What is Malwarebytes Anti-Malware
Being known as one of the long-standers in the malware-hunting market, Malwarebytes has been delivering high-class malware removing products for over 15 years. Doubting them in inexperience or malpractice is excluded, since these guys know how to operate in the era of rapidly growing fraudulence. The brand new Katana engine opened horizons of advanced capabilities for detecting and removing up-to-date threats, alas, not without flaws. The database is always topped up with newly-designed viruses to suppress zero-day threats that can potentially jeopardize users’ data. Malwarebytes Anti-Malware is available in both Free and Premium versions.
Malwarebytes Anti-Malware has been exceptionally minimalistic in interface, therefore, allowing novice users to settle in the program much easier and faster compared to other competitors. The structured list of features does not distract users, on the contrary, it gives a simplified instruction and hints on how to operate with the program. On top of that, instead of purchasing for the Premium version, you can explore full capabilities with the free trial that will expire in 14 days.
Capabilities:
- Cleans your PC in just a few minutes. Free edition not only detects and removes viruses, but it can also neutralize Potentially Unwanted Applications that are concealed behind your system and can slow your PC substantially.
- Protects against online scammers. The presence of web protection prevents you from online scams, dubious pages, and malicious links. It is also capable of detecting phishing attempts that are meant to hijack personal information like credentials for a bank account.
- Stops your files from being held for ransom. Ransomware is very dangerous because it locks down users’ data without giving it back. Although, Malwarebytes can protect your device by using exclusive technology that defends you from ransomware infiltrations. Unfortunately, not as good as claimed.
- Saves system resources. In latest releases, developers managed to decrease the amount of pressure by cutting the CPU usage down to 50%.
- Katana Engine. This new engine improved the accuracy of detecting threats in less time. It also helps you get more information on a specific virus that was detected with all the codes and infiltration methods description.
- Real-time protection. This option is highly-important for automatically preventing virus infiltrations that may be caused due to inadvertent user’s behavior like visiting suspicious websites or downloading unlicensed software. Once detected, MalwareBytes will notify you and offer to uninstall a malvertising piece.
Lab Results:
Malwarebytes Anti-Malware has already come through various lab tests. However, still has not managed to ascend the highest mark in the anti-malware industry. The most significant test was held by renowned AV-test laboratory and here is the summary:
Malwarebytes Anti-Malware showed pretty impressive results at dealing with 99.9% of sample threats, but scored only 98.6% and 93.2% in the zero-day tests. This may seem more than enough, however, in the world where 1% of malware can make a huge difference and become the reason for multiple privacy leaks and other cyberattacks.
Besides that, we decided to run a short experiment by infiltrating our device with random ransomware. Woefully, the previously mentioned feature of effectively blocking ransomware did not yield whatsoever. Malwarebytes did not manage to prevent file encryption and grapple with pervasive ransomware that can be easily caught from the web. As a result, the stalwart Ransomware protection turns out to be an empty promise.
As well as Katana Engine is always evolving, not excluded that ongoing tests are going to be more accurate. We are curious to see how MalwareBytes will perform amidst rivals in AV’s 2020 test.
Price: MalwareBytes offers free 14-days trial. However, if you want to use it on a consistent basis, you will have to purchase the Premium version that starts from $44.99 per year subscription.
System Requirements: Anti-Malware by Malwarebytes can be used on Windows 7/8/8.1/10 versions on both 32/64-bit systems. It also covers Mac, Android and IOS users.
Minimum Hardware Requirements:
- 800MHz CPU or faster
- 2048 MB (64-bit OS), 1024 MB (32-bit OS, except 512 MB for Windows XP)
- 250 MB of free hard disk space
Final thoughts
Malwarebytes Anti-Malware is by far a decent solution for temporary protection and virus elimination. However, the uninformative results leave us wondering whether it is worth electing for more powerful malware elimination tools that lead the market. Still, with all of its flaws and disabilities, it can become a great complement to other anti-malware programs.
