The 9 best free antiviruses for mobile

There are those who install antivirus everywhere and those who haven’t touched it for years. If you are part of the first group, we have selected the best 9 Free Antiviruses Available on Android Today. All, renowned antiviruses.

First, we will think about whether or not you need to install an antivirus on your mobile, then we will show you a list of the best ones, including some options that they don’t need you to install anything such as Google Play Protect or web antivirus, to scan specific files.

Do you really need an antivirus?

This is the question of the decade. Now that the root is down, Android apps are much more limited in what they can and cannot do., including typical malware behaviors, like stealing data, spreading to other devices, or all kinds of mischief. It is common to draw parallels between Windows and mobile antiviruses, although they are two completely different systems.

However, Android is far from being a perfect system or invulnerable to threats. More often than we would like, we receive news of malware detected inside and outside the Google store, proving that in Google’s constant war against malware, some battles are being won and others are lost. Is it recommended, then, to install an antivirus on your mobile?

The short answer is yes, but with one important nuance: Android phones They already have a built-in antivirus, Google Play Protect. Play Protect serves as a line of defense against known malware and performs the basic protection tasks of an antivirus: scanning apps and telling you if any of them are malware. If so, it will show you a notice before installing it or prompt you to uninstall it if it is already on the system.

Although Google Play Protect is a lightweight option, third-party antiviruses offer a more complete suite of tools, adding to the analysis of phishing links, identity protection tools or the possibility of talking to someone in case of problems, which is not in Google Play Protect. According to the creators of antiviruses themselves, they are a plus in security compared to Play Protect.

Some users will prefer a full suite of security tools, while others will be satisfied with the lighter Google Play Protect or selective scanning of suspicious files, like APK, with specialized sites like VirusTotal. Is antivirus necessary on Android? Yes, although this does not necessarily mean installing one, but it is enough to activate Play Protect.

The best antivirus for Android

Taking the above into account, we have created a list with the leading free antivirus for Android available today. We’ll consider the free versions of each, and most of them have professional or subscription versions that add more features.

Google Play Protection

Google Play Protect is the default Android antivirus. It’s found pre-installed on all phones including Google Playbecome the default security tool for millions of mobile phones.

The best thing about Google Play Protect is that does its job without disturbing you. You won’t see pop-ups, warnings that “your phone is in danger” or threats that really aren’t that threatening, like in other, more complex antiviruses. Basically, Google Play Protect only makes itself known when it detects a threat on the mobile. To access it, you must go to the Google Play menu ☰ and enter Play Protect.

Avast

Avast is one of the best-known names in the antivirus scene, with over 25 years of experience. These are Android phones under the name Avast Mobile Security, a suite of tools ranging from the classic scanner to phishing protection, anti-theft protection, or VPN connection for additional security, although many of these additional tools are premium features.

Avast warns you both about dangerous applications (installed or in APK form), as well as options active on the mobile which could be exploited, such as USB debugging. The free version contains ads and includes basic versions of Anti-Theft Tools, Photo Vault or Wi-Fi Security Scene.

AVG Antivirus

Avast purchased AVG in 2016, so it’s no surprise that the mobile versions of the two antiviruses are virtually identical, if you ignore the icon and name. Yet, AVG has the same advantages as Avastthe only difference being the color of the interface.

You therefore have a classic scanner for files and applications installed on your mobilea junk cleaner, Wi-Fi network scanning, and limited versions of other features available in the premium version.

Kaspersky

Kaspersky is another antivirus heavyweight that made the leap many years ago from PC to mobile. The mobile version of Kaspersky do an analysis of your mobileas in its version for Windows, in addition to including a series of additional tools, some of which are available for free.

A positive point of the Kaspersky application is that its interface can be both very simple, displaying the scan percentage, and showing the details of everything it does. Also included is a call filter and anti-theft protection for mobile.

Avira

Avira is another well-known name in the antivirus scene, being a company founded 35 years ago. The Android version allows you to check the security of your mobile in two ways: with one button and that’s it (the intelligent analysis) or with different types of analyzes focused on security, privacy or performance.

In addition to the classic analysis of applications you have installed, Avira includes a good set of additional tools in the free version, such as identity protection, call blocking, anti-theft protection or network analyzer.

Bitdefender

The free version of BitDefender for Android allows you scan all files on your mobile and apps you have installed to scan for unwanted malware. This scan takes some time, depending on the power of your phone and the number of apps you have installed.

The main difference between BitDefender and most antiviruses for Android is that it is an old-fashioned antivirus and that’s it, without tools, RAM cleaners or other distractions. It is therefore a good option for who wants to analyze viruses and nothing else.

Malwarebytes

Malwarebytes is another malware search engine for Windows that has made the jump to mobile phones. Its malware scanning tool is available on Android, deeply scan all the apps you have installedand have a good time doing it.

In addition to monitoring malicious applications, it warns you of system settings that could be exploited (like USB debugging) and can run a privacy checkwhich shows you a summary of what the apps you have installed have access to.

McAfee

The mobile version of McAfee Analyze all files on your mobile and applications installed to look for malware and applications that potentially don’t interest you. As in the previous cases, the free version includes only part of the available tools.

As a free user you also have the anti-theft protectionanalysis of the security – or not – of the Wi-Fi network to which you are connected and some typical powerful tools such as a storage cleaner or a memory cleaner.

Web antivirus like Virustotal

If none of the solutions above convince you, or you simply prefer a more passive solution, you can always use a web antivirus to scan APK files before installing them. Most web antiviruses are adapted so that you can use them from your mobile. Here are a few:

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