As technology has grown increasingly complex and intertwined with almost every aspect of our daily lives, cybersecurity has perhaps never been more of a concern than it is today. And while computers and networks have advanced, so have the techniques that hackers and cyber-criminals utilize to gain access to your computer. That’s why every PC user needs a good, reliable cybersecurity suite (ideally one that doesn’t cost a bunch of money or is even free) such as Malwarebytes. Read on to find out more about what Malwarebytes offers over traditional antivirus software and how you can try it for free today.
Malwarebytes is a household name in the world of digital security, offering both free and premium solutions to regular users and businesses alike. The company was established after its founder and CEO, Marcin Kleczynski, looked at the shocking speed at which new malware is developed and realized that traditional antivirus services are simply too slow on the uptake. To tackle this problem, Kleczynski assembled a team of security experts and “white-hat” hackers to build a user-friendly and efficient software suite capable of tackling modern malware threats as quickly as they appear.
When one thinks of malware, the first thing that probably springs to mind is a computer virus; today, however, there is a myriad of ways that nefarious hackers can target vulnerabilities on your PC. This can, of course, include filesystem-destroying viruses, ransomware that shuts your computer down until a payout is made, and other major attacks of that sort, but much more common are undetectable threats; for instance, malware that can track your online behavior and record keystrokes to glean sensitive passwords when you’re shopping or logging onto your financial accounts, all while running quietly in the background.
These sorts of “sleeper” threats regularly elude traditional antivirus services. By contrast, Malwarebytes utilizes several different patented counter-attack vectors to sniff out and target hard-to-detect malware. Among these is anomaly detection, an artificial intelligence-based technology that can detect and block new threats to your PC more effectively than legacy antivirus software can. In fact, Malwarebytes detects malware in 39% computers that already have antivirus installed, including major threats like ransomware to milder annoyances such as potentially unwanted programs (PUPs) and everything in between.
Owing to its effectiveness, sheer ease of setup and use, and small operating footprint (meaning that it won’t impact your PC’s performance like many bloated antivirus programs do), Malwarebytes has grown to be one of the most trusted and popular names in the world when it comes to cybersecurity; Malwarebytes is installed on almost a quarter of a million PCs every day, and across its entire userbase, the software successfully detects and/or blocks more than 8,000,000 malware attacks on a daily basis with more than 187,000,000 scans performed each month.
Malwarebytes also has both a free and a premium paid option. The free Malwarebytes suite allows you to perform thorough system scans, during which the software will go through your PC’s entire filesystem to smoke out everything from viruses to spyware and rootkits, all with a single click of the mouse. This alone is a powerful tool for diagnosing and treating malware-related problems your computer might be having; note, however, that the free Malwarebytes option does not provide real-time threat protection.
Malwarebytes Premium, on the other hand, does. Whereas the free suite is like treating an infection with antibiotics, the Premium package acts more like a vaccine, actively detecting malware attacks as they occur and stopping them right in their tracks before they can do serious damage. This real-time monitoring runs quietly in the background as long as your computer is on and automatically updates itself daily so that Malwarebytes can stop new “zero-hour” attacks (including those coming from malicious websites) as soon as they emerge.
You can enjoy Malwarebytes Premium for free for 14 days, and unlike many other “free” trials, you’re not required to enter any payment information. After your two-week Premium trial is up, you’re free to continue to use the free Malwarebytes suite for manually scanning your system and removing malicious software. There’s no risk and no commitment, so if your Windows PC, Mac computer, or Android device isn’t running cybersecurity software, or if you’re tired of dealing with the clunky and ineffective antivirus bloatware that came pre-installed on your system, then there’s no reason not to to give it a spin.
Editors' Recommendations
- If you install one piece of software on your PC, make it this
- Browse safely and save up to $80 with McAfee’s Total Protection holiday sale
