This blog post was updated on September 2, 2024
It was originally published on November 15, 2020
There are many questions surrounding antiviruses that don’t have a definite answer, even among information security experts. Even the most basic question, such as " Is antivirus software necessary?” has varying answers. And among the wide variety of antivirus software available, not all antivirus software is created equal. Many factors influence the right fit for your business needs.
This blog post provides an overview of the key features to consider when selecting an antivirus for your business.
But first, let’s answer the most common question…
Do You Even Need An Antivirus?
If you read the interviews of cybersecurity experts on the internet, you may find that most of them don’t use antivirus software. The common reason for this is that they are smart enough to avoid common hacking techniques, malware, malicious websites, etc. And if someone were to deliberately attack them with some new technique, it is unlikely that their antivirus software would be able to stop the attack. However, they most likely have other processes such as log analysis to identify such novel cyberattacks.
For the average user, such a strategy of living dangerously on the internet without an antivirus is suicidal. And for businesses, not using an antivirus is impossible for two main reasons.
First, an antivirus is a line of defense that protects your weakest link i.e. those employees who do the careless things that the IT team tells them to avoid. While the security pros, who don’t use an antivirus, can easily identify phishing emails, avoid clicking on dubious attachments, and refrain from visiting untrustworthy websites, the average users can’t.
Second, most companies have to meet certain regulatory compliance or security standards requirements that mandate the use of security software on all company devices.
So the short answer is, yes, you do need antivirus software. The use of antivirus software isn’t required just for security but also for compliance and in the worst case, to make your business lawsuit ready.
Now that we have established the need, let’s look at how you can choose the right security software for your company.
Key Features Of An Antivirus You Must Know
A security solution for your business needs to provide not just standard security but also peace of mind. It needs to give the business owner peace of mind that their staff can perform their tasks without having to worry about viruses, malicious websites, or spam emails. A good antivirus software should work silently in the background without taking up too much computing resources or requiring the user’s attention. The last thing a business needs from an antivirus is the regular occurrence of errors, crashes, and manual updates requiring the employees to take action or seek helpdesk support.
Here’s our antivirus selection guide to help you understand the key features a business needs to consider when selecting an antivirus:
1. Threat Protection
A threat is any event that can negatively impact your information technology assets by gaining unauthorized access, modifying, destroying, disclosing data, or disrupting services. These threats can be intentional, such as hacking attempts, or accidental, like the unintentional deletion of files.
Businesses today face a diverse array of threats—from amateur hackers deploying off-the-shelf malware and ransomware, to professional cybercriminals engaged in espionage and extortion, to internal threats from disgruntled employees. Each type of threat presents unique challenges and requires specific strategies for mitigation and removal. However, it is impractical for business owners to invest in defenses against every possible cyber threat.
Depending on your business model and internal processes, one or more threats will likely be more critical than the others. So you first need to identify the most critical threats for your business. A cybersecurity risk assessment is an excellent tool that will help you in this process, helping you pinpoint the most significant vulnerabilities. Once you have identified the threats and vulnerabilities, you will be in a better position to choose the right protection for your systems.
Businesses typically need to deploy multiple layers of protection, such as antivirus software, firewalls, and regular backups. However, it’s crucial to allocate more focus and budget to the most critical protection based on your specific threat landscape. For example, if ransomware is your most significant concern, investing in a robust backup solution may be more effective than purchasing the most expensive antivirus software.
2. Threat Detection and Isolation
Once you’ve identified the specific threats your business needs to guard against, the next crucial step is to focus on threat detection and isolation. Here are the key features to look for in antivirus software to ensure robust protection:
Real-time Scanning
Antivirus software is designed to detect the presence of malware but not all of them perform this function the same way. Some software require you to perform manual scans, some others run scheduled scans, while others perform dynamic scanning that continuously checks your systems for malicious programs.
The most effective antivirus solutions offer dynamic, real-time scanning that continuously monitors your systems for malicious activities. This feature is essential because it operates unobtrusively in the background, providing immediate threat detection and minimizing the risk of malware slipping through unnoticed
Another important element of real-time protection includes internet connection scanning and protection against online threats. So the antivirus software must have capabilities for internet connection scanning and protection.
Auto Updates
Regular updates are critical for all software, but they are especially critical for antivirus software. The antivirus updates contain the latest virus definitions and security patches needed to combat new threats. Since cyber threats evolve rapidly, your antivirus must regularly update its signature files—the database of known viruses—to ensure continued protection. Updates for these signature files are released frequently, usually daily, and sometimes even more frequently.
If the antivirus requires you to install updates manually, it is very inconvenient and you may miss installing important updates, exposing your system to critical threats. The best antivirus software receive frequent updates and are capable of installing those updates automatically. Frequent updates also imply that the size of the updates will be small and, therefore, won’t slow down your system.
Performance
While robust security features are important, they shouldn’t come at the cost of system performance. The best antivirus software is designed to run efficiently without slowing down your devices, even during scans or updates. This ensures that your employees can continue their work without interruptions, maintaining productivity while staying secure. So, make sure that the antivirus you select doesn’t slow down the device while running scans or updating.
Auto-Clean
If an antivirus detects malicious software on your computer, it seems logical to have the antivirus delete that piece of software right away. There’s no reason to leave potentially harmful software on your computer, so your antivirus should have an auto-clean feature to get rid of viruses as soon as they are detected.
However, such a feature can backfire at times. It is quite common for security programs to flag legitimate system files as malicious and if you have auto-clean enabled, then the deletion of those system files will cause your applications to crash. So, it is important to configure your antivirus in such a way that your system files aren’t deleted without seeking confirmation but infected files found in real-time, malicious email attachments, and infected files on external devices should be cleaned right away.
Malware Protection
Malicious software, in short malware, is a blanket term for a wide variety of software programs that try to take control of your systems, cause harm, or steal your data. Viruses, worms, Trojans, keyloggers, ransomware, and spyware are common examples of malware.
Malware is a common and persistent threat to businesses. It spreads in three common ways:
Malicious websites
Some antivirus programs are designed to specifically target certain types of viruses. Such programs will not provide you with comprehensive protection against all the myriad malware out there. Therefore, it’s better to invest in an antivirus that can provide comprehensive protection against all known malware.
Your security software must be able to automatically scan files, emails, and webpages and block malicious content so that it addresses all the three common ways in which malware attack businesses.
3. Platform and Device Compatibility
Most businesses use a variety of devices and operating systems. Even if a company is all Mac or all PC, they may likely be using tablets or smartphones that run Android. So your antivirus needs to be compatible with all the different devices and operating systems.
Before selecting an antivirus, you need to consider that its performance may go a notch up or down depending on your device and operating system. It would be a huge waste of time and resources if, after rolling out an antivirus, you find out that it isn’t compatible with or slows down certain types of devices used by your staff.
4. Ease Of Use
Cybersecurity is already quite intimidating so you wouldn’t want any of your staff, especially those who aren’t tech-savvy, ‘interacting with security software’. In any case, a good antivirus software is one that works silently in the background without you even realizing that it’s there.
While people occasionally do stupid things such as click on a malicious link, the antivirus should do its job and block, quarantine, or delete the threat with minimal input required from the end user. The antivirus must work unobtrusively without wasting the valuable working time of the users.
Additionally, if you are a small business with less than 5 people, you can use antivirus with individual licenses for each of your machines. While this may be cheaper, it doesn’t give you the same level of protection and control that enterprise software with a central control panel does. Centralized antivirus is also required for data protection and regulatory compliance.
5. After Sales Support
Like any other application or piece of technology, your antivirus software will also require some level of technical support be it for license management, configuration, or troubleshooting in case of false positives. If you don’t have an internal IT team, it can be a real challenge since your antivirus is critical for the security of your business. But it isn’t just about availability, the support must also be timely. You wouldn’t want to be on hold for hours when your system is infected. So, choose a software that offers good multi-channel after-sales support.
6. Cost
There is a wide variety of endpoint protection software that ranges from free to expensive and for home users to enterprise users. While we do want comprehensive virus protection, we don’t want to blow up our budget and leave gaps in other areas of cybersecurity. Therefore, it is worthwhile to calculate the monetary value of your cybersecurity risk so that you can build a business case for your investment in the most appropriate antivirus software for your business needs.
The Right Antivirus Software For Your Business
You can drive your car fast not because it has a big engine, but because it has functioning brakes and other safety features. Knowing that the safety measures are in place, you can be at ease when you push the gas pedal. Similarly, investing in the right endpoint protection enables you to be at ease and focus on those aspects of your business that need your attention. Once you consider the points described above, you can ask the right questions and make an informed decision to choose the most suitable antivirus for your business.
After rolling out the antivirus software of your choice, you should consider adding another layer of security in the form of two-factor authentication (2FA). We have discussed it at length in our blog: How To Set Up Two Factor Authentication (2FA)
If you need help improving your company’s security posture. Feel free to get in touch with us and our security experts will help you figure out how to make your business more secure. Click the button below to schedule an appointment.
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