Avira Free Antivirus

Avira Free Antivirus provides a scanning engine as well as real-time protection against viruses, malware, and other threats.

Avira Free Antivirus is a comprehensive antivirus program that’s free to use for as long as you like. All it requires is that you create an Avira account and register with a valid email address. Free doesn’t come at the cost of performance either. Avira is well-respected throughout the industry and performs well in tests conducted by independent labs.

The program has a streamlined, intuitive interface, which is accessible to the average user. The scanning engine takes advantage of cloud processing when an Internet connection is available. The benefit here is that scans are very fast and Avira can operate well on outdated hardware that may not run other AV solutions well.

Avira Free Antivirus also works across a wide range of operating systems and hardware platforms, and what’s interesting about this is that you can control multiple instances from a single account. This is achieved through a web-based interface called Online Essentials. Log in and you have access to a wide range of options. Force virus definition updates or schedule a scan across machines.

Scans can be scheduled or started manually. There’s also real-time protection, and virus definitions will update automatically, or you can request an update. The detection rate for viruses and malware is very high, and manual scans can be limited to individual folders and files when necessary. Perhaps the most glaring issue with Avira Free Antivirus is that it provides neither email protection nor website protection. For those features, you’ll need to upgrade to the paid version.

It does, however, offer SocialShield, which is a tool that helps parents monitor activity on social networks, such as Facebook and Twitter. Avira also has Avira Free Android Security, which help protects Android smartphones and tablets. While it doesn’t have its own firewall, it does integrate with Windows Firewall and provide notifications and other features. It also has a Game Mode, which reduces resource consumption while turned on.

Users of Avira Free Antivirus don’t get access to official tech support. There’s an online knowledge base and a support network that you can contact through the website, Twitter, and other means. There’s a known issue with certain malware blocking Avira installations, but the program now includes a Rescue feature in the installation process that can detect this and usually work around it. It may require a few installation attempts, however, and a novice user won’t have tech support to walk them through that.

Pros

• Accessible to the average user
• Scans take advantage of cloud processing

Cons

• No official technical support available
• No real-time protection for email