My opinion of Microsoft Windows Defender.

One question I get asked quite a bit when people ask me to help them pick out a new computer is if they should get antivirus software. When I get to the heart of the question, more often then not, they mean to ask if they should leave protection to Windows Defender. This post will attempt to answer that question for some of my readers who may be wondering the same thing.

But first, a little history.

Windows Defender was originally an anti-spyware tool included in Windows 7 and to a lesser extent, Windows Vista. By the time Windows 7 was released, Microsoft had come up with a new antimalware offering known as Microsoft Security Essentials. Microsoft had delved into antimalware products before with Windows Live OneCare, but MSE was meant to be a successor to Windows Live OneCare. With the release of Windows 8, Microsoft bundled the antimalware protection in MSE into Windows Defender.

The reactions to Microsoft coming up with its own antimalware product were mixed. Some AV vendors dismissed it as a competitor, while others welcomed it.

Now for testing. Does Windows Defender match up against other antivirus software?

According to Independent testing done by AV-Test, the answer to that question is no.

Throughout it's life as Microsoft Security Essentials, and then Windows Defender, the product has never done well.

Don't believe me? Take a look:

http://www.av-test.org/en/tests/home-user/windows-8/janfeb-2013/

http://www.av-test.org/en/tests/home-user/windows-7/novdec-2012/

http://www.av-test.org/en/tests/home-user/windows-vista/quarter-42010/

The tests results are clear. While Windows Defender gets top marks for usability, It does poorly in actual detection. This can be somewhat expected, even Microsoft has admitted at one point that it is basic protection.

But because Windows Defender is automatically protecting your computer from the first time you turn on a Windows 8 PC, there are less infections overall. While the product might not be the best at detecting, it's better then nothing. And this is considering that those who know very little about computers usually have no protection at all.

So while I consider Windows Defender to be bad at its job, it is something that is automatically on without user intervention. If it could detect and remove more malware, I might even call it something that is playing a key role in combating malware by automatically protecting thousands of new PCs.

So overall, there are better options out there that are still free, but I can see Windows Defender having some promise.

Thanks for reading. I invite readers to comment with any questions or comments.