The short answer is Yes!
But before we delve into why you do need anti-virus on Windows 10, we thought a rundown of differences between viruses and malware would help. Viruses, in short, infect the files on your computer. Malware is software designed to obtain vital information from your computer causing a slow down.
If you’ve been researching this topic to help decide whether you need anti-virus for Windows 10, you have probably come across articles on Windows Defender. Windows Defender is a malware protection software that was first introduced in Windows Vista. It’s designed to detect and eliminate viruses, malware and spyware.
Alone, it’s not enough relying on Windows Defender to protect your computer against everything and anything that may infect it.
Here’s why..
No matter how cautious you believe you are when browsing, opening emails or downloading from reputable sources, you need an anti-virus. Windows Defender is really only designed to pickup recognised widespread high-risk malware, whereas malware which isn’t known to Windows yet won’t be identified by Windows.
From our experience here at Forerunner, those not using anti-virus leave themselves vulnerable. At some point or another computers without anti-virus end up getting infected. If you rely on Windows Defender as an anti-virus, you should be aware that it can take Microsoft months to release updates for Windows designed to block particular viruses. Sometimes updates may not be released until the next service pack upgrade.
Why we recommend a paid anti-virus solution like Trend Micro:
Research shows that having a free anti-virus program is better than not having one at all. However, in saying this, having a paid version of anti-virus protection is best, due to the fact that these companies have large specialised teams of people getting paid to constantly improve anti-virus software by tracking the latest viruses and trends lurking around every day.
Windows Defender should only be relied upon when used in conjunction with an anti-malware program. It’s also worth knowing that an anti-virus solution will block or quarantine (move/ separate files from infecting your computer further), whereas a good anti-malware solution will stop particularly damaging software from making its way into your laptop or PC initially.
If you do go down the path of using an anti-malware software, we don’t recommend running running the two at the same time as an anti-virus as the two will interfere with each other, causing a slowdown on your computer. If you do wish to run an anti-virus and anti-malware solution on your computer, consult us to assist you with the installation, as each anti-virus is quite different in terms of features and settings.
