Expert Rating
Benefits
- Excellent protection against viruses
- Complete web protection
Our verdict
For just £2 a month you get what seems like an extraordinary amount of money. Good virus protection, theft protection, a VPN and web protection. However, the VPN has limited data, so you may need a more expensive separate subscription.
Price when reviewed
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Best price today
To use Bitdefender Mobile Security you’ll have to pay £2 per month, but you can get a discounted rate of just over £1 per month for the first year. And if you have a cross-platform license with Bitdefender, this Android app is included.
But make sure you don’t have Antivirus Plus or Internet Security. These versions do not include Mac, iOS and this Android solution, they are only compatible with Windows.
If you opt for Total Security at £39.50 for the first year (that’s 50% off), that includes five devices across Windows, Mac, Android and iOS. That price is listed in the app, but oddly enough, it’s £44.99 on the web, down from £79.99.
If you want to test the product before buying it, you can get a free full version valid for 14 days. The only requirement is to create an account on Bitdefender.
Protection against malicious apps is slightly better than Google Play Protect. According to AV-Test, it protects against all attempts to infect your mobile phone with known malicious apps.
Google’s solution also allows you to control so-called real-time threats, i.e. undetected malicious applications, which Google’s solution sometimes lets through. This is a good idea if you are used to installing applications from less protected sources, such as downloaded apk files.
Removes suspicious links
In addition to good app protection, web protection is included for most mobile browsers, including Chrome, Edge, Opera, Samsung Browser, and Brave. You’re also protected from fraudulent links in text messages, Whatsapp, Messenger, Discord, and Telegram chat apps, and emails.
During my test with Bitdefender on my mobile phone, I received a fraudulent SMS from a fake sender from “Postnord” who wanted to redirect me to a dubious site with a suspicious URL. Bitdefender agreed and did not let me blindly click on it.
The app also selects which apps you can biometrically lock or PIN lock. This ensures that no one can open apps that aren’t allowed, including other apps. It’s an extra layer of security if you’ve left your phone unlocked.
Good theft protection, minimal VPN
You benefit from anti-theft protection that can be activated via a web interface. It allows you to locate your phone by IP and GPS, lock it in case of loss, take a photo to see if you can see who the thief is or even activate an alarm.
You should even be able to wipe your phone remotely, if keeping sensitive data on your device out of the hands of unauthorized people is more important than recovering it.
You get a bare-bones VPN with no location selector, limited to 200MB per day. Just enough to securely and anonymously read emails and bank. But not for streaming videos, for example. You’ll need to get Bitdefender’s separate VPN app and subscription.
The interface is simple, and Bitdefender’s Autopilot feature, which constantly provides you with sensible recommendations, makes it easy to use. Some features and settings are easier to find than others, but none are particularly hidden.
Specifications
- Application Control
- Anti-theft
- Navigation protection
- VPN
- Wi-Fi Control
- Identity monitoring
- Android 5
This article was originally published in our sister publication PC för Alla and has been translated and adapted from Swedish.
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