What is the lightest antivirus. Which antivirus is better? Review of paid and free products

According to American analytical companies, it has become known that almost half of the inhabitants of our planet have a laptop or personal computer at home, but only a third of them are protected from various viruses.

This is due to the fact that many people simply cannot work comfortably if they have an antivirus enabled. According to them, firewalls constantly check something for some reason third party programs they start to slow down. But according to experts, regardless of whether the firewall interferes with the work or not, it must be turned on, since today there are viruses on the network that can destroy all data on a PC and, even worse, transfer it to scammers who will try to steal your money in the future from payment cards and so on. That’s when users begin to think that an antivirus was needed after all.

In order to prevent various intrusions into your PC, you should install at least the simplest antivirus, which will not greatly affect the operation of the system and third-party programs.

Let us look at which antivirus is the fastest and does not overload the system.

Experiment

To conduct the experiment, we took a laptop with Intel processor Pentium 4, 1 GB RAM and hard drive 80 gigabytes.

The following antivirus programs participated in the experiment:

1. Kaspersky Internet Security 2014;
2. Avast (free version);
3. Dr. Web;
4. Microsoft Security Essentials 2.1.

It took about a month to test each firewall. During testing, we tested programs such as Photoshop and torrent, actively visited infected sites, copied information onto a portable storage device, tried to play some games and checked the resource consumption of firewalls.

As a result, we got the following picture:

• When working with Photoshop, we noticed various slowdowns when using Kaspersky Internet Security 2014 and Dr. antiviruses. Web. They were insignificant, but for comfortable and perfect job They are unlikely to be suitable for graphics. The other two did not show themselves; it felt like there was no firewall on the computer;
• When working with torrents and downloading files from the Internet, we noticed special activity only from Kaspersky; it took almost all available free resources to check the downloaded file;
• As already written above, during the experiment we tried to visit infected sites most often, Kaspersky did not always detect the presence of a virus on a site or page, but it did not turn out to be the worst in this regard, but Avast coped with its task with a bang, even sometimes it worked and on non-infected sites;
• Next, we checked the effect of antiviruses on copying speed. Here the Firewall from Microsoft and Kaspersky. When using them, the copying speed decreased by 1 megabyte per second;
• During the resource consumption test, we were surprised that Avast turns out to use only 80-100 megabytes RAM and does not perform any checks unless necessary. Even after a complete check of the system, it was possible to work comfortably with third-party programs;
• And finally, while idle, we noticed that Dr. The Web is starting to produce hidden, something like full check, due to which during idle time the processor load is constantly at the level of 25-50 percent.

After finishing the experiment, we came to the following conclusion: We consider Avast to be the fastest antivirus; we have never noticed its presence. In order to make sure that it really works, after the end of the experiment we did a full scan and were surprised that not a single virus penetrated our PC.

Now you know which firewall is the fastest and if you liked this article, then we would be glad if you tell your friends about its existence, as well as subscribe to our website updates.

And finally, write in the comments what antivirus program you use and whether you are satisfied with its work :-). Good luck.

operating room Windows system, unlike GNU/Linux, cannot fully protect against malware own capabilities. No matter how the developers praise Windows Defender, it is far from ideal, so you have to use external software. This article discusses the rating of antiviruses in 2018 for Windows 7.

Selection criteria

Every antivirus product offers users, in addition to virus detection and elimination functions, a set of additional features. Typically, they are associated with advanced PC management, network security, Wi-Fi protection etc. The most important criteria for choosing an antivirus include:

• cloud analysis. Ability to scan files in an isolated environment;
• firewall Blocking unwanted Internet resources;
• protection of personal data. First of all, these are banking data and some other personal information.

If an antivirus lacks any of these points, this does not mean that it is bad. The effectiveness of a program is discovered in practice when it does its job well. main function. The rest depends on the additional needs of the user.

TOP 12 best antiviruses

Exists large number Software offering its services to combat viruses and Trojans. Each of them has its own pros and cons. Depending on your needs and capabilities, you should choose the most suitable product.

Brief overview

Let's look at each of the antiviruses presented in the table, comparing their advantages and disadvantages.

In addition to the standard protective function, the antivirus offers a built-in security gateway when connected to open networks Wi-Fi and special password storage to save personal data in the cloud. There is also a gaming mode that turns off program notifications and reduces the load on the processor during a gaming session.

Advantages

• Wi-Fi protection;
• the presence of a game mode;
• password container.

Flaws

• no firewall;
• lack of protection against interception of input data.

A free version of well-known antivirus software created specifically for users in post-Soviet countries. The program provides online protection and has the necessary functionality to ensure PC security from the introduction of malicious code.

Advantages

• powerful core;
• checking attachments in instant messengers;
• built-in VPN service.

Flaws

• lack of protection against interception of banking data;
• high consumption of PC resources.

Product Chinese manufacturers. It has become widely known in the Russian-speaking segment due to the combination of the capabilities of anti-virus software and an optimizer. It runs several engines. A key factor in its spread and popularity is the large amount of advertising.

Advantages

• wide functionality;
• there is a firewall;
• several antivirus engines work;
• optimized consumption of computer resources.

Antivirus in a minimalist style. It has a small number of settings and a simple menu. TO additional functions The program should only include the ability to force scanning of a specific folder. Suitable for those new to using a computer.

Advantages

• simple settings;
• Convincing virus detection rate.

Flaws

• limited functionality;
• lack of Russian localization.

First product with free license, which implements the cloud analysis algorithm. When scanning files in an isolated container, the collective scanning method is enabled, which means that the scan results of other users are taken into account.

Advantages

• efficient collective verification algorithm;
• minimum number of notifications;
• pre-analysis of flash drives.

Flaws

• small functionality;
• Dependency on internet connection to work effectively.

Unusual anti-virus software that is most effective when connected to the Internet. The ClamAV offline kernel is used for scanning, in parallel with which suspicious objects are analyzed by twelve VirusTotal engines. SecureAPlus works easily on a PC with other security software.

Advantages

• highly efficient cloud scanning;
• software analysis based on a trusted list;
• works in parallel with another antivirus.

Flaws

• the proactive core is not powerful enough;
• lack of protection of personal data.

Very effective free tool. It has the ability to protect personal data, a built-in firewall, and even a task scheduler. Stands out high degree efficiency of cloud analysis.

Advantages

• convenient functionality;
• availability of plugins for data protection in browser forms;
• built-in firewall and task scheduler.

This is not a full-fledged applied antivirus, but a healing utility that works offline. Contains the current virus database at the time of download. The program is recommended for spot check computer and does not protect in real time. The name of the utility is generated from letters and numbers each time it is downloaded, so that the virus cannot block its operation using a static name.

Advantages

• highly efficient database;
• works offline.

Flaws

• limited possibilities.

AVG

The program uses 5 different object analysis algorithms and effectively copes with investments in emails and malicious files when sent via instant messengers. Antivirus is recommended for active Internet surfing, because it has the ability to scan the security of a site by URL.

Advantages

• several scanning methods;
• pre-analysis of external drives;
• availability of a file shredder;

WITH computer viruses Sooner or later, every Internet user faces this problem, and if this has not happened to you yet, then it is still ahead. Not too optimistic, right?

But, nevertheless, in 2019, we are now in a more advantageous position than our predecessors, because at a time when antivirus software just began to appear on the market, computer viruses calmly and unhindered ruled computers, sometimes causing damage worth millions of dollars.

Some 5-10 years ago the only way getting rid of viruses was hard formatting disk, which means the loss of all data stored on it. Today even the most inexperienced user personal computer, who has very little understanding of computer protection methods, can put up a serious fight against viruses and get rid of these malicious aliens.

Rating of the best free antiviruses of 2019 (TOP 10)

This article offers an overview most popular today 2019 and some tips for keeping your computer safe. Naturally, to protect your PC, the first thing you need to do is find good antivirus.

#1

A very worthy antivirus program of domestic development, which has the ability to find and cope with any threats your computer and is one of leaders in the CIS countries.

He responds to a threat very quickly and immediately eliminates it. This program can update automatically, its interface is quite simple and understandable, management is not complicated. This program will also provide decent protection for your computer.

Her only drawback is that she puts a lot of stress on the computer, consuming a lot of resources.

#2

Latest versions antivirus package Avast! 2019 possess high level of efficiency virus detection. The kernel engine used in the program has been certified by ICSA, is constantly tested by Virus Bulletin and consistently receives awards.

The program has a very simple interface that is very understandable even for a beginner, which allows even a not very experienced user to configure scanning parameters. There is also a great opportunity to quickly tune appearance programs. In addition, it is possible setting up a schedule for scanning computer.

Avast protection! Uses a powerful module that can prevent the virus from affecting your computer before it infects it. The system is capable update yourself. To summarize, we can say that the presence of this program on your computer makes you feel much calmer.

#3

360 Total Security- antivirus who will help you protect And optimize the operation of your computer.

It provides protection against many threats that could steal your personal information, malware, unnecessary files, privacy risks, viruses and much more. Simple and user-friendly interface makes using the antivirus very pleasant.

This application also allows you to get rid of applications that slow down your computer by automatic search slow startup programs and unnecessary files.

#4

NANO Security NANO AntiVirus 2019 is relatively new product in the huge market of free antivirus programs. He offers comprehensive, modern protection from computer viruses, Trojans, malicious and suspicious programs. It monitors web traffic, checks your email and keeps the system secure in real time.

He also scans RAM for infections and maybe even detect viruses in encrypted and compressed files such as archives or backups. Unlike many others free antiviruses, it does not limit the user's capabilities, but provides full set features for free.

#5

This one is very popular Avira antivirus program allows you to protect your computer from various virus threats. Antivirus has the technological ability to detect new viruses and eliminate them.

Also its advantages are the ability update automatically and do not consume large amounts system resources. This is very effective tool virus detection that can guarantee the security of your computer.

#6

AVG Antivirus Free is constantly being improved to protect your computer even better.
It currently includes real-time security updates, issue and malware and performance scanning, and even catches downloads malicious files before they reach the computer.

Very popular antivirus among PC users.

#7

Comodo Antivirus is an excellent tool for scanning and detecting Internet threats. The antivirus scans any disk or file, including unknown untrusted or suspicious email files.

If the program identifies any files as attackers, viruses or worms, the system will identify and eliminate them. Comodo Antivirus scans your system for viruses automatically so as not to interrupt you from working at the computer.

#8

BitDefender Antivirus Plus 2019 has sophisticated PC protection style, which includes simulating a computer inside a computer, in which program segments are activated in order to obtain time for pre-scan for the presence of viruses and other harmful things.

Powerful search engines BitDefender Antivirus accesses the most remote and unused areas of your computer to detect any possible problems that could be there.

Viruses are removed from minimal data corruption, with the ability to restore damaged documents before deleting them. Web traffic filter prevents malicious files from entering your computer.

#9

Panda Antivirus combines cloud computing with antivirus, so he is great solution, which reduces the requirements for local PC resources and creates reliable protection.

The flip side of the coin may be that a potential attack on the developer's servers could interfere with the protection of computers, however, this is highly unlikely. Thus, its advantages far outweigh its disadvantages.

#10 ZoneAlarm Free Antivirus + Firewall

ZoneAlarm provides protection with flexibility for users with intermediate computer knowledge.

ZoneAlarm 2019 is an easy-to-use program that protects your computer from threats posed by viruses and other potential dangerous programs For personal information, which you have saved on your computer. Free version of ZoneAlarm includes daily updates.

In addition to everything, there is a function firewall , which includes spyware And phishing protection; the user can manually determine which program to provide "Trust Level".

Additional virus protection

But, in addition to having a good antivirus program, the user must take into account a few more basic rules:

• Do not access sites unless you are confident in them. reliability;
• Cannot download from the Internet unnecessary you files, even from well-known sources;
• You cannot open or read letters that have come to you from unknown recipients, since it is through mail that various viruses often penetrate your computer.

What Anti-Virus do you use?

Naturally, free products will not be as effective as their paid versions. This is definitely worth considering when choosing an antivirus software. By the way, there is an opinion that using Linux completely eliminates the need to use antiviruses. Decide for yourself whether to believe this or not, but I will allow myself to recommend interesting materials about and . Well, here we go.

Five of the best free antiviruses for Windows 2018

It’s probably worth noting that I’m not trying to give you maximum information about each individual antivirus in this top. I want to provide only the minimum, give you a start, or simply help you make a choice. All detailed information It is better to look for information about each of the programs on official resources, as well as in other articles and materials (including on).

Avast Free Antivirus

In many tops, this antivirus (including its free version) occupies a leading position. I don’t think that this is due to the venality of these very tops, because I myself have been using this antivirus as my main one for quite a long time. What can I say, I'm really pleased with it. For a free product, this is really nothing. Moreover, in free version Avasta has some features that are not even available in paid versions of other antiviruses. Therefore, I don’t know why you are still in doubt, quickly click on the button at the bottom of this item and go download an excellent antivirus.

A little about the features and benefits of Avast Free Antivirus:

• Intelligent antivirus protection: includes constant monitoring of the system, as well as timely blocking of virus software.
• Wi-Fi check: detecting holes in home Wi-Fi networks, monitoring for unauthorized visitors.
• Smart Scan: allows you to detect all vulnerabilities in the system, including insecure settings and saved passwords.

AVG AntiVirus Free

Another excellent antivirus that occupies leading positions in all ratings and tops. As in the previous case, it has paid version and the possibility of upgrading to it. However, the free version also has enough interesting features and opportunities. AVG AntiVirus Free, according to the developers, has become even better. In addition to all the basic tools of a comprehensive security software, AVG can check your system for vulnerabilities in real time and also stop suspicious downloads.

It is worth noting that the application interface has been noticeably improved. Now managing your protection has become even easier. And all this thanks to informative elements with which you can monitor the state of the system.

Application features:

• Protecting your PC from viruses, spyware, hackerware, ransomware, etc.
• Block unsafe links, downloads and email attachments
• Ability to scan your system for performance issues
• Real-time updates

Kaspersky Free

A free solution from developers from Russia that has everything necessary functions to protect your home computer. This program is notable for the fact that it consumes very little of your system resources. And all this with a very high level of security; Many users consider this antivirus to be the most powerful in terms of protection.

Kaspersky Free can:

• Automatically block dangerous files, apps and websites
• Check your email for viruses
• Protect you from phishing sites
• Provide high level protection without slowing down the system

360 Total Security

This software will not only protect your PC from viruses, but at the same time, it will help clean and speed up your system. And it's all free, they won't charge you a cent. However, it is worth noting that this antivirus has a partnership with other companies (as well as many free solutions), so during installation you will need to avoid installing unnecessary software. Another feature 360 Total Security— support for engines of other antiviruses, and their simultaneous use. This approach helps achieve highest protection your data.

Features of 360 Total Security:

• Protection against viruses and malicious software
• Protection against ransomware and cryptographers
• Multiple engine support
• Sandbox
• Safe online shopping
• Keylogger protection
• System protection components (scanning disks, flash drives and vulnerabilities)
• Wi-Fi Security Check
• System optimization and data destroyer

Panda Free Antivirus

A powerful Spanish product designed to completely and completely protect your system from intruders. The program is now being actively promoted on various resources, and those who have actually tried it unanimously speak about high quality protection. The application itself, by the way, is ready to work immediately after installation. As assured on the official website, you just need to install it, and then forget that your system is under threat at all. Panda will automatically scan your system, protecting it in real time.

Panda Free Antivirus features:

• Protecting your system from viruses, keyloggers and other malware
• Protecting your computer when browsing the Internet
• Low resource consumption
• Etc.

With development information technology, computer and laptop have become an attribute everyday life person. Thanks to devices and the Internet, users can receive useful information, communicate with friends and acquaintances, and also relax after a difficult day at work. Unfortunately, there is a high probability of “catch” viruses. To protect your computer, it is recommended to install an antivirus.

When the question arises about installing antivirus software, many users do not know which antivirus loads the least operating system. To find a solution, you need to analyze several products. At the same time, we should not forget that important role The characteristics of the computer play a role.

Preparing for the experiment

To figure out which is the fastest antivirus, you need to install defenders on your computer one by one, and then test it for a week. To conduct the experiment, a laptop with the following characteristics will be used:

• Processor – 2.8 GHz;
• RAM – 2 Gb;
• Hard drive – 320 Gb.

The following products will be used as tested antiviruses:

1. Kaspersky Internet Security.
2. Dr. Web.
3. Avast.
4. Qihoo 360 Internet Security.
5. Microsoft Security Essentials.

To conduct an experiment and determine which antivirus does not slow down the system, you need to install it on your machine every week new product. It is important that antivirus software is tested under the same conditions.

Antivirus testing

To determine the optimal antivirus software, it is recommended to load the program as much as possible. During testing, games are downloaded to the computer, since they have large size, which means they force the “defender” to work as much as possible.

The second step of testing was the launch of games. IN game mode Some antiviruses are practically inactive, while others, on the contrary, consume system resources as much as possible.

At the third testing step, work was carried out with graphic editors. Used Photoshop programs and 3D Max. These applications themselves consume a lot of resources. If the antivirus does not load the system, conversion, saving and processing are faster. In addition, the high consumption of resources on the part of the “defender” affects the quality of graphics.

Don't forget to visit online resources. It is best to open websites that have animations and pictures with good quality. Besides good remedy Testing will include scripts and viruses that camouflage themselves on the pages of a website.

The next step is to copy large files from one folder to another. Some antiviruses begin to actively scan folders and files that are copied to a new location.

The final stage of testing will be scanning hard disk and virus detection. Please note that media load directly affects scanning time, as well as resource consumption.

Test results

After testing you can see interesting results. When working with graphic editors, programs such as Kaspersky Internet Security and Dr. showed excessive activity. Web. Of course, this does not mean that antiviruses absorbed all resources, but for correct operation With Photoshop it is better to temporarily disable them.

When copying files, the system was loaded by Kaspersky, as well as Microsoft Security. When these applications were active, the copying speed dropped sharply by 1.5 Mbit/s. When moving or creating copies of small files, this is not critical, but when you need to copy a folder exceeding 15 GB, this is already a problem, since the time increases dramatically.

Downloading files from the Internet forced antiviruses such as Qihoo 360 and Kaspersky to actively consume resources. When scanning downloaded files, defenders load the system, consuming up to 75% of free RAM.

During testing, websites loaded with content and also infected with viruses were visited. Increased activity Avast showed. In addition, it blocked even those sites that were not infected. At the same time, it consumed the most resources.

As for the full system check, I was surprised by the result shown by Avast. This antivirus consumed the least amount of RAM, only 100-150 Mb. At the same time, it did not interfere with working with other programs. Unfortunately, other defenders were absorbing too many resources.

Besides everything Dr. Web starts checking the system when the computer is idle. During this period, the system load is about 30%.

Which antivirus to choose

According to the experiments carried out, it can be distinguished. It turned out to be the fastest product that hardly loads the system. In addition, the defender copes well with his immediate tasks. The application finds viruses both on the Internet and on removable media. Of course, such giants as Kaspersky or Dr. Web are better at protecting your computer, but unfortunately, they require serious resources.

For users with large amounts of RAM and powerful processor Serious complexes should be considered, but for the “middling” it is best to choose Avast or Qihoo 360.

Do antiviruses slow down the system?

If we consider weak machines, then even an antivirus with minimal functionality will consume a lot of resources. Before installing antivirus software, it is recommended that you familiarize yourself with its minimum requirements.

Of course, there are also products that unreasonably consume system resources. These “Defenders” include:

• Threat Track VIPRE;
• Quick Heal;
• Norman Security.

The AV-Test laboratory tested 23 antiviruses on a computer with the following characteristics:

• Processor – Intel Xeon 2.8 GHz;
• RAM – 4 Gb;
• HDD – 500 Gb.

As a result, the most best antivirus the result was 5.1 points, and the worst one had 13.9.

According to the results, the leading position was taken by Kaspersky antivirus Internet Security and Bitdefender.

Conclusion

System performance plays an important role, but do not forget that anti-virus systems are primarily aimed at protecting the computer. Besides paid solutions have expanded functionality, and accordingly they consume more resources.

To avoid problems with your antivirus, it is best to consider its minimum system requirements, as well as how well he copes with defense. After careful analysis and comparison, you can make a choice.

Which antivirus loads the system the least?