Should you pay for an antivirus? These three cybersecurity experts give you the answer

Let’s also talk about which free utilities you are interested in and whether your operating system’s built-in antivirus protects you well.

Although operating systems Windows or Mac already have their own antivirus out of the box, you always wonder if it is worth buying an external application or program, but of course, sometimes security packages can go up in the budget. Do we really need it?

The Xataka people have asked this before us, but the question is much more complex than it seems, because the market offers a range of offers to protect our equipment. So, to clear the doubt, he asked three cybersecurity experts: Chema Alonso, Roman Ramirez and Carlos Manchado. Let’s clean up this free, paid antivirus space with promises of exceptional service you never knew existed. if they are useful for something…

Chema Alonso: the payment advantage

Core services from Apple and Microsoft they are already a great solution. Hacker and cyber security expert Chema Alonso compares its use to a “helmet for riding a motorcycle” and therefore we should consider them as the first defence. against the biggest viruses. It is precisely its size and reputation that defines some of the power and validity of an antivirus.

A major virus or malware will be better knownand the expert community will be more dedicated to solving the problems it may cause, while smaller malware will be less conspicuous because low priority for researchers. Therefore, these are the ones that should worry us the most and what paid antiviruses will buy. protect ourselves more efficiently. While the free ones can handle these cases, Alonso doesn’t like them as they offer weaker technical support.

If we talk about professional and business area, Alonso prefers to recommend EDR solutions (Endpoint Detection and Response), “are the ones that combine all these advancements that the anti-malware industry has. developed in recent yearsand intelligence systems cloudy centralized, artificial intelligence models It helps detect malware based on how it starts behaving on the system.

Carlos Manchado: You will always be protected with the serial ones

What Carlos Manchado, Head of Cybersecurity at Microsoft Ibérica advocates Provided by Microsoft Defender excellent protection on its ownand in his case he doesn’t tweak whether to prefer free or paid antivirus, but says any option would be a good complement. provide equipment protectionespecially since some of them focus on a specific area: “every scenario requires a suitable solution”.

Román Ramírez: covers several fronts with complementary utilities

In this third case, the computer systems and security specialist Roman Ramirez it largely replicates what we have already seen, but with clear variations and very interesting reflections. On the one hand, he appreciates the usefulness of the programs that come standard with their operating system, because they are powerful enough to bypass. most common and powerful attacks.

He’s not against paying for an antivirus, but prefers to combine them with free options to cover more essential and other alternative apps. For example, it refers to its use. use VPN programs to better protect our digital back. His approach is to use apps that are more modest in functionality, but that’s where they all end up. slow down any hacker Focus on our teams.

In short: free or paid antivirus?

The first thing is to convince yourself that you can’t be out in the open. Yes, it’s almost impossible because your operating system already has systems that protect you as standardbut you should always close security vulnerabilities with at least a few solutions like VPN and always opt for paid antivirus to get it if you can afford it. best technical servicebut do not ignore the free ones, because they are already very valid.

picture | Markus Virgo

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