What’s the Deal with Sophos Antivirus?

In today’s online world, there is no way you can NOT have an effective antivirus solution for your computer or device. It is just way too risky, and you never know how a hacker may infect your system.

Thankfully, the antiviruses are staying a step ahead of the cybercriminals. As cybercriminals get more creative with their hacking techniques, so do cyber security systems! It is your responsibility to make sure you are protected online. All it takes is one malware threat to destroy your entire system.

Sophos Antivirus Review

Today we are reviewing Sophos Antivirus. Sophos is a big name in many business and company networks, which is great, but individual users and families can also benefit from this software.

Here are the highlights and features of Sophos:

Real-time antivirus
Inexpensive
User-friendly
Straightforward
Parental controls
Anti-Phishing tools
Adware prevention
Keylogger protection
Ransomware protection
Remote management capabilities
Free version
Available for Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android
30-day money back guarantee
Phone, email, and ticket support

Reliability and Security

Unfortunately, there are not many recent third-party lab tests available. The latest one from AV-Comparatives was in 2016, and back then, it detected 98% of malware threats, which is an impressive result.

In December 2017, AV-Test tested Sophos in three categories: protection, performance, and usability. Sophos scored 6/6 in all three tests, scoring a perfect 18/18 result.

We wish there were more third-party tests on this software, but the ones we found were pretty good.

The paid version of this antivirus offers Predictable Al Detection, which is designed to detect and block new malware before it affects your computer or device. This a fairly new tool, and according to the company, this kind of protection is used by banks, businesses, and world governments.

Performance

Sophos antivirus works with Windows 7 up to Windows 10. You only need a minimum of 1GB of hard drive space and 1 GB of RAM to launch this software. The Mac version is compatible with 10.11 up to 10.14. For the Mac version, you need 4GB of free space on your hard drive and 4GB of RAM.

Customers have reported that the performance of their computers and devices was not affected by running Sophos. We can say that this antivirus won’t slow your device down.

Ease of Use

To download Sophos, you will need to create an account, select the plan you want, and then the installation will take 2-3 minutes. The directions are simple, and customers said that this antivirus is easy to use.

The main dashboard is minimal: here, you can run scans, access the “My Activity” menu, and check your settings. The interface is friendly and organized, according to customer reviews.

Scanning Options

For some reason, Sophos does not offer any quick scans. If you click on “Scan,” a full scan will be launched. It is very thorough, but one interesting distinction between the Free version and the Premium is the scanning times. The Free Version’s scan time is around 1.5 hours, and the Premium completes the scan in 20-25 minutes.

Scheduled scans are an option for this antivirus. While they take a while to complete (especially the free version), they do not affect the system’s performance.

Available Packages and Pricing

There are two plans you can choose from: Sophos Home Free and Sophos Home Premium. Each of these plans is detailed below:

Sophos Home Free

The free edition can protect up to three devices on a PC, Mac, iOS, or Android. Here is what is included in this plan:

Real-time antivirus
Web protection
Remote management
Parental Website Filtering

As you can see, the list is minimal, but it’s free! The free version is a great option for basic antivirus protection and a few extra perks.

Sophos Home Premium

The Sophos Home Premium features all the tools from the free version, along with the following:

Predictable Al-Threat detection
Advanced real-time protection
Ransomware protection
Advanced web security
Banking protection
Privacy protection
Identity protection
Advanced malware scan and clean
Premium support
Protects up to ten devices

Sophos Premium offers a 30-day trial, and if you don’t choose to continue with this plan, you will be downgraded to the Free version.

The Premium version offers a one or two-year subscription. The one year is $60, but it is now $48 with a 20% discount. The two year subscription is usually $120, but it is currently on sale for $96. With either the one or two year plan, you can manage up to ten devices, which is a great deal!

Customer Support

Customers of the Free version will find their support in the knowledge base on the main website’s support center. It is full of user-friendly manuals on all the topics that will support customers. There is also an extensive FAQ section that is helpful. I was also impressed by the fact that they have a list of cybersecurity terms from A to Z on this page.

They can also send an email to the support team. Customers of the Premium edition will get live chat support options.

Customer support is Monday-Fridays from 8 AM to 8 PM.

Pros and Cons

There is no perfect antivirus software out there, and Sophos is no exception. However, it’s important to look at the pros and cons of any product you are looking into. Here’s what we like and don’t like about this antivirus:

We like:

Affordable plans
Effective protection against threats
Available for both Windows and Mac
Easy to use
Remote security management
Safe banking, webcam protection

We Don’t Like:

Full scans take longer to run on the Free version
Quick scans aren’t available
Lack of lab test results

Conclusion

To sum up, Sophos is an excellent antivirus option for businesses and individuals wanting protection online. The security tools are impressive, and the prices are affordable. Being able to protect ten devices under one license is a perk!