Bitdefender Total Security review: Great, easy to use protection

Best Prices Today: Total Security

When you pay for software program, the very last thing you need are limits. And but, Bitdefender Total Security imposes a reasonably stunning one on customers: VPN use, generally part of mid-range antivirus suites, is restricted to a 200MB per-day restrict per gadget.

It’s an odd ploy, on condition that rival companies provide full, unrestricted VPN entry, and typically a password supervisor subscription, too. But Bitdefender’s ace within the gap is its stellar safety, together with its easy-to-understand, but nonetheless customizable interface. If you may forgive Total Security its occasional half-baked elements, it supplies among the many greatest protection towards malware and on-line threats.

Further studying: See our roundup of the best antivirus software for Windows PCs to study competing merchandise.

What does Bitdefender Total Security embody?

Bitdefender Total Security provides broad safety towards on-line threats, beginning with antivirus, firewall, and ransomware. It additionally safeguards towards community, net, and e-mail points like brute drive assaults, malicious hyperlinks, and harmful attachments, in addition to screens your native inbox for spam in the event you use Microsoft Outlook or Mozilla Thunderbird. It controls entry to your webcam and microphone to stop distant spying, too.

For further safety and privateness, Total Security features a safe browser, entry to its VPN service (albeit restricted), tracker blocking, parental controls, and a scanner that checks for system vulnerabilities. It additionally has anti-theft software program instruments to get well, lock down, or wipe an related gadget. Rounding out the suite are set of utilities: a system optimizer, file shredder for safe deletion, and utilization profiles.

You can set up Bitdefender on Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS units, although not all options are supported on all platforms.

How a lot does Bitdefender Total Security value?

The worth of Bitdefender Total Security varies relying on the variety of units lined — although not by a lot. You can select between a five-device plan and 10-device plan, which all allow you to set up the software program on Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS units.

5-device plan

• $70 for the primary 12 months
• $100 per 12 months thereafter

10-device plan

• $73 for the primary 12 months
• $110 per 12 months thereafter

Bitdefender enrolls customers into auto-renewal by default, although refunds are allowed as much as 30 days after the automated renewal date. The firm additionally provides refunds inside 30 days of the preliminary buy of a subscription.

To save more cash on Bitdefender, you should purchase a license by retailers like Newegg, B&H, and Amazon, typically at a large low cost. For instance, a 10-device, one-year plan was simply $50 on Newegg on the time of this text’s publishing.

Key options of Bitdefender Total Security

Installation and consumer interface

Getting began with Bitdefender Total Security is straightforward and easy — the set up window even reveals brief explanations of various options as you wait. However, watch out when organising your Bitdefender account, as you’re solely requested to sort in your password as soon as. If you don’t use a password supervisor, that leaves you open to misremembering (or mistyping) it.

The Bitdefender app has a clear, easy interface, with massive tiles for every characteristic. A protect icon within the upper-left nook serves as a standing indicator; it’ll flip crimson when one thing requires consideration. Along the left facet of the window is entry to the dashboard, options sorted by class (Protection, Privacy, and Utilities), notifications, and settings. The app works along with the Bitdefender Central web site portal, the place you’ll deal with gadget administration (which incorporates distant instructions you may ship to related units, like malware scans) and parental controls.

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In the dashboard, you’ll discover six customizable shortcuts to completely different options, together with recommended motion gadgets on the prime. The defaults are Quick Scan, System Scan, Vulnerability Scan, VPN, and Safepay, together with a clean tile.

Under Protection, you get entry to the antivirus scanner, vulnerability scanner (which checks for weaknesses in your apps and community), and settings for on-line and superior menace protections, firewall, spam screening, and ransomware safeguards.

From Privacy, you can begin up the Safepay digital setting or VPN, bounce into parental controls (that are dealt with by the Bitdefender Central web site), set up the anti-tracker extension for supported browsers, and handle your webcam and microphone safety settings. You also can entry Bitdefender’s password supervisor, however it’s a separate paid service and never included with the Total Security suite.

Within Utilities, you’ll discover a hyperlink to Bitdefender’s anti-theft instruments (managed by the Bitdefender Central web site), the optimizer scanner that hunts for non permanent and different disposable information, exercise profiles (which allow you to simply change Bitdefender’s habits to align with the way you’re utilizing the pc — e.g., gaming vs. work), and a file shredder for securely deleting information from hard-disk drives (HDD).

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Notifications present a working log of Bitdefender’s findings because it displays your system, organized by urgency stage. These differ from the pop-up notifications Bitdefender reveals inside Windows, which seem on the backside proper of your display screen and sometimes promote different Bitdefender companies. One such alert even went so far as to warn me a few LinkedIn knowledge leak from two years in the past, to be able to recommend signing up for Bitdefender’s Digital Identity Protection service. Fortunately, you may flip off “special offers” within the app settings.)

Overall, Bitdefender errs on the facet of ease-of-use, giving customers a reasonable variety of settings for the app and per characteristic. The descriptions of options are additionally generalized and never very technical.

Virus, malware, and menace safety

Real-time safety

Bitdefender stays on fixed alert for potential threats to your PC. On the pc itself, it scans opened or added information, displays apps for suspicious exercise, and screens downloaded e-mail for spam, sketchy hyperlinks, and harmful attachments. It particularly appears out for apps that attempt to encrypt your information, too — when not initiated by you, such habits is probably going ransomware attempting to carry your knowledge hostage.

Meanwhile, everytime you’re looking on-line, Bitdefender screens for malicious downloads, phishing and fraud makes an attempt, encrypted web sites with invalid or bogus certificates, and unhealthy search outcomes. It additionally blocks unauthorized incoming entry to your PC, unauthorized use of your webcam and microphone, and on-line net trackers (while you set up the corporate’s anti-tracking browser extension). You can moreover pair this system with the corporate’s free TrafficLight browser extension, which provides icons to go looking outcomes marking them protected or dangerous.

Scheduled and guide scans

In an uncommon transfer, Bitdefender doesn’t robotically carry out common scans. To run a Quick Scan and/or System Scan at a scheduled time, you will need to edit these default scans — or as a substitute create a customized scan. The course of will not be intuitive, both. You should open the edit display screen and click on the Next button earlier than the choice to Choose when to schedule this job seems. 

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You can then select between 4 intervals — every day, weekly, month-to-month, or at system startup. Daily helps you to set a time; Monthly helps you to set which day of the month and a time; and Weekly helps you to select a day of the week and a time.

For guide scans, you may run Quick Scan, which focuses on vital information and processes; System Scan, which combs by your complete system; or a customized scan you’ve created. Quick Scan and System Scan may also be initiated by the Bitdefender Central web site — although you gained’t see indicators of exercise on the gadget. For this purpose, I most popular beginning my scans immediately on the PC I used to be utilizing.

Running System Scan might be sluggish throughout its first run, as Bitdefender takes inventory of every thing in your PC, however it hurries up afterward. (By default, the app scans solely new and altered information.) You also can right-click on particular person folders and information, after which select Bitdefender > Scan with Bitdefender to examine them out.

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Bitdefender lets you alter settings for scans — for instance, you may select to have the software program all the time display screen all information, even when they haven’t been modified since your final scan. You don’t get a ton of tweaks, however it’s greater than rivals like McAfee and Norton (which go for an ultra-simplified vibe) provide.

Vulnerability scanner

In addition to scanning for viruses, malware, ransomware, and on-line threats, Bitdefender can examine your PC’s app, system information, and community settings for exploitable weaknesses. (Attackers use these openings to compromise your gadget and/or knowledge.) Found beneath Protection > Vulnerability, the instrument hunts for weak Windows consumer passwords, vital Windows updates not but put in, adjustments to Windows and community settings that might let malicious habits slip previous, outdated apps, Wi-Fi community and router settings that may very well be strengthened, and extra.

Like the antivirus scans, you may remotely provoke a vulnerability scan by the Bitdefender Central web site.

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Firewall

Bitdefender takes over firewall duties utterly for Windows — and although most individuals are greatest off leaving it alone with default settings, you may customise how stringent the foundations are and whether or not these guidelines change primarily based on the kind of connection you’re on. Bitdefender sends customers a notification every time a probably malicious app tries to entry the web. I didn’t discover any overzealousness on Bitdefender’s half whereas utilizing my check PC, and the settings are properly streamlined with out being too simplified.

Scam safety

Bitdefender lately launched a free service referred to as Scamio, an AI-driven chatbot designed to assist confirm the legitimacy of e-mail, textual content messages, prompt messages, hyperlinks, and QR codes. To get began, you will need to head to scamio.bitdefender.com (login required) or Meta’s Messenger app. Then you’ll add a screenshot, copy/paste into the chat, or just describe the scenario to the bot.

As a really primary second opinion, Scamio isn’t unhealthy, although its evaluation can take longer than anticipated. I favored that it may simply extract hyperlinks from screenshot — a a lot safer methodology, since attempting to repeat/paste can result in an unintentional click on. It additionally appears to err on the facet of warning, dismissing my try at candy nothings as a possible rip-off.

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That stated, if you need hands-off assist for textual content messages, you must also set up Bitdefender in your cell phone. So lengthy as you’re snug with the permissions it requests (which go fairly deep), it should robotically display screen your chat messages and notifications for potential scams.

VPN

Bitdefender Total Security contains entry to its VPN for a number of units, however there’s one enormous catch — each bit of drugs is allotted a paltry 200MB of bandwidth per day. (You can burn by that by looking just some web sites.) You’re solely allowed to hook up with the closest server, too.

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In Bitdefender’s favor is a glossy, simply navigated interface — I notably like how vital info and stats are laid out clearly. But with free, reputable VPN services providing rather more bandwidth and letting you select a location when connecting, paying for Bitdefender Premium VPN to get limitless bandwidth and entry to servers in all 55 supported nations simply doesn’t really feel price it. Not when the fee is $40 for the primary 12 months and $70 per 12 months thereafter.

Parental controls 

Bitdefender Total Security contains parental controls, that are managed by the Bitdefender Central web site. On PC, you may restrict display screen time, apps used, and web sites visited. Android and iOS units additionally permit guardians to see location and cellphone contacts.

To start on a PC, you’ll first set up Bitdefender on it. For cellular units, you’ll want to put in the devoted Bitdefender Parental Control app. Then on Bitdefender Central, you’ll create a profile to your little one and assign the pc, cellphone, or pill to the profile.

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From there, you may add deadlines and create schedules for blocked use, in addition to handle which purposes and web sites might be accessed. For apps, you may solely restrict apps your little one has already used. However, for web sites, you may block or permit by classes, that are predetermined by Bitdefender. By default, kids can go to websites inside simply 13 of the 43 presets, akin to “search engines,” “webmail,” “computers and software,” and “travel.” News is forbidden, which put PCWorld.com on the ban checklist. (Guess we’re not sufficient about computer systems and software program.)

As your child spends time on their gadget, you’ll see their utilization statistics seem within the dashboard’s charts. The dashboard additionally reveals location monitoring, which works fairly properly — the cellphone used for testing appeared with shut accuracy to the bodily location. (The recommended addresses weren’t appropriate, nonetheless.) Phone contacts show right here as properly, and robotically replace every time a brand new contact is added.

Additional options

Anti-Theft

Bitdefender Total Security’s anti-theft instruments are incredible in principle, letting you remotely find, lock, or wipe your gadget. For a smartphone, you too can remotely set off an alarm and/or ship a push notification with a message to whomever has it.

But in apply, I discovered this characteristic to fall flat. For instance, my check laptop computer’s location wasn’t exactly correct — not stunning, because it was primarily based off of the IP deal with. Meanwhile, my smartphone’s whereabouts by no means confirmed up. Locking the units additionally didn’t work notably properly, both. If the particular person holding your cellphone is aware of your PIN, you’re out of luck. The PIN you set by way of Bitdefender Central doesn’t override that.

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The solely half that labored as marketed was the distant alert sound, together with the push notification. That solely helps with smartphones, although, and also you’ll must belief you could annoy somebody into doing the correct factor.

Browser extensions

Bitdefender has two browser extensions price calling out, although neither are locked to the Total Security suite. The Anti-Tracker extension is robotically put in together with the Bitdefender app, the place you too can handle its set up in the event you set up one other browser in your PC in a while. (Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Internet Explorer are supported — although in the event you’re on an working system that may nonetheless run Internet Explorer, it’s time to improve). It retains trackers from gathering knowledge on you, and allows you to handle the sort of info for web sites you go to.

Bitdefender TrafficLight checks web sites for phishing makes an attempt and malware, blocks probably harmful parts on web sites, and provides visible cues to go looking outcomes labeling them as protected or dangerous. Available as a Chrome and Firefox extension, this add-on isn’t crucial, however its search-result visible warnings might be useful.

File Shredder

Bitdefender’s safe delete characteristic helps you to completely take away information out of your PC — supplied they’re saved on a hard-disk drive (HDD). Total Security’s File Shredder characteristic makes use of the Department of Defense 5520.22-M three-pass methodology to “shred” your knowledge, which works on HDDs however isn’t as effective on solid-state drives (SSDs). In reality, this fashion of deleting knowledge can shorten the lifetime of an SSD.

With most laptops now utilizing SSDs, this characteristic will solely be helpful when you have an exterior HDD you retailer delicate paperwork on. But Bitdefender is the same as rival antivirus software program on this regard.

OneClick on Optimizer

This utility hunts for Windows information, registry gadgets, and web information it may nuke — all within the identify of tuning up your PC. But whereas OneClick on Optimizer can shortly wipe away seemingly pointless knowledge, it shares little element about what will get tossed. That’s a giant drawback for something associated to your registry — a spot the place even seasoned PC customers tread cautiously. (And basically, you need to all the time know what you’re deleting.)

If OneClick on Optimizer listed what it eliminates, maybe I might have ended up much less cautious of it. But it solely names three classes (Software Locations, Shared DLLs, and Help information) and what number of “issues” present in every.

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Given how imprecise the instrument is total, I nonetheless suggest Windows’ built-in Disk Cleanup app and purging looking knowledge within the app itself. This methodology leaves the registry alone and allows you to have rather more management, whereas solely being barely extra cumbersome.

Safepay

Safepay is a sandboxed browser — that’s, a safe setting for accessing delicate web sites, stored separate from every thing else working in Windows. Bitdefender promotes this characteristic as meant for financial institution web sites, and in the event you navigate to a recognized banking web site, you’ll see a pop-up asking if you wish to load it in Safepay.

Within this remoted desktop is a browser with an analogous really feel as Chrome, however way more bare-bones. You get no extensions and few settings. However, it provides a digital keyboard, which is a bit cumbersome however helpful for these involved about keyloggers.

You can use Safepay with most web sites, although movies don’t play. Also, Bitdefender doesn’t react to all frequent monetary or delicate web sites — for instance, I didn’t see the pop up for irs.gov nor much less frequent banks within the U.S. You’ll must open Safepay and navigate there your self.

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Customer assist

Should you ever want help with Bitdefender, the app accommodates a assist web page, which you’ll entry by clicking the life-preserver icon within the higher top-right of the window. It provides direct hyperlinks to Bitdefender’s support website (which incorporates video tutorials), community forums, and even a full user guide. You also can contact the corporate by e-mail, chat, or cellphone.

Updates and upkeep 

You can change replace frequency basically app settings.

By default, updates run robotically within the background as soon as per hour. You can stretch this frequency to as soon as each 24 hours (with changes accessible in hourly increments). If for some purpose you’re on a restricted web join, you may flip off automated updates, however your PC might be higher protected in the event you go away it on.

Bitdefender additionally lets you run updates within the foreground, so that you simply see after they occur. However, it doesn’t let customers carry out guide checks for updates.

Performance

Bitdefender takes prime marks in unbiased checks carried out by safety analysis institutes. In AV-Test’s safety checks for September and October 2023 (probably the most present as of this text’s publishing), Bitdefender caught 100 p.c of the zero-day assault and malware threats.

Meanwhile in AV-Comparatives’ real-world safety check for July through October 2023, Bitdefender detected 99.6 p.c of the 512 check circumstances, with three false positives. (A false optimistic is when the antivirus software program blocks a respectable obtain or web site.) 

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Similarly, Bitdefender ranked properly in AV-Comparatives’ September 2023 malware protection test. Of the 16 antivirus applications examined, Bitdefender scored a 98.2 p.c on-line detection charge, 99.98 p.c on-line safety charge, and 98.2 offline detection charge, with 4 false positives. Even while you don’t have an lively web connection, you’re well-protected. Only two different antivirus applications had equally excessive marks throughout the board.

In AV-Comparatives’ November 2023 Advanced Threat Protection Test, Bitdefender detected 14 of the 15 threats, placing it within the lead forward of the six different corporations that participated within the analysis. This check checks to see how properly an antivirus suite handles extra subtle, focused threats like malicious scripts and fileless assaults.

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When idle within the background, Bitdefender usually has a lightweight impression on system efficiency. Its impact was minimal when our check laptop computer encoded a big video right into a smaller 1080p30 file (our Handbrake benchmark), and through PCMark 10’s simulation of video conferencing, net looking, and modifying in open-source picture and doc applications. However, Bitdefender’s impression crept up when doc modifying in Microsoft Office apps like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, with UL Procyon check scores falling by about 9.5 p.c.

When working a heavy scan, Bitdefender can notably have an effect on efficiency on mid-range and funds PCs — even when set to “low” impression in its settings. Blasting a steady full scan whereas working every benchmark dropped PCMark 10 scores by virtually 20 p.c and UL Procyon outcomes by a large 35 p.c. Handbrake encodes had been much less affected, with a 10 p.c enhance in time wanted.

However, whereas these efficiency decreases sound scary, they’re a mirrored image of the toughest pressure in your PC. I compelled Bitdefender to scan the information as in the event that they’d by no means been checked earlier than, to be able to see how onerous it might hit our check laptop computer. But by default, the app solely scans new and altered information (as frequent amongst antivirus software program lately), which reduces the hassle wanted to examine over your PC. For many individuals, your expertise doubtless might be nearer to the idle efficiency (as outlined above), until you typically work with giant batches of recent or altered information.

Is Bitdefender Total Security price it?

Bitdefender Total Security provides top-notch safety in an easy-to-use app. Its foremost weaknesses are the restrictions of a few options, like VPN entry and Anti-Theft instruments, and the questionable usefulness of its OneClick on Optimizer utility. But though rivals like Norton give extra bang for the buck, this antivirus software program delivers on what issues most, which is holding your PC (and different units) protected. Just don’t pay for the 5-device license when you may get the 10-device one for just a few {dollars} extra.