BitDefender Antivirus Free Edition

Anupam · 24. Dec 2012, 09:26 AM

mjt328 posted about BitDefender Antivirus Free Edition in this comment on the main site :

http://www.techsupportalert.com/best...comment-103915

The product page is here :

http://www.bitdefender.com/solutions/free.html

This is a great news for the free antivirus scenario IMO. BitDefender have improved greatly in the last few years, and their detection and removal capabilities have been showing great results in different tests. So, a free antivirus from them should be a great alternative. They did offer a free version earlier too, but that did not have real time scanning... but this one does.

I was in need of a lightweight antivirus for my old PC, and so I will be downloading this, and installing it on my PC. Will post here about how it goes.

I have downloaded the setup, and looking by the file size, it seems to be an online installer. Something I hate, but well, will have to put up with it.

Anupam · 24. Dec 2012, 10:31 AM

OK, I installed it on my system. No problems till now, and seems to be working good... seems lightweight too, with very little delay in opening folder with exe files. Will have to see though how it behaves when I open my pen drive.

When I ran the setup, it downloads a setup file, of 8.25 MB, which in turn downloads the application files further. I found this a bit strange.

Anyways, before the start of the installation, it shows a checkbox for sending anonymous usage, which I deselected. There is also an option to select for a quick scan after installation, which I selected. When the application files were downloaded upto 93-94%, the quick scan started and both proceeded simultaneously. The installation was smooth and without trouble, and the interface is pleasant. There was no restart required after installation.

Immediately after installation, the antivirus starts to update the definitions, and it took sometime for that.

In terms of interface and settings, I am disappointed. There is absolutely no settings, or customization offered, which is quite strange. The interface is just a single rectangular small black box, showing the real time virus shield active, and also the auto scan, which automatically scans PC when system is idle. I turned that off. Other than that, no settings are offered.

Also, it seems that an account on BitDefender has to be created, which is a sort of a registration. If an account is not created, the product will expire after a month. I created an account, which is free, and there are services offered like Facebook/Twitter account protection, Safebox, and Parental controls, etc. Safebox is under maintenance at the moment.

So, that's it. All seems well for now. I hope that the detection rate of the free edition, and its removal capabilities are as good as the commercial version of the program. Guess we will know when someone tests this product out.

Will see how it behaves on my system. Will post any further updates.

eyeb · 24. Dec 2012, 02:11 PM

I'll try this out for a while as well, I've been getting tired of avast for a while and been looking for another one.

I don't like the lack of settings but considering how MSE with it's lack of settings seem to do well, I'll let it go while I test this out

Sope · 24. Dec 2012, 02:22 PM

Oddly, on the Bitdefender webpage you link to it says :-

"This free antivirus software download is an on-demand virus scanner, which is best used in a system recovery or forensics role. If you are on an "always-on" Internet connection, we strongly advise you to consider using a more complex antivirus solution."

Which, on the face of it, sounds to me like it offers no real-time protection.

Anupam · 24. Dec 2012, 02:49 PM

That's odd... it does not say that on the link that I have posted in my first post. I have been careful enough to look for that, because I remember that BitDefender did have a free antivirus earlier without any real-time scan.

But, this one indeed has a real time scan. In fact, on the page that I linked to, under the "What makes us the best?" heading, and under "Efficient" sub-heading, it mentions "Real-time Shied", and "Active Virus Control".

Also, I have it installed and it sits in the system tray, showing BitDefender is active, and also shows the file being scanned currently, when I click to show it's UI.

Maybe you are somehow getting an older page of the product?

mjt328 · 24. Dec 2012, 05:11 PM

BitDefender does have an on demand-only scanner that comes with plugins for Firefox and Chrome (possibly other browsers) ... the the free edition mentioned here is indeed a full-time, active scan av product.

eyeb · 24. Dec 2012, 05:22 PM

one thing that I find annoying is that I cant manually update it, and I don't know how long between updates it waits

it has real time scanning, you can open the shield and see what it scanned last. Problem is that I'm not sure if it really warns you if it finds something. I can't find a virus test file that it recognizes... and I cant find any real viruses to test it with (not that I'm trying harder than googling virus test file)

Sope · 24. Dec 2012, 05:22 PM

I've had another look at the link and it appears that the Bitdefender(com) website is automatically redirecting me to the UK version of the webpage at Bitdefender(co_uk).

So it seems that the version you have is not being made available to UK based users, or at least not for now

.

Anupam · 24. Dec 2012, 07:13 PM

Yea, suspected that you might be getting to another page. Well, don't know why it's doing that... opens fine here in India. Maybe you can try opening the page from Google, or by using a proxy site.

The lack of settings are a bit annoying, yeah... there is no control over the software as such. Don't know how it will handle a malware, will it do by itself, or will prompt for an action. I am not too sure about that myself. Well, I was doing fine without an antivirus, but atleast I have one now for peace of my mind. Don't have the knowledge to test it with a virus.

Sometimes, it churns up the disk a lot though, and I think its update process starts using CPU a lot. I suspect its HTTP detection might be interfering with my internet and router, as I was not able to access the internet for a while, and was not even to able to login to the router. I exited the antivirus, and then after a while I was able to access things. Don't know if it was because of BD.

They have indeed released this quite quietly though, haven't read anywhere on the internet about it yet. Would be interesting to see how it is received.

eyeb · 24. Dec 2012, 07:24 PM

i havent noticed it checking browser like avant's internet shield. I could visit known sites and nothing flagged. Not a big deal for me since i'm aware of what i visit but might be something to note for new users

also noticed that once you login at least with google, even logging out if you open window again and pressed login it does so without asking for password. It seems to remember the cookie for it, not the best method for a security software to be using cookies.

24. Dec 2012, 09:26 AM	#1 (permalink)
Anupam Super Moderator Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: India Posts: 15,275	BitDefender Antivirus Free Edition mjt328 posted about BitDefender Antivirus Free Edition in this comment on the main site : http://www.techsupportalert.com/best...comment-103915 The product page is here : http://www.bitdefender.com/solutions/free.html This is a great news for the free antivirus scenario IMO. BitDefender have improved greatly in the last few years, and their detection and removal capabilities have been showing great results in different tests. So, a free antivirus from them should be a great alternative. They did offer a free version earlier too, but that did not have real time scanning... but this one does. I was in need of a lightweight antivirus for my old PC, and so I will be downloading this, and installing it on my PC. Will post here about how it goes. I have downloaded the setup, and looking by the file size, it seems to be an online installer. Something I hate, but well, will have to put up with it. __________________ Anupam

24. Dec 2012, 10:31 AM	#2 (permalink)
Anupam Super Moderator Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: India Posts: 15,275	OK, I installed it on my system. No problems till now, and seems to be working good... seems lightweight too, with very little delay in opening folder with exe files. Will have to see though how it behaves when I open my pen drive. When I ran the setup, it downloads a setup file, of 8.25 MB, which in turn downloads the application files further. I found this a bit strange. Anyways, before the start of the installation, it shows a checkbox for sending anonymous usage, which I deselected. There is also an option to select for a quick scan after installation, which I selected. When the application files were downloaded upto 93-94%, the quick scan started and both proceeded simultaneously. The installation was smooth and without trouble, and the interface is pleasant. There was no restart required after installation. Immediately after installation, the antivirus starts to update the definitions, and it took sometime for that. In terms of interface and settings, I am disappointed. There is absolutely no settings, or customization offered, which is quite strange. The interface is just a single rectangular small black box, showing the real time virus shield active, and also the auto scan, which automatically scans PC when system is idle. I turned that off. Other than that, no settings are offered. Also, it seems that an account on BitDefender has to be created, which is a sort of a registration. If an account is not created, the product will expire after a month. I created an account, which is free, and there are services offered like Facebook/Twitter account protection, Safebox, and Parental controls, etc. Safebox is under maintenance at the moment. So, that's it. All seems well for now. I hope that the detection rate of the free edition, and its removal capabilities are as good as the commercial version of the program. Guess we will know when someone tests this product out. Will see how it behaves on my system. Will post any further updates. __________________ Anupam

24. Dec 2012, 02:49 PM	#5 (permalink)
Anupam Super Moderator Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: India Posts: 15,275	That's odd... it does not say that on the link that I have posted in my first post. I have been careful enough to look for that, because I remember that BitDefender did have a free antivirus earlier without any real-time scan. But, this one indeed has a real time scan. In fact, on the page that I linked to, under the "What makes us the best?" heading, and under "Efficient" sub-heading, it mentions "Real-time Shied", and "Active Virus Control". Also, I have it installed and it sits in the system tray, showing BitDefender is active, and also shows the file being scanned currently, when I click to show it's UI. Maybe you are somehow getting an older page of the product? __________________ Anupam

24. Dec 2012, 07:13 PM	#9 (permalink)
Anupam Super Moderator Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: India Posts: 15,275	Yea, suspected that you might be getting to another page. Well, don't know why it's doing that... opens fine here in India. Maybe you can try opening the page from Google, or by using a proxy site. The lack of settings are a bit annoying, yeah... there is no control over the software as such. Don't know how it will handle a malware, will it do by itself, or will prompt for an action. I am not too sure about that myself. Well, I was doing fine without an antivirus, but atleast I have one now for peace of my mind. Don't have the knowledge to test it with a virus. Sometimes, it churns up the disk a lot though, and I think its update process starts using CPU a lot. I suspect its HTTP detection might be interfering with my internet and router, as I was not able to access the internet for a while, and was not even to able to login to the router. I exited the antivirus, and then after a while I was able to access things. Don't know if it was because of BD. They have indeed released this quite quietly though, haven't read anywhere on the internet about it yet. Would be interesting to see how it is received. __________________ Anupam

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24. Dec 2012, 02:11 PM	#3 (permalink)
eyeb Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Planet X Posts: 882	I'll try this out for a while as well, I've been getting tired of avast for a while and been looking for another one. I don't like the lack of settings but considering how MSE with it's lack of settings seem to do well, I'll let it go while I test this out

24. Dec 2012, 02:22 PM	#4 (permalink)
Sope Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Wales, UK Posts: 1,174	Oddly, on the Bitdefender webpage you link to it says :- "This free antivirus software download is an on-demand virus scanner, which is best used in a system recovery or forensics role. If you are on an "always-on" Internet connection, we strongly advise you to consider using a more complex antivirus solution." Which, on the face of it, sounds to me like it offers no real-time protection.

24. Dec 2012, 05:11 PM	#6 (permalink)
mjt328 Member Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 1	BitDefender does have an on demand-only scanner that comes with plugins for Firefox and Chrome (possibly other browsers) ... the the free edition mentioned here is indeed a full-time, active scan av product.

24. Dec 2012, 05:22 PM	#7 (permalink)
eyeb Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Planet X Posts: 882	one thing that I find annoying is that I cant manually update it, and I don't know how long between updates it waits it has real time scanning, you can open the shield and see what it scanned last. Problem is that I'm not sure if it really warns you if it finds something. I can't find a virus test file that it recognizes... and I cant find any real viruses to test it with (not that I'm trying harder than googling virus test file)

24. Dec 2012, 05:22 PM	#8 (permalink)
Sope Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Wales, UK Posts: 1,174	I've had another look at the link and it appears that the Bitdefender(com) website is automatically redirecting me to the UK version of the webpage at Bitdefender(co_uk). So it seems that the version you have is not being made available to UK based users, or at least not for now .

24. Dec 2012, 07:24 PM	#10 (permalink)
eyeb Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Planet X Posts: 882	i havent noticed it checking browser like avant's internet shield. I could visit known sites and nothing flagged. Not a big deal for me since i'm aware of what i visit but might be something to note for new users also noticed that once you login at least with google, even logging out if you open window again and pressed login it does so without asking for password. It seems to remember the cookie for it, not the best method for a security software to be using cookies.