It has no main window, just a tiny pop-up invoked by clicking its icon in the menu bar at the top. The Mac takes miniaturization to another level entirely. With Sophos Home Premium on Windows, you see the local antivirus agent as if it were a program all its own, but all logging and configuration happen online. The antivirus was ready to use, including all the latest signature updates, within a minute or two. I was able to install Sophos in a flash on the MacBook Air I use for testing. It’s quite a different setup from most antivirus utilities. You can even launch a scan of the remote computer if necessary. They simply don’t have access to the controls. They can’t turn off the antivirus just because they suspect it slows down game performance or makes their videos laggy. Since all configuration happens in this online dashboard, your friends and family members can’t mess up their antivirus installation. Likewise, Safe Online Banking is strictly for Windows users. That feature doesn't appear in the macOS edition. If the reputation is bad, Sophos offers to kill the download. It looks up each download in an online reputation database that considers the source website, content, and feedback from other protected computers. On Windows devices, this feature works to double-check files that the regular real-time protection system doesn't identify as malware. One interesting item missing on the Mac is the feature called Download Reputation. A few other scattered features, such as AMSI Protection, are specific to the Windows edition.

Windows users see another page called Exploits, but all features on that page are Windows-only. I’ll discuss Ransomware Protection below. The Web tab (also reached by clicking Web Protection on the Status tab) similarly contains settings that you shouldn’t turn off. The one exception is the scheduler-if you like, you can set Sophos to run a full antivirus scan on selected days of the week.

Most users shouldn’t touch the controls on this page, as doing so would turn off various protective features. You can also reach the General tab by clicking Antivirus Protection on the Status tab. This tab has three sub-tabs: General, Ransomware, and Web. That leaves the Protection tab, the place where everything happens. Finally, Web Filtering lets you configure the parental control system, which I’ll discuss later. The History page displays a list of everything Sophos has done to protect you, with an option to filter on different event types. Clicking on any panel jumps to the appropriate page of the Protection tab. If all the panels are green, you’re good to go. The Status page features four large panels representing protective components: Antivirus Protection, Web Protection, Ransomware Protection, and Malicious Traffic Detection. When you select a device, you get a page with four tabs: Status, History, Protection, and Web Filtering. And if you send that email link to a compadre, the new installation is automatically linked to your management account. You can share a link via email or install Sophos on the current device. The Dashboard displays your protected devices and offers two ways to extend your protection. Now, you can remotely take care of their security problems without ever leaving your desk-or your beach chair. If you find yourself handling security for your whole extended family, this can be a blessing. From the dashboard, you can see all your protected devices (up to 10) and easily extend protection to a new Mac or PC. With Sophos Home, you manage configuration settings and view activity logs in an online dashboard. Managing Sophos Home Premium Via Its Online Dashboard That's impressive, but ProtectWorks AntiVirus goes even further, with support for Snow Leopard (10.6) and later. Intego Mac Internet Security X9 is compatible with versions back to Mavericks (10.9). If you're stuck using an old Mac that can't handle the latest updates, you still have options. For those lagging just a little, Sophos supports macOS versions from Big Sur to the latest, as do ESET and F-Secure Internet Security. Yes, you pay more for Norton, but you also get quite a bit more.Īpple makes macOS updates smooth and simple, so most Mac users migrate to the latest as soon as it's available or as soon as they’re confident in the new release. Your subscription also gets you five cross-platform VPN licenses, as well as 50GB of online storage for your (Windows) backups. Norton 360 is a full-blown security suite on Windows and goes well beyond basic antivirus on macOS it supports iOS and Android as well. But Sophos outdoes all those mentioned here, offering to protect 10 devices, PC or Mac, for the same $59.99.Īt $119.99 per year for five licenses, Norton 360 Deluxe looks way more expensive than Sophos-twice the price for half as many devices. ESET Cyber Security is a bit more generous that same $59.99 per year covers five Macs.

Sophos home premium avis