Kaspersky Review

Security Features

Kaspersky offers three paid plans with the lowest tier, Kaspersky Anti-Virus, boasting of real-time antivirus and malware protection. It also helps block ransomware, spyware, cryptolockers, and more without slowing down your PC’s performance. If you’re looking for a user-friendly and lightweight antivirus protection for your Windows PC, this would be an excellent choice.

If you’re worried about hackers getting into your accounts, don’t be! This package offers an On-Screen Keyboard to prevent keyloggers from capturing your login usernames and passwords using your keystrokes.

With its quick, full, custom, and scheduled scans, you get an antivirus that works hard 24/7 scanning the system for any threats. This tier also includes a Privacy Cleaner that helps keep your computer activities private and secure by deleting your browser cache, cookies, recently opened programs, and many more.

Vulnerability Scan is another useful feature as it identifies outdated applications, configuration problems, and other security weaknesses in your computer system.

Kaspersky Anti-Virus further offers a bootable Rescue Disk that helps “disinfect” your Windows OS by detecting and eliminating threats.

The mid-level plan is called Kaspersky Internet Protection which offers additional support for Mac and mobile devices. This is a superb choice for those who frequently shops and bank online as it offers protection against phishing, credit card theft, and other cybercrimes. It also provides an added layer of privacy and internet security as it prevents unauthorized access to your webcam,blocks ads and tracking cookies, scans mail for spam, and many more.

Kaspersky’s Total Protection is its premium security suite which includes all of the aforementioned features plus a 2G online storage and data encryption. If you’re worried about your kid’s online activities, this plan includes Safe Kids Premium which block adult content and lets you manage their screen time, view their location via GPS, monitor their public Facebook activity, and more.

Kaspersky Password Manager generate strong passwords and allows users to save them in an encrypted storage. This saves you from having to memorize a gazillion of passwords, only to forget them a week later. However, unless you get the Total Security plan, you only get to store up to 15 passwords.

Safe Money is another important extra (available only on Internet Security and Total Security) especially for those who fear being victimized by cybercrimes. How does it work? It detects when you’re about to make an online payment or transfers and lets you use the on-screen keyboard and Protected Browser to prevent hackers from stealing your payment information.

Secure Connection VPN is another feature that is available across all 3 paid plans which helps keep your information secure when you have to use public Wi-Fi. The caveat? You’re limited to only 200 MB of data per day. You also cannot choose your preferred virtual location so forget trying to access a website that’s currently blocked in your country.

Kaspersky Cloud Protection is a potentially useful albeit controversial add-on to Kaspersky’s line of products. What it does is basically to collect data from your computer that can ultimately help Kaspersky continuously improve its antivirus protection. The problem? It poses certain privacy issues as you would have to share your computer’s unique ID number, the websites you have accessed, and apps you currently have installed. As such, unless you’re feeling very charitable, it might be in your best interest not to turn it on.

User Interface and Performance

The Kaspersky user interface is very clean and easy to use, as there are main buttons on the front page of the program that allow users to quickly set up scans, check their security status and even use the aforementioned on-screen keyboard. Given how urgent security can be, the fact that this program allows all of its major functions to be executed within one or two clicks is nothing short of incredible.

From a performance standpoint, users should be aware that the use of the virus scanning capability can slow down a device while the scan is taking place. As a whole, though, there are no reasons to have an issue with the overall performance of this software. Running it in the background while using other programs does not torpedo the usability of the device, which is the most important thing for users to be mindful of.

Licenses and Packages

There is a free version of Kaspersky antivirus software that users can try. That free version includes antivirus technology, and also includes a system watcher that uses the user’s behavior to key in on the vulnerabilities that could affect them most based on the things that they do with their computer or other device.

Those who want to pay for Kaspersky’s services to get the full array of features that they have to offer can do so affordably. More importantly, a paid subscription to Kaspersky’s antivirus software makes it so that users can protect up to three devices per subscription. While many comparably priced services only allow single-device protection, this program opens things up to many more people and devices.

About the Company

As the legend would have it, Mr. Kaspersky had his first brush with a digital virus back in 1989. He then went on to build his very own cybersecurity in Moscow, Russia in 1997, working on the now-iconic Kaspersky Antivirus. Today, it has become a global leader in online security with over 270,000 corporate clients, more than 400 million users, and a multitude of highly innovative security solutions and services.

In 2017, there were rumors going around that Kaspersky Lab may have been spying on its consumers on behalf of the Russian government. Of course, the company actively denied these allegations. Until hard evidence for this accusation becomes available though, for the ordinary consumers, Kaspersky still remains to be one of the strongest out there in terms of virus and malware protection.

A consistent Editor’s Choice awardee, Kaspersky Anti-Virus also sweeps across every single test conducted by four independent testing labs with no less than perfect scores.

AV-Test subjected it to a rigorous 3-part rating procedure which tested its system impact, malware protection, and false alarms. Each category makes up for 6 points and Kaspersky Anti-Virus garnered a perfect score of 18.

Similarly, it also gained an Advanced + certification from AV-Comparatives after acing the Real World test, Performance evaluation, and more.

SE Labs have a more interesting approach. They knew that a perfect score inside test labs mean nothing if the Anti-Virus performs poorly in a real-world scenario. Thus, they intentionally selected malicious websites to try and replicate the actual user experience. After repeated attacks on the antivirus, Kaspersky came out unscathed with the highest possible score - an AAA certification.

MRG-Effitas performs tests against major cyber-threats such as the banking Trojans. Once again, Kaspersky Anti-Virus delivered. To summarize, this antivirus scored a whopping 10 out of 10, clinching the top spot along with Bitdefender’s 9.9/10.

Customer Service

You can easily reach Kaspersky’s support team via phone, email, live chat, and social media accounts such as Facebook and Twitter. You can also browse their FAQs on the site as well as on the active forum.

Our Verdict: A Program Worth Seeking Out

Overall, Kaspersky Antivirus is an excellent choice for an easy-to-use and customizable antivirus solution. It offers real-time protection with virtually no impact on system performance. However, don’t waste your money on their top-of-the-range plan, Total Protection. You can get a better password manager, VPN service, and parental control elsewhere. If you don’t mind their iffy data collection practices, or the unproven rumors about their collusion with the Russian Government, Kaspersky is definitely one of the best antivirus engines in the industry.