IObit Malware Fighter

If there’s one thing most of us agree on is that an antivirus protection is vital especially nowadays when so many malware and virus out there threaten to disrupt both our security, privacy, as well as our daily activities.

Thankfully, there are a plethora of top-notch antivirus solutions out there, and we’re sure you’ve heard about most of them. The main disadvantage of these solutions is their pricing, as most of them cost a lot, despite the fact that their Free versions offer a decent array of features.

IObit Malware Fighter, now in its eight big development cycle, has always been regarded as a decent alternative to other, more expensive security solutions. Even though the value for money is one its main selling points (with its Pro version), the security solution does not fall particularly short when it comes to antivirus capabilities.

For starters, it’s worth noting that IObit Malware Fighter boasts 2 antivirus engines, one developed and maintained in-house by the company, and the other from Bitdefender (if you opt for the Pro version). This alone makes the software particularly adept at both preventing attacks or infections, and keeping all your data and your privacy as safe as possible.

Before getting into more detail, it’s worth noting that IObit Malware Fighter looks and feels like a modern app should. It has two GUI themes (Classic and Readable) both with customizable font sizes and transparency effects.

Even though the app bundles a lot of useful features, learning to use the app is quite straightforward and does not require much in terms of know-how. All the app’s features are organized in 5 main sections (excluding the Settings section): Home, Scan, Data Protect, Browser Protect, and Security Guard.

The app offers you 3 scan methods: Smart Scan (the standard way to check your computer – looks at active processes, registry and key files, etc.), Full Scan (thoroughly scans all the areas of your computer’s storage units), and Custom Scan (allows you to drag and drop any file or directory to scan them directly).

One of the first and most interesting features is something called Safe Box. It basically restricts access (via a password) and it keeps a close eye on files and folders that contain sensitive data. This can be considered a second layer of protection behind the base anti-ransomware engine that takes ensures that your privacy is untouched.

A lot of attention is given to your online privacy and the Browser Protect section only further emphasizes that. It bundles components such as Homepage Advisor, Anti-Tracking (available in the Pro version), Download Protection, DNS protect, a Plugin/Toolbar Cleaner, and something called Surfing Protection & Ads Removal.

The Security Guard is the place where you can heavily customize how the app’s real-time protection engine works. Anything from network guards, to file, startup, and process guards can be called to action, alongside other nifty protection features such as MBR Guard, Camera Guard, USB Disk Guard, and Malicios Actions. Of course, for these last 4 features you’ll need to upgrade to the Pro edition.

Some of the most noteworthy improvements in the latest iteration of the app include a new and advanced heuristics engine that is more capable of detecting viruses and other types of online threats, an improved “Fast Scan” feature (almost 50% faster than the previous versions), a new email protection module, and bespoke extensions for ad blocking for Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer, and Edge browsers.

IObit Malware Fighter is sharp looking and feature-packed security solution that offers users of all type a valid alternative to more powerful (and more expensive) antivirus solutions out there. Even though it can’t really go head-to-head with its competitors in some regards (yet), the product is definitely worth checking out as IObit has never stopped improving the product in meaningful ways up until this point.