Malware today are created to steal or make money by cashing in on spreading an infection into a system. Ransomware and data stealing malware are as common as bots. It is not necessary that hackers who upload malware onto computers will get caught. However, it is certainly important to install an antivirus that is powerful. It can also stop ransomware from encrypting the files, stop banking Trojans from stealing money, and generally protect the system against various malicious software.

There are many options for good antivirus software available in the market today., most of which can handle almost all types of viruses. For efficient malware, any of the products mentioned below will do the job. They are all traditional, full scale, and they scan files, on schedule or on-demand. Listed below are the best and must-have features that your antivirus should have in today’s day and age:

Multilayered protection

• Antivirus products now exceed the limits of just scanning–they give real-time protection. The antivirus rates the URLs you visit by color coding them into red, yellow, and green colors. Many antiviruses work to actively block you from malware hosting URL or phishing pages.
• The antivirus software can have flaws that may affect your security. Clever users keep Windows and other programs patched up; as soon as the flaw is detected, it is fixed. Vulnerability scan verifies that it contains all the patches required to update the antivirus and also apply the missing patches.
• Spyware is found in many forms: from hidden programs that log into every keystroke to Trojans that hide as valid programs and mine your personal data. An antivirus can handle many types of malware and spyware, including special components devoted for spyware protection.
• An antivirus detects and identifies the bad programs and eliminates them, leaving the good programs safe. Unknown programs that it cannot identify can be determined with the help and assistance of behavior-based detection. It will protect you against malware that the new researchers may have not encountered.
• Another feature that antiviruses today have is allowing users to whitelist programs. A whitelist program allows only the known, good programs to run but does not allow full access to the program. This mode does not suit all types of situations. Unknowns are banned, which does not suit everyone. The various levels in the security adds to enhance the security against malware.

Firewalls and more

• Firewalls and spam filtering are not common antivirus features. In fact, many top products list them as bonus features. So, make sure that the package you get is getting you good spam filtering and a strong firewall.
• You will also find security for financial transactions, deletion of sensitive files, cleaning the traces of browsing history, credit monitoring, vulnerability scanning, virtual keyboard, whitelisting, cross-platform protection, sandboxing, foil keyloggers and more. Products enhance their protection by updating the software continuously.
• Many antivirus products today are adding modules to specifically protect systems, data and networks from ransomware. They also prevent unauthorized access and changes to protected files. They also keep a watch on suspicious behavior indicating malware. Some aim to reverse this damage as well.

Best antiviruses of 2018
You have a wealth of antivirus options to choose from. At the top of the list sits Kaspersky Antivirus, which earns top scores in almost all of the newest independent lab tests, with Bitdefender Antivirus Plus coming a very, very close second. Norton Antivirus Basic also scored very well, outscoring most products except Webroot. If you’re interested in McAfee, then one can get a single subscription to be able to install across all devices.