One of the first decisions that every Windows user must make is to choose between free antivirus or paid antivirus. To do this, we must bear in mind that the main differences between free antivirus or paid antivirus, apart from the price, is that the paid ones add additional layers of protection and have support and technical assistance, while generally the ability to detect viruses of both versions is...
19 August, 2011 by fransbernsOne of the first decisions that every Windows user must make is to choose between free antivirus or paid antivirus. To do this, we must bear in mind that the main differences between free antivirus or paid antivirus, apart from the price, is that the paid ones add additional layers of protection and have support and technical assistance, while generally the virus detection capacity of both versions is identical, since they share the antivirus engines and updates.
Differences between Free Antivirus and Paid Antivirus
Most antivirus manufacturers have free versions of their products that serve to promote their paid products. Let's look at the main differences between free antivirus and paid antivirus:
Price: in paid antivirus the user usually has to disburse an amount at the time of purchase and another amount periodically that entitles him to access the updates. Antivirus engine: generally antivirus engines (virus detection technology and signature base) are common between free and paid versions, so as far as virus detection is concerned, the user is equally protected with a paid antivirus as with a free one. Additional features: Generally paid antivirus are suites or security packages that add additional layers of protection, such as firewalls, behavior analysis, antiphishing, antirootkit, identity protection, social network protection, antispyware or antispam, while free antivirus usually dispense with these layers and only include the antivirus engine. Updates: Most free antivirus include automatic updates for the antivirus engine. Support: Generally free antiviruses, unlike paid antiviruses, do not include support or technical assistance.Choose between free Antivirus or Paid Antivirus
When choosing between free or paid antivirus we must bear in mind that to combat malware on Windows systems it is not enough to install an antivirus, but we must have additional layers of security, such as firewalls, antispam, antiphishing, antirootkit or antispyware. To have these benefits we have basically two options:
Integrated security suite: these are paid security packages that include all the necessary features for the protection of the computer, including automatic updates, support and technical assistance (call center). This option is suitable for novice users, businesses and professional environments. Individual components: Advanced users can individually install the components they need, in which case you can take advantage of free versions of antivirus, firewall, antispam, or antispyware that are generally as effective as paid versions. The advantage of this option is that it is free software, effective, has automatic updates and you can choose the best manufacturer in each of the security areas. The disadvantage is that the software is not integrated, does not have support or technical assistance and the user must have knowledge about security.Source: Free antivirus or paid antivirus
