The good news first: Of the 12 virus scanners in the test, which are intended for private users, 11 successfully fend off all attacks. Were tested:
- Avast
- AVG
- Bitdefender
- F Secure
- GDATA
- K7 Computing
- Kaspersky
- Microsoft
- Microworld
- NortonLifeLock
- PCmatic
- VIPRE Security.
The testers write: “Only K7 Computing has a problem: the attack is detected, but later the attacker manages to create a file in scenario no. 6”.
The good news is that you’re perfectly set up with Windows Defender, which comes preinstalled with Windows 10 and Windows 11. The free alternatives Avast and AVG also defuse the blackmail Trojan early on.
Speaking of early: The test results contain information about when the virus scanners intervene. Windows Defender stops 9 out of 10 attacks in the first step. Only the paid products from Bitdefender and G Data can do this.