Norton AntiVirus - Review
Click here to subscribe to Norton Antivirus - Starting at € 19.99 per year The basic package covers a single device for a year, and you can associate your license with a Windows or Mac computer: the price, especially considering the promotion for the first year, is interesting for what is offered, however if you are looking for something more Advanced may be worth looking into the company's other offerings.
By switching to Norton 360, you'll have access to more features and protect up to five devices, including Android and iOS. Norton 360 Deluxe, on the other hand, includes unlimited access to Norton Secure VPN for up to five devices, protects the webcam from unauthorized users, and increases cloud storage to 50 GB. Other features include parental controls which will help you keep an eye on children when they surf the net, as well as dark web monitoring, which alerts you if your e-mail address is sold online.
If you can't decide which version is best for you, you can activate a free trial version for 30 days, but even if you change your mind after purchase, there is a generous 60-day money back guarantee.
Norton Antivirus - Plans & Pricing
Norton AntiVirus Plus (1 device) | 1 year for € 19.99 Norton 360 Standard (1 device) | 1 year for € 29.99 Norton 360 Deluxe (5 devices) | 1 year for € 34.99 Norton 360 Premium (10 devices) | 1 year for € 44.99Norton AntiVirus Plus
Installation
Norton AntiVirus Plus is very easy to install. The package required 1GB of storage, which is average for suites with the same amount of features, and only added two main background processes to the system.Malware often tries to disable the antivirus before attacking the system, therefore the best antivirus must be well protected from this point of view. And this is one of the first tests we carry out, simulating attacks of this type, for example closing processes, removing files, disabling services and drivers. Although we were able to close the Norton User Dashboard process, the core files, as well as the suite's services and drivers remained active and protected, so system security was not compromised.
Antivirus
Norton AntiVirus Plus has a rather unusual interface, as it is divided into two windows. Unfortunately a lot of space is wasted in the section dedicated to "My Norton", with a few useful buttons and a lot of white space. To access the really basic functions, you need to open a separate window, Security, whose navigation is not exactly immediate.In itself, the Antivirus is still simple. Smart scans require a few clicks regardless of which interface you are using. You can initiate quick scans, scan your network for security issues and check for "advanced issues", which mostly results in a list of cookies to be removed. If necessary, you can also start a full system scan, or a customized analysis that amazed us due to its flexibility. For example you could analyze a specific folder within a certain time and under certain conditions (for example when the system is idle).
Even from the point of view of the times, the scans are within the norm: our usual test of 50 GB took 29 minutes on the first scan, down to just over 4 on the next. However, it remains slower than other suites, such as Bitdefender Antivirus.
For cases where greater incisiveness is required, you can use Power Eraser, designed to eliminate the most resistant threats. It is a functional and very useful tool, however it is available for free on the Norton website, so there is no need to purchase the suite if you are interested.
Click here to subscribe to Norton Antivirus - Starting at € 19.99 per year In any case, if you are unsure about the infection status of your machine and want to investigate further, Norton Insight provides you with a report on the “reputation” of the files on your system. Imagine a kind of more security-oriented Windows Task Manager: the main window shows the processes running, with a trust score, the number of users using them, the impact on the system and other useful information.
Veterans will find this particularly useful, for example in the event that an unknown threat has infected a device. Thanks to Insight it will be possible to locate possible problems, highlighting unknown processes or modules. Those with some experience on Windows will certainly benefit, as they no longer have to manually track any malware.
Protection
According to the latest tests from AV-Comparatives, Norton behaves good from the point of view of the protection of the systems in which it is installed, with an accuracy score of 96% obtained in the SE-Labs malware protection tests (third quarter 2021).We have conducted some tests ourselves , simulating a malware attack with malicious file downloads using the normal tools made available to Windows. Again, Norton AntiVirus Plus lived up to expectations, as it managed to block most of our attacks, even before the files were downloaded. And while other attempts were ignored, the file detection system identified and immediately quarantined malicious files as soon as they were copied to the hard drive.
Even against ransomware, Norton has proven effective, blocking a attempted attack by a program not yet inserted in its database, only by evaluating its functioning. Unfortunately, our test ransomware managed to encrypt about fifty files, which we lost, prior to being blocked.
Safe Browsing
Norton AntiVirus Plus employs various methods of protecting your files. your online activities. Norton Safe Search is an Ask-based search environment, which warns you about the possible harmful nature of websites, but there is also an extension for Google, called Norton Safe Web which adds a rating of the sites in the results of Research. In any case it is not a tool to be used compulsorily, since by itself, Norton manages to block malicious domains at the network level, effectively protecting all applications that connect to the Internet. Finally, the warning system always returns a detailed reason for each blocked site.Firewall
Among the extras offered by Norton AntiVirus Plus, there is an intelligent firewall that warns us if any untrusted programs try to connect to the Internet, require authorization. Usually the information provided by the tool is sufficient to decide whether or not to block one of these programs. For example, the firewall detects and warns about the absence of digital signatures, or if a site is too recent. In addition, the advanced settings allow the more experienced to configure in detail the management of protocols and traffic.Backup
The backup tool included with Norton AntiVirus Plus is also very welcome, with 2 GB of online space and support for local storage. The application itself is quite basic and you won't be able to manage versions of your backups, encrypt files or define archiving rules. In any case, you can either exclude some folders and files or choose a local storage destination. Backups can be performed once, but they can also be scheduled for automatic execution on a daily, weekly or monthly basis, with the possibility of activating the process only when the computer is inactive.Unfortunately, the elementary functions and the little space available make this tool really useful only for basic users, with very limited backup needs.
Performance
Norton AntiVirus Plus also offers some simple programs designed for PC maintenance. Disk Optimization allows you to defragment files by repositioning them on the disk to improve performance, although it doesn't make much sense to use it on modern SSDs.The cleanup tool deletes Windows, Internet Explorer and Chrome temporary files, and nothing else. There are no notifications and, honestly, we found it too basic
Startup Manager, on the other hand, is much more interesting, with many details about the programs that start when Windows starts, with the resources used, how often they are found on other Norton customers' computers and the ability to suppress them from autostart or delay their launch. Details on individual apps abound as well, and you can access information such as each program's CPU and RAM consumption, disk reads and writes, and a history of CPU resources used in the last ten minutes.
Probably, the average user will shrug, but the more experienced will be able to analyze in detail the process / resource ratio on the system. And this tool is only offered by Norton, you will not find any analogue in competing packages.
Norton 360
Those looking for more than the functions described so far, could opt for the Norton 360 plans. The basic version is Norton 360 Standard, which to what Norton AntiVirus Plus offers adds webcam protection, unlimited use of Norton Secure VPN for a single device and offers an upgrade of online storage from 2 to 10 GB . Another advantage is constituted by the apps for Android and iOS, to extend the protection to smartphones and tablets.Specifically, the protection of the webcam is entrusted to SafeCam, which alerts the user when untrusted apps try to access the camera, offering the option to lock them. In general, the app works well and allows you to memorize your choices, so as to allow or block an app without always having to receive a prompt.
The VPN, then, is interesting: first of all it integrates with the interface of the suite, without additional windows. Just activate the option and you will be automatically connected to the fastest server outside of your country.
In terms of anonymity, the VPN performs well, with a good selection of countries (31), although not there are options for cities or regions. Also, it is not possible to create a favorite list. In any case, there is no shortage of useful options, such as automatic VPN connection in the case of unsecured networks, tracker and advertisement blocking systems, split tunneling and a kill switch. Except for the latter, which is not always effective, the other functions work as expected.
The speeds, however, are not comparable to the best VPN providers, although this is not a bad service. Indeed, in the most basic use cases it might come in handy, but if VPN is a priority, not Norton's alone does not justify the move to Norton 360.
Regarding mobile apps, with a few exceptions on iOS, the main functions of the desktop edition are reflected quite well, even on Android there are some extras designed specifically for mobile, such as proactive malware detection.
The VPN also works like on a computer, while Norton Mobile Security on iOS is a bit simpler, although the web protection is just as effective as the other versions.
The advantage is that all mobile versions are available as a free trial, so you can test them before deciding if it's worth it. a subscription is worth it.
Finally, an antispam filter is also available, although very basic and can only be integrated with Outlook, and exclusively via POP3 and SMTP. The Norton 360 Deluxe package extends coverage to five PCs, Macs, smartphones or tablets, with the ability to use the VPN on all five devices. In addition, the space rises from 10 to 50 GB. As an extra, a parental control system is included, with many functions beyond the basic ones that other suites have accustomed us to. In fact, it offers detailed content filtering, GPS tracking for mobile devices, as well as in-depth tracking of search terms, sites visited and videos watched. Unfortunately the tool is not available for Mac.
Conclusion
Norton AntiVirus Plus is a very effective suite and offers more functionality than other competitors of the same level. While it doesn't shine in ransomware like other solutions, it has proven effective in blocking the threat, and overall, the antivirus and security suite are worth a try.Norton 360 Standard has the plus of VPN , but if you don't need it, there aren't many other reasons to upgrade. Upgrading to Deluxe might make more sense than anything else if you need to secure multiple devices and use a VPN on each of them, or you want to monitor your kids' activities (not from Macs though). Overall, however, it is undoubtedly one of the best antivirus and security suites.
Click here to subscribe to Norton Antivirus - From € 19.99 per year
