The need for an effective antivirus agent is at its prime amidst the rising cybersecurity threats. These threats continuously evolve to keep up with the advancement in antivirus security. Two of the market’s robust antivirus agents are Norton and Webroot. These powerful agents are highly effective against viruses, malware and other malicious factors. In this article, we put Norton vs Webroot to compare their features, protection level, pricing and after-purchase customer support to give you a winner.
What are Webroot and Norton Antivirus?
We begin with a brief introduction to each antivirus agent to understand what they are and a quick summary of their features and services to help you determine the best antivirus software.
Understanding Webroot Antivirus Software
Webroot antivirus is an efficient software that protects your computer from various online threats. Webroot regularly monitors your system to detect any malicious factors, malware, or viruses and takes swift action to eliminate them. Webroot’s real-time threat intelligence works on constantly updating virus definitions to detect arising threats effectively. Its minimal impact on system performance makes it suitable for personal and business use. Other useful Webroot features include a password manager and a secure browsing tool.
Insight into Norton Antivirus Software
Norton antivirus is a comprehensive and trusted software that detects and eliminates viruses, malware, spyware and ransomware. Its powerful features include real-time threat protection, proactive exploit protection and automatic updates. The software’s user-friendly interface is clean and intuitive, helping you easily customise your security settings and preferences. Norton is a highly efficient antivirus software with a low impact on your system performance, password manager, secure VPN and parental controls. It is a suitable choice for individuals, enterprises and families.
Norton vs Webroot: A Malware Protection Comparison
An overall review of Norton and Webroot shows us the latter’s fast scanning abilities and minimal system impact and the former’s extensive features, such as a firewall and phishing protection. So, we’ll shed more light on each software’s features.
Webroot Antivirus: What Does It Offer in 2023?
Webroot is a comprehensive antivirus agent that offers solid real-time protection and threat intelligence to detect and eliminate online threats such as viruses and malware. The cloud-based protection feature enhances the agent’s protection level. Webroot provides identity theft protection, a firewall, fast scanning and low system impact.
Webroot’s Malware Protection and Firewall
Webroot offers advanced malware detection technology that regularly scans your computer in real-time to spot and stop potential threats. The software also frequently scans your system to detect potentially harmful or malicious software. With its robust firewall, Webroot allows you to browse the internet securely without fear of malicious incoming or outgoing connections. Whether you’re using your computer for personal or business purposes, your data will be safe with Webroot.
Ease of Use, Installation and Impact on System Performance of Webroot
Webroot has a quick and straightforward installation process, saving time and preventing frustration. The intuitive Webroot interface facilitates navigation and helps you find desirable tasks easily, which is helpful for inexperienced users. Some might find the Webroot green interface a bit unusual while it is inviting to others. On the left part of the screen, you have a white and light grey rectangle that declares the security status of your system. On the right side are numerous tasks and customisations, including PC Security, Identity Protection, and Utilities.
Impact on System Performance and Customer Support
Webroot doesn’t affect system impact significantly, which is one of its top features. The antivirus software only uses 25% of the system resources as it runs in the background. Quick and full system scans are contradictory; the quick scan finishes in seconds, while the full scan might last more than an hour. Despite Webroot scoring a near-perfect score of 5.5/6 in the Av-Test independent evaluations, the software only undergoes extensive independent testing occasionally, which makes data available regarding its protection scarce.
If we look into the customer support method Webroot provides its users, we find the online forum, FAQs section, social media platforms and a chatbot for sales questions on its website. We also found that the USA, Australia and Europe enjoy support lines.
Webroot’s Internet Security Plus and Other Offerings
Webroot Internet Security Plus is a paid version of Webroot that offers advanced protection features against malware, identity theft and phishing attacks, besides real-time threat intelligence and automatic updates. Other Webroot products include Webroot Internet Security Complete, Webroot Business Endpoint Protection and Webroot DNS Protection. All these security agents offer varying cybersecurity options for personal and enterprise use, with features such as secure browsing and firewall protection.
Independent Testing and Review of Webroot Antivirus
Webroot is an effective security solution, but its real-time protection is better than its background protection. In independent lab tests, such as Av-Test and Av-Comparatives, Webroot scored average results in the Protection category and near-perfect results in the Performance and Usability categories. The results show that Webroot has low system impact, emphasising its lightweight design, making it a preferred choice for users who prioritise system performance.
Comparison with Other Leading Antivirus Solutions
When compared to other leading antivirus software, Webroot scores average results. If we compare Webroot to Avast, the latter beats the former in the scope of its features, speedy installation process, efficiency of its malware protection and effect on system performance. Another comparison with a cybersecurity giant is Webroot vs McAfee; we find several similar features between the two. However, McAfee’s comprehensive and expansive scope of protection suits large enterprises best, while Webroot works best for individuals.
If we put Webroot against Bitdefender, we find that Webroot is a mid-range antivirus software compared to Bitdefender. Bitdefender offers more features, is more efficient, detects more threats than Webroot, has better customer support methods, and gives better value for money. At the same time, Webroot merely wins in the impact on system performance category.
Norton Antivirus and Norton 360: Understanding the Features
The main Norton antivirus package is the Plus package, which gives you the choice between protecting one or five devices and decides the price accordingly. You’ll get adequate protection against viruses, malware, ransomware and hacking, a 100% virus protection promise, 2BG of cloud backup and a password manager.
Norton 360 and Its Security Features
There are six Norton 360 antivirus agents: Norton 360 Standard, Norton 360 Deluxe, Norton 360 for Gamers, Norton 360 Select with LifeLock, Norton 360 Advantage with LifeLock and Norton Ultimate Plus with LifeLock. The first package offers to protect three devices with solid protection against threats, a password manager, a secure VPN, Dark Web monitoring and 2GB cloud backup. The second agent, Norton Deluxe, provides the same services besides a privacy monitor and parental controls for five devices and offers 50GB cloud backup.
Norton for Gamers is a powerful optimisation tool that frees as many system recourses as possible and reallocates them to your game for the ultimate gamer experience. The fourth Norton 360, Norton Select with LifeLock package, includes all the features mentioned above for ten devices and 250GB of cloud storage; it adds the LifeLock feature to protect against identity theft, stolen wallet protection, SSN and credit alerts and reimbursement up to $25,000 stolen funds.
Norton Advantage with LifeLock adds to the previous features of identity lock, bank and credit card activity alert, buy-now-pay-later fraud monitoring, and reimbursement of up to $100,000 in stolen funds. The last package, Norton Ultimate Plus with LifeLock, provides all the previous features, home title monitoring, investment activity alerts, and nearly $1 million in reimbursement.
Endpoint Security, Malware Protection and Antivirus Protection by Norton
Looking closely at Norton’s features, we find its comprehensive endpoint security top-notch. The software is effective against a wide range of cyber threats, and the advanced technology of its real-time monitoring adds numerous defence layers to block malware, phishing and other malicious activities. Norton offers a user-friendly interface, regularly scans your device and applies new and necessary updates to detect and remove any possible threats. Furthermore, Norton has minimal system disruption while providing maximum protection.
Effectiveness, Ease of Use and Performance of Norton Antivirus
Norton Antivirus has a swift purchase and installation process. The software’s dashboard boasts its signature colours of black and yellow and a hint of white. When the check mark on the left-hand side is green, your device is well protected. The right-hand side has all your standard features and customisations. Norton 360 dashboard is mainly white with touches of yellow and has the most common security features in four categories, taking up the centre of the screen.
Norton antivirus has a low impact on system performance when run on new devices with extensive system resources. However, older devices have needed help to run the software. Norton used 14% of system resources as it ran in the background, which spikes to 84% during a full system scan. The opposite happens with memory utilisation, where Norton consumes 72% as it runs in the background and only 63% during a full system scan.
Norton’s customer support methods include live chat, where you fill out an online form and await the support team to contact you. You must complete an online form before attempting to reach the software’s technicians by phone. The software’s online forum has an extensive database with a FAQs section and is tended by other users and Norton technicians.
Comparison with Other Security Software and Solutions
Let’s compare Norton to the same antivirus agents we compared with Webroot. We find that, in 2023, Norton beats Avast in the scope and inclusivity of its protection against malware and cloud backup. Both antivirus agents offer a firewall, VPN, and password manager. Like Avast, McAfee loses to Norton in several categories. Norton offers excellent packages and value for money, performs scans faster and provides better protection with less impact on system performance.
The last antivirus agent to compare with Norton is Bitdefender. We found that both protection agents offer similar levels of protection and features. It’s challenging to choose which software outranks the other. Still, we discovered that Bitdefender had less impact on system performance than Norton, which might be the only category in which one has beaten the other. Generally, Norton is a comprehensive and powerful protection agent that is difficult to replace.
Choosing Between Norton and Webroot
Some of the main elements to consider when choosing a proper antivirus agent include:
- The level of protection offered, especially a high detection rate
- The user-friendliness of the interface
- Their impact on system performance
- Offering good value for money
- Compatibility with your operating system and solid customer support methods.
- If the protection agent offers a firewall and a password manager, they are worth considering.
Before we compare Webroot and Norton, we should add that comparison between protection agents only clarifies each software’s features and disadvantages. The end choice is up to the user, where one software might appeal to one user but repels another. So, rest assured, whichever software you choose, Norton or Webroot, you’ll select a solid antivirus agent.
Key differences between Webroot and Norton
Webroot and Norton are good antivirus agents on the market. However, each antivirus agent has some distinguishing elements. Some critical differences between Webroot and Norton include the cloud-based Webroot real-time protection technology requiring minimal disk space. Webroot is known for being lightweight and fast, especially for old and slower computers. Norton’s comprehensive security features offer a firewall, identity theft protection, parental controls, a secure VPN, and dark web monitoring. These features are more inclusive and robust than Webroot, which focuses on lightness and speed, while Norton focuses on overall digital security.
Best Usage Scenarios for Webroot and Norton in 2023
Webroot best suits small businesses looking for adequate protection with lightweight software and real-time protection against malware and phishing attacks. Webroot’s cloud-based deployment integrates seamlessly with other security tools. On the other hand, Norton suits larger enterprises and organisations with complex security needs. Robust features such as encryption, firewalls, and protection of numerous devices simultaneously make Norton the ideal choice for businesses handling sensitive data.
Final Verdict: Is Norton Better than Webroot?
The final verdict of the battle of Webroot vs Norton depends on you. However, we chose Norton as the winner for its compatibility with numerous devices, great value for money, robust features, and extensive malware protection.
On a final note, we commend Webroot for its cloud-based protection technology and light impact on system performance. If you prefer to go with Webroot, you’ve chosen solid antivirus software to protect your system.