Stop if you are using Free Antivirus!

1. Stop if you are using Free Antivirus! From Uber to Australian Defence and Aussie government banks, 2017 witnessed some biggest security lapses in the last decade. Read these highlights: (Source – As published in CRN News) 1. Uber disclosed in November that hackers had stolen information from up to 57 million rider and driver accounts last year in a massive data breach. The company paid the thieves US$100,000 in October 2016 to delete the data and keep quiet about the breach, according to a Bloomberg News report. 2. The personal details of 48,270 Australian government, banking and utility employees were exposed online by a third-party contractor. 3. An attack on a subcontractor to Australian Defence resulted in the loss of 30 GB of “commercially sensitive” documents. The highly sensitive documents included projects for the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program and the P-8 Poseidon “submarine killer” plane and detailed designs of Australian Navy ships. No doubt Internet is plethora of information. From every corner of the web, you can collect and utilize knowledge in multiple ways. However, do you know along with useful information, there are some illegal programs that are waiting to attack your system? Without proper security precautions, you can be their next victim. Most businesses have an Anti-Virus software. But SMBs end up installing the Free Versions instead of Paid counterparts Unit A2 101-115, Rookwood Road, Yagoona-2199 Contact No. 1300-123-428

2. as they are completely unaware of how risky and how costly it can be to their business. Protecting the System through Free Antivirus Program As we discussed, everyone acknowledges the threat of malware today. According to Kaspersky Lab, in 2016 at least 31.9% of computers were attacked at least once. We also know there are hundreds of virus protection software available on the internet; some are free and some are paid. In most cases, people especially small and mid-sized businesses choose a free or trial-based subscription of antivirus program because they don’t know the drawback of being hacked or probably underestimate the ability of hackers. Do you think antivirus comprehensive protection and vulnerabilities? trial guard versions you can provide harmful against Sometimes, a user predicts that his system is safe as he scans it regularly and ignores the unforeseen hazards. This error can cause irrevocable damages to his personal and company data. The truth is that free versions come with lack of virus removal programs. To explain it better, we’ve listed key reasons why you should not use free or trial-based antivirus programs for your computer? Top Reasons Why to Not Use FREE Antivirus 1. A Substandard & Stagnant Scanning Performance: You may be thinking free antivirus software scans the same way as paid versions, so, how we can say it won’t be able to detect a dangerous worm or unsecured program. The difference lies in their scanning performance. Manufacturers do not discourage their free programs, so they launch them with lesser performance. However, some antivirus programs offer their best in trial-based version; for instance, Kaspersky. But we would still recommend paid versions because they always catch a higher percentage of viruses as compared to the free ones. Furthermore, free antivirus programs work a bit slower than their paid counterparts. If you often use your computer for development, design, and video editing, you need an antivirus that can scan as quickly as possible so Unit A2 101-115, Rookwood Road, Yagoona-2199 Contact No. 1300-123-428

3. that you can utilise your RAM for your productive tasks instead of scanning. Better to switch to paid anti-virus software! 2. Lack of Comprehensive Protection: A free antivirus version is meant to detect a certain type of virus or malware. It can never provide complete protection as it doesn’t come with the features of auto-updating. While its paid counterparts have the ability to fight against known and unknown security threats. Manufacturers do update their paid programs regularly based on future risk possibilities. Any organisation that required a strong firewall or the most advanced anti- ransomware security solution, they will always prefer the paid versions. 3. Annoying Upgrade Prompts & Ad: The manufacturers who offer free antivirus solution have paid programs available and because of this, you will get pop-ups that will explain different reasons to upgrade. Along with upgrade pop-up, some manufacturers show third-party ads in their free versions Sometimes, these pop-ups are too frequent and can annoy you by slowing down your system. 4. Lack of Customer Support: When you use a free or trail based subscriptions, there will be no customer support available. In most cases, your only support will be online forums and knowledge bases. Again, I would say you should think about the value of your time in comparison to the cost of an antivirus program. Is it worth to lose your productive in recovering the data in case of an attack, instead of paying a small monthly fee and gaining access to personal support? 5. Data Sharing: Is your antivirus capable of data sharing and data recovery? Of course not, if it is a free subscription. Free software only removes the limited virus from Unit A2 101-115, Rookwood Road, Yagoona-2199 Contact No. 1300-123-428

4. your system while the paid one comes with an advanced set of features that are needed to back up the important data at one place. Takeaway Considering how efficient and affordable antivirus programs should be, it doesn’t make sense to choose a free program to save dollars. Clearly, there are too many gaps as compared to paid counterparts. For a comprehensive and advanced anti-ransomware protection survey, connect with us today. We will adopt multi-layer security approach through its different programs. Being an enterprise head, you should always think about complete protection instead of taking a risk that may cost you more than you can imagine. In our previous articles, we have discussed Kaspersky anti-ransomware solution and Kaspersky endpoint security. You can read and understand their amazing benefits for a small, mid and mid-large size business. To implement the solution, you can contact us at ICTechnology. We are a registered partner with Kaspersky Lab in Australia. Also, let’s do a risk assessment to analyse how it may cost to your business. For more info, please visit our website https://ictechnology.com.au/ Unit A2 101-115, Rookwood Road, Yagoona-2199 Contact No. 1300-123-428