh air in a sea of anti-virus products that haven’t worked hard enough to keep up to date with current threats, or haven’t updated the interface to meet modern expectations of presentation and usability.Īvast is danged good at catching malware.

The big friendly “You Are Protected” green checkmark on Avast Security Pro’s home screen is certainly a plausible statement. Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide

Avast for the mac