Total Defense Essential Anti-Virus Review

Full review

Total Defense claims to have boosted its antivirus provision to provide industry-leading enhancements. Is Total Defense Essential Anti-Virus worth a try? We checked out the software to see if it’s good for homes and small businesses.

Setup

When you download Total Defense Essential Anti-Virus product you get free software support. If the installation process goes wrong, or you encounter any errors in the system, Total Defense support will help iron out the problems. We found the installation process simple and relatively straightforward so we didn’t need to take advantage of the offer.

Total Defense has a smaller memory footprint so the processes don’t take up too much space on your computer. Total Defense is also reasonably fast, and has increased in speed since its earlier versions.

Protection

Looking at the type of technology Total Defense uses for its antivirus protection system; we found a cloud-based scanning system alongside malware detection and spyware-blocking technology. Total Defense protects against viruses, worms, malware, and Trojans. A download protector scans all your downloads automatically and quarantines them if there are any problems.

Internet - The Total Defense team monitors global virus status and responds to threats to the internet from new virus outbreaks and spyware.

Effectiveness

Total Defense Anti-Virus has earned the ADVANCED+ rating in a recent "Real-World Performance Test" conducted by AV-Comparatives for June 2023. It performed particularly well in the False Positive (False Alarm) Test Result, ranking 2nd just behind Kaspersky.

The most recent round of AV-Test lab tests does not include Total Defense.

Scans & updates

As you would expect from a modern antivirus program, Total Defense gives you automatic scans and automatic upgrades. You don’t need to download new versions of the program so long as you maintain an active subscription to the service, which is useful.

Choose from quick scans that highlight the key drives and places where viruses are likely to rest, and deeper scans that give you the chance to look at the entire computer system so you can be sure you are not missing any problems.

The system automatically scans a USB when you attach it to the computer; a simple but useful touch as it protects you from viruses brought in from another PC without you having to remember to check your device.

Features

Gamer mode – There’s not a whole lot of features in the Total Defense box but there is a gamer mode that allows you to turn off announcements while you surf the web, give a presentation or play games.

Ease of use

Total Defense has improved its interface with a more intuitive outlook. This makes it easier to find what you need since the functions of the software are broken down into sections. Best of all, the default settings on the antivirus are enough to keep your system well-protected without needing any additional monitoring on your part. You can simply leave the program running and forget about it, in most cases. However, if you want to set up a bespoke antivirus checking system, there are extra processes and techniques you can look into. You can even download real-time reports showing the activity of the system and any alerts.

Help & support

As well as the installation support discussed above, you can also contact the Total Defense support team if you have problems when the software is up and running. You can access the support system any time, and you can use email, phone, chat or the internet forum.

In addition, we think the Total Defense online support information is useful. Access a knowledge base, a blog with the latest news, and a web community discussing issues in the forum.

Overall

Total Defense is simple to use but the protection isn’t up there with the best of the antivirus software systems. Total Defense Essential Anti-Virus is a plain and simple antivirus protector, which means you won’t find it difficult to use, but there are better systems out there that offer better protection and more features.