6 Major Limitations Of Getting Antivirus Free Download for PC

Do you know the main disadvantages of getting antivirus free download for PC? Read the post to understand, Why Free Antivirus Software is bad?

Antivirus is the software program that secures your PC, laptop, smartphones and tablets from all kind of malware and hacks. Antivirus free download for PC is an antivirus program that varies just as much as paid security programs do in the quality of their protection.

A newbie computer user on the hunt for no-cost antivirus software has tons of options when it comes to choosing a good quality antivirus free download for their PC. Some of the top names in free antivirus free download are Alwil (Avast), AVG, Avira, Comodo, and PC Tools.

Before going for any antivirus freeware, you must keep in mind that majority of free antivirus are really not up to the mark.

In this post, I have tried to figure out the points that you should be aware of the reasons why you should not get the free antivirus download for PC.

Let’s get into the details!

Top 6 Reasons For Not To Go With Antivirus Software Free Download

antivirus-free-download-for-pc

1. Free Isn’t Always Good

There is no denying the fact that free antivirus programs give you some value, but they are no match for a paid security application.

The biggest setback when you go even for antivirus free download full version, there is no one to call if things go haywire. In case someone sneaks past your defenses, you hardly have help or so to say calling 911.

Most of the antivirus free download for PC apps gives support only on online forums, though some offer e-mail support too. For those who do everything themselves, there are certain helpful sites or forums where you can ask for support.

There is a high probability that there is no one to hear you at these online sites and forums with the problems you are facing with your Antivirus Software Free Download.

You may have to bribe a techie friend in helping you out with your so called best free Antivirus.

2. Malware Attacks

We’ve seen over a period of time that free apps generally have less-frequent malware signature updates. This ratio is very less if you compare it with paid Antivirus services. 

The biggest disadvantage with antivirus free download for PC is that they can leave a window of opportunity for brand-new villains to evade detection.

Most of the antivirus software free download apps that we used updated their signature databases only once daily. Even the antivirus free download full version fails to check the suspicious samples that don’t match a particular installed signature.

The primary reason for this is because they are hardly updated by running the sample against latest online signatures. The online antivirus software free download for PC, Laptops, Mobile, and Tablets will not work if you don’t have an Internet connection. They simply fall back on local caches.

The online antivirus software free download for PC, Laptops, Mobile, and Tablets will not work if you don’t have an Internet connection. They simply fall back on local caches.

3. Limited Detection Techniques

There are many ways of detecting a virus. But one of the biggest disadvantages while using antivirus software free download is that they may not employ all detection techniques.

According to studies virus scanners are the most common method of detecting any virus. What a virus can do is that it simply searches your computer for known virus code patterns.

But there is an inherent hidden weakness here. Antivirus free download for PC scans can either give a false alarm if a pattern code happens to match part of a normal file’s code.

The gravest and worst case scenario could be that it might not detect the code of a new virus at all. If something like this happens there are hardly any chances for you to manage it as most of the freeware antivirus program’s databases are not periodically updated.

4. No Supplemental Techniques

Antivirus also detect the changes made in files, especially executable (*.exe) files. 

However, the antivirus software free download sometimes can only detect changes if it already has information on what your computer’s files and operating system are supposed to be like.

In other words, there is a possibility that viruses already on your computer before installation of an antivirus program won’t be visible.

The best antivirus software uses both described techniques and supplements them with verifiers and heuristic analysis. This remains absent if you are going for Antivirus Free Download for PC or any other digital device.

A verifier program gives an in-depth analysis of any detected virus code, to ascertain if it is a virus. A heuristic analysis, on the other hand, will detect or confirm the existence of viruses by looking for symptoms or characteristics of virus behavior on your computer.

Free Antivirus lacks these supplemental techniques and as such a virus may escape detection.

5. Simply Not Enough

Having an antivirus program with multi-detection methods is simply not enough. To avoid viruses, you may have to think of putting up an Internet firewall as well.

A firewall is usually a program that blocks the hackers, viruses, and spyware on the Internet from getting into your computer. Getting a custom made firewall may lead to incurring additional charges.

These additional costs may also be in the form of hardware like a router to reinforce the firewall, especially if you use more than one personal computer to access the Internet, or have a small network of computers.

6. Slows Down PC 

Installing and running antivirus free download full version can use up a lot of your computer memory and hard disk space. This creates a huge problem by slowing down your PC.

This is even true for protecting servers and a network of the system from computer virus. Depending on how a company’s management information system or the information technology (IT) personnel set up antivirus scanning and protection, the process of scanning may cause lag in the network service for individual employee-users.

Final Words

So, we come to the final words on why antivirus free download for PC is simply not enough. A free Antivirus is an average choice if you are a newbie, but as you move up the ladder, this will not cater to your needs completely.

The disadvantages of antivirus software free download outnumber the advantages by quite some length. There is saying “not everything free is good,” this applies to Free Antivirus as well.

I would strongly recommend you to have a close look and the go for a premium antivirus software to safeguard the valuable data on your PC

You may discuss with me about the antivirus program that you’re using on your PC and how it protects your personal computer from viruses and other malware. 

Leave a Comment