360 Total Security Antivirus Review 2020
The 360 Total Security Antivirus is an amazing antivirus that comes with quite several features including scanning, cleaning tools, plus little impact on system performance. It can be compared to some of the best in the market, and will be a great addition to your system.
If you are looking for an excellent anti-malware tool, then the app is the best choice for you. This article will provide you with an in-depth look into the 30 total security antivirus, looking at both the advantages and the disadvantages of the antivirus, so stick with us.
What We Like
- Free versions come with great features
- Uses the same engines as Avira and Bitdefender
- Great scanning options
- Remote access to help other users through the smartphone app
- Simple well laid out interphase
- Low impact on your system
- Cloud-based protection
What We Don’t Like
- Lab test not as satisfactory
- A few bad tools involved with the antivirus
- Ads
- Manual involvement necessary to get the antivirus to the best working condition
- The free version lacks some useful features
About the Total Security
So is the antivirus any good?
The antivirus is a product of the Chinese company Qihu. It comes with a Pc maintenance app plus great anti-malware software. At the core of the 360 total security systems is an Avira and Bitdefender engine that will keep you safe from any malware, phishing, ransomware, and other threats to your device.
The antivirus also comes with a number of other useful features that will include webcam protection and automatic Wi-Fi checks.
The app will also help speed up your system and allow for the scheduling of tasks.
360 Total Security Pricing
The way the antivirus is priced is such that you will get two plans, the free and premium versions.
The free version is well catered for and is not stingy with the features. However, you will always get a number of extra features with the paid premium version.
The paid version will cost you around $29.98 annually and will accommodate a maximum of three of your devices.
How’s the Security System?
Let’s start with a bit of the bad before we check out the good here. When it came to lab tests, the 360 total security software did not perform as good as other antiviruses like Avira, yet it uses the same engines.
The antivirus was tested based on security efficiency and user-friendliness. The antivirus performed dismally on the performance test, coming with a four out of six ratings. The app, however, performed quite well on the security and user-friendly coming-out with a six out of six ratings. Both Avira and Bitdefender performed at an excellent rating, coming out with a six out of six ratings.
The antivirus also uses the AES-256 and the RSA-40966 encryption algorithm. This layer of encryption has not yet been hacked. This speaks well of the strength of the antivirus security system.
Is 360 Total Antivirus Safe to Use – Malware Protection
The device was also introduced to a bunch of malware to test how it would perform. A folder full of malware was added as per the requirements for the test. Most other antiviruses immediately registered an intrusion in the system, with industry leaders like Avira performing the best here. However, other antiviruses would stay idle and allow the folder full of malware to be transferred to the device.
On the other hand, the total security antivirus waited until the malware folder was about to be launched to jump into action. This, according to the company, was due to the antivirus being in the default; however, when the antivirus is in the security mode, every file will be scanned.
The antivirus will show you a huge warning on the app if it identifies any malware. The malware will then remove the infection but will give the user the first choice on any action that can be taken. The antivirus scored an 8.1/10 on malware identification while Avira came in with a 9.3/10.
Phishing Protection
When it came to protection from phishing sites, the antivirus was ahead of its rivals. The antivirus will help protect you through blocking your system from accessing these websites.
Phishing websites are fake types of websites created to trick a user into accessing them. The websites will then steal valuable information from your device. They will also track the users into providing their emails and logins to these websites, which might, in turn, steal your money.
Phishing sites are risky and even go ahead into convincing you to provide you’re banking details through fake logins somehow. They then proceed to either steal from you or sell your credentials elsewhere.
Ransomware Protection
Ransomware is a kind of threat that steals your information, only to ask you for money for giving back the stolen info. How it works is through hackers encrypting our data and afterward charges you for decryption.
The antivirus will also protect you from key loggers. Keylogging is where hackers find a way to trace or copy your keystrokes on the keyboard and use them to try and hack into your accounts or other platforms. It does this by activating an online shopping tool that will secure your device from antiviruses.
The antivirus also comes with a ransomware terminator, which was created to help keep vital documents safe from ransomware. The feature keeps at it 24 hours a day, keeping a keen eye on it, working silently in the background.
The ransomware terminator feature was created to tackle system crashes viruses a day malicious tampering. Ransomware is a necessary tool, especially if you are using the device for your banking activities.
The 360 total security antivirus will also automatically back your important files, ensuring that in case of an attack, the user will not be held captive by the attackers as they can access their backups and information.
Anti-Crypto Miner
Hackers will place malware and turn your computer to a slave miner. To control this, you have to get an excellent antivirus to help with the crypto miners. 360 antivirus is excellent for preventing crypto mining in your device, which will provide a vast virus database and a cloud detection engine that prevents any crypto miners from getting into your computer.
The block chain system is quite strong and effectively creates to ensure crypto mining is done in a way that prevents fraud; however, hackers have still found ways around this system through user private keys, which, if hacked, can affect the computer.
In case the hacker can gain access to your keys, then attackers have access to your crypto wallet, and if they can do this, then they can gain access to your money.
The anti-crypto miner feature is free and comes with a Google Chrome extension. The feature is easy to add to your antivirus, and with the edge it offers, it is well worth the job.
Virtual Vault
The 360 total security antivirus also comes with a virtual vault, which helps protect your device against the loss of sensitive data.
The vault comes with a 2-way authentication making it double hard to penetrate.
The virtual vault feature is also free and it provides a necessary layer of defense. It will work well with etherium, bitcoin, and a couple of other crypto currencies.
You can get the feature from the official website, plus it will also work with most operating systems, even the more outdated types.
The feature will come in handy in helping you get your crypto wallets centralized, plus you can also manage them from a central point. The interface will also be straightforward plus it needs just a couple of clicks to encrypt your wallets.
The Compression Software
Another great feature of the antivirus is compressing your files, which will do a lot to save your space. The antivirus will support more than 40 compression formats. The antivirus uses a cloud security mechanism to scan any compressed document before opening them. Each file will be scanned for malware before the user gets the chance to start using them.
It is worth noting that Trojans will hide in archived files, and infect the system as the decompression occurs, making them quite hard to detect and get rid of.
Compared to its rivals, the compression software is fast and efficient and it keeps the quality at top-notch conditions.
360 Total Security Antivirus Review – Other Features of the 360 Total Security
Cleanup Feature
The antivirus software comes with a cleanup feature that can be found on the app interface. With just one click of this icon, you can scan the device for any malware in the junk files and plugins. The feature will help ensure that the antivirus is free of junk, which will end up freeing more memory on the device and increasing the level of performance.
The Speed Up
Another great addition to the 360 total security is the speed up option found on the dashboard. The feature can be accessed with one click of the mouse. The speedup feature offers the user the option for optimizing your system, providing tune-up options for your device.
Patch Up
The patch up feature will provide you with the chance for updating programs, with Wi-Fi checks looking out for the DNS, ensuring it is strong enough to perform efficiently.
The antivirus will also come with a sandbox mode as part of the feature, plus there are even more options if you opt for the premium version of the antivirus.
A sandbox feature is a security protocol that involves the prevention of the system from accessing some unsafe sites.
Block Notifications
There is a recent version of the app that will allow the user to block notifications from sending notifications to your device. This feature comes with a lollipop and marshmallow android devices. This can come in handy if you’re concentrating on something and do not want some notifications from distracting you from your work.
You will also get a call and SMS filter.
Allowing you to filter out some call and SMS will help prevent pesky callers such as salesmen from ruining your day.
Features of the Premium Version of the Antivirus
As stated, the premium version of the antivirus comes with a couple of added features that may go a long way in tipping you towards the paid version over the free version of the antivirus. One of the best things about the antivirus is the ad-free capability of the antivirus.
The antivirus will also provide the user with the chance to schedule scans and change the theme for the whole interface.
Disk Analyzer
The paid version of the antivirus comes with a way for you to check your hard drives and ensure they are working efficiently, with the option for informing the user as to how their storage space has been utilized.
Privacy Cleaner
This offers the user the option for deleting any of their traces from the internet. You might have forgotten to log off some websites, or maybe don’t want your internet history left accessible to hackers, then privacy cleaner is the app for you.
Data Shredder
Are you looking to completely remove some files from the computer, without the hope for restoration or recovery, then the file shredder feature for the paid version of the app is the best option for you.
Driver Updater
This will check your device for driver problems and ensure they provide the latest updates for all drivers.
Firewall
If you are looking for a reason to pay for the premium version, then the best reason would be the firewall that comes with the app.
360 Total Security Ease of Use
To get started with the antivirus, you will first have to download it and follow the subsequent instructions. The antivirus will not require you to register for the account, plus it will support both the 32 bit and 64-bit versions of OS.
After the installation of the antivirus is complete, you can start using it. You will have to option of doing a little bit of tweaking to make sure the antivirus performs at peak performance.
The antivirus will work with windows from XP to the most current. The antivirus will also work with the android versions and MAC OS versions; however, the antivirus will not work well with these, as it will do with windows.
For android users, you can get the app from Google Play and install it on your phone.
How is the 360 Interface?
The interface is well laid out and simple enough for each user to get their way on the software. You will have an easy time navigating the antivirus, plus with the ability to change the theme for premium users, you will have more control over the aesthetics of the device.
Go to the left side of the antivirus to get a list of options, including virus scans, speedup, cleanup, a full check, and more. For any additional feature, you don’t seem to find, just navigate to the toolbox, and you will find them all there.
The 360 Total Security Performance
When it comes to running, the antivirus may appear a bit demanding, the minimum requirements for the app are 1.5 GB worth of storage, plus due to the processes it runs on the system, it may eat up to 200MB of your RAM.
After a couple of tests, the antivirus was found to be quite unusual in that the antivirus never caused any lag; neither did it affect another app as they ran. However, it showed an 8% drop in website launches and a 12% reduction in copying operations. This will, however, not be noticeable for regular users and are also well below the industry average.
It is worth noting that as long as the antivirus is in the background, there will not be lagging for your device. However, if you choose to carry out a full system scan, then expect an effect on the device, as the antivirus will take more of the RAM and cause some lagging for your device.
Scanning Options
The antivirus comes with three scan options, full, custom, and quick scans.
To start a scan, you will have to access the ‘virus scan menu.’
For the quick scan option, the antivirus will take an average of 4 minutes to scan your device. For the full scan, the antivirus will take some time to finish depending on the size of the storage and number of files, fodders, and software you have. Expect the whole scan to take roughly 40 minutes to an hour.
Finally, the antivirus also comes with a custom scan. This will let the user choose the type of scan they want to run, where they choose the scanned files. A great thing with the custom scan option is the possibility for the antivirus to save the custom scan types and revisit them whenever you choose.
It is worth noting that due to the antivirus being a product of multiple engines, the user gets to choose which engine will be best suited for the work during scanning, where they can opt for the cloud or one of the Avira or Bitdefender engines.
The Downsides
The antivirus, although being quite effective and efficient, also comes with some complaints based on some of the reviews. Most people found some problems with the antivirus, which include:
The lab results were one of the less enthusiastic points of the antivirus. However, it performed on some aspects, the point that it came behind the top antiviruses such as Avira and Bitdefender.
The ads for the free version of the app are also not as impressive.
The fact that the default version of the app s not entirely up to the task and will require some tweaking to be at peak performance is not a significant aspect of the antivirus.
The antivirus also comes with a boost feature.
The feature can be configured to prevent it from killing off apps you constantly use.
Depending on the usage of the software, the app may start popping already used apps or closed apps back to the interface unknown to the user, which can have a long term negative effect on the battery life of the device.
Also, there are some features that users want to be included on the app, including the app-lock and find-my-phone features.
After the installation of the antivirus, it will add some icons on your device, which can be found on the antiviruses interface also seems to displease a couple of users.
360 Total Antivirus Support
The antivirus comes with the option of using the support menu on the company’s website, which will provide you with enough information on any problems you might be experiencing.
The antivirus also comes with a continuously updated blog to cater to any questions you may have about the antivirus.
The antivirus also comes with a help section. It allows for different topics you might have some problems with, and offer information that you may find to be interesting. The system will first ask you for some information on the issues you are going through before it offers any assistance.
There is another way for you to get your questions answered, and that will require you to send the support team a question through their email address [email protected]. You will be required to provide a name and email, after which you can type in the question.
Apart from this, the antivirus also comes with the option for a live chat. This is one of the best options, as it is effective, fast, and real time. The support team is always eager to help, however with the current Covid-19 pandemic, don’t be surprised if no one answers your calls.
Last Thoughts
Overall, the 360 total antivirus is not a scam but quite a decent antivirus and will cater to all your security needs. It is easy to use and will be great for both beginner users and experienced ones. However, don’t take my word for it, take it on a trial run and see whether it suits your needs. If it does, then you can stop your search.
Cheers!
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