Advice Request Does Android device need Antivirus app?

[ForgottenSeer 55474]

Hey, in my opinion, Google is not good enough so yes you need an AV of some kind(I use Bitdefender Mobile Security(paid)

 

[ForgottenSeer 55474]

Hey again I also think Dr. Web Security Space is very good because it has a Firewall option(which really is a VPN)without Rooting

 

[Evjl's Rain]

for me, no
before installing anything, I look at its uploaded date if it's >1 week, and upload it to VT
if no one detects it, it's very unlikely to be detected by installed AVs because they are mostly signature-based

only BKAV is the AV which blocks 100% of the apks outside the playstore regardless of their reputation and safety

once a month, I scan the whole phone with VT app
this should be enough without lossing any performance, RAM and battery life

 

[mekelek]

for me, no
before installing anything, I look at its uploaded date if it's >1 week, and upload it to VT
if no one detects it, it's very unlikely to be detected by installed AVs because they are mostly signature-based

only BKAV is the AV which blocks 100% of the apks outside the playstore regardless of their reputation and safety

once a month, I scan the whole phone with VT app
this should be enough without lossing any performance, RAM and battery life

dang it now i gotta test some weird chinese AV

 

[Marko :)]

In fact, yes, you would need an AV especially when downloading from Play Store as during the time we`ve seen a lot of malicious apps on Play Store. I have Dr. Web on my Android and it saved me many times, preventing the install of some strange apps, so in order to enhance the security, yes we need an AV also for our phones.

If you read reviews and check out app permissions, I still think that you have nothing to worry about. App can do only what permissions allow it. If the app doesn't ask for camera access, it cannot access the camera and use it. Newer Android versions are even more secure and they'll ask you if you want to give access to something if app asks for it, so you can always deny it.

If something runs code it can be exploited... Period.

Better be safe than sorry. No regular user reads all the permissions (or doesn't care) and seemingly legitimate Google Play Store apps have been found malicious. An ad-blocker and a free lightweight av for peace of mind will not drain your resources. My OnePlus 5 performs with zero lag with adguard premium + bitdefender free installed.

Yeah, but think about it, what can the antivirus app for Android do? They cannot remove malware, they just notify you that you have malware installed and suggest you to remove it, nothing else. If Android device came with malware preinstalled, you cannot remove the app unless you have rooted device.

 

[HarborFront]

This is a good reason why you need an AV on your android device

Report finds Android malware pre-installed on hundreds of phones

 

[cyberfort]

If you read reviews and check out app permissions, I still think that you have nothing to worry about. App can do only what permissions allow it. If the app doesn't ask for camera access, it cannot access the camera and use it. Newer Android versions are even more secure and they'll ask you if you want to give access to something if app asks for it, so you can always deny it.



Yeah, but think about it, what can the antivirus app for Android do? They cannot remove malware, they just notify you that you have malware installed and suggest you to remove it, nothing else. If Android device came with malware preinstalled, you cannot remove the app unless you have rooted device.

Only pre-installed virus cannot be removed

 

[Deleted Member 3a5v73x]

This is a good reason why you need an AV on your android device

Report finds Android malware pre-installed on hundreds of phones

Did they forgot mentioning Alcatel? In my Alcatel Idol 4 It's list of useless pre-installed app list is dusgusting. Phone can't be used with even reset, notifications, ads, cleaners, enjoy.now cra*, Can't even uninstall them because there's no proper way to root it and also there are no devs in XDA, and Alcatel support havent released single update since it came out in mid 2016. It's left in the dark and siting in my bookshelf, sad thing is I still pay for it monthly and can't return it. No AV/Adware cleaner can help there, and if you try to disable some junk manually, phone jusy starts to crash/doesn't charge. I've never seen something like this, last Alcatel for me.

 

[Local Host]

You need an Anti-Virus, APKs and PlayStore are the least of your worries (those only affect users without common sense), what you wanna protect against is malicious ads, java script and port scans.

 

[DeepWeb]

I think Google Play Protect + brain.exe is enough.
But it can't hurt to occasionally run an AV and then uninstall it again. I just don't see the point of real-time protection. It's a waste of battery.

 

[uninfected1]

The problem with brain.exe is that it varies from person to person. i would always advise the typical user (especially the much maligned average Joe ) to use an AV.

 

[Soulbound]

Depending on the OEM Rom, by default theres an app scanning tool and locker. i.e. Xiaomi's MIUI, contains both and uses Avast signatures.

First thing I installed on my Android was an Ad blocker, DNS66. I do however have Adguard too but found DNS66 working better.
If you are really paranoid, then yes, install some protection from some more known names, such as Avast, Kaspersky, Malwarebytes etc

If you only download from Playstore and your ROM has a scanning utility, then you should be fine but everyone is different and majority believe that they should overload their phone like they overload their pc with protection.

 

[Mariihh]

Hello everyone, I wanted to know if it really is necessary to use antivirus on the Android phone, and what name would have good protection and not spend a lot of battery?

My phone is a Moto G5S Plus.

 

[ForgottenSeer 58943]

Most modern AV's for Android don't consume much (if any) battery.

As for the validity, they can offer protection. I recently ran into an actual piece of malware on an Android phone that 'Play Protect' (weak) missed. The Android AV installed shortly after picked it up immediately and enforced a removal of it.

Also remember, Android AV's tend to offer a lot of useful extra features. Applocks, Privacy Checks, Web Filtration, Lost/Stolen Finders, Gallery Protection, etc..

 

[509322]

Hello everyone, I wanted to know if it really is necessary to use antivirus on the Android phone, and what name would have good protection and not spend a lot of battery?

My phone is a Moto G5S Plus.

Most definitely.

 

[uninfected1]

@Mariihh
This topic has already been discussed in some depth:
Q&A - Does Android device need Antivirus app?

 

[AriDfoix]

There are some good free AV, like Intelliav, or Sophos;

Some free Antivirus that offers inapp purchases offering additional features...

And some products only Enterprise environments can get: Mobile Intrusion Prevention System & Device Security | zIPS

Try some of them basing your rating from some tests specialized people tend do, and consider the battery usage.

I don't see anything wrong in having or not the AV on Android, only stay away from rogue products, and maybe monitor their traffic to see with who the product talks or what data about you sends back.



I started using ESET, turned to Kaspersky, switched to Sophos and in the end turned to Intelliav; from time to time I try some of them and see if I like what they do or not.

Regards,

 

[DeepWeb]

Instead of wasting money on an Android AV, invest in a phone that gets monthly security patches. Do the research and check how long your device manufacturer will support the device. Alternatively pick a device that is Android Enterprise Recommended:
Android Enterprise Recommended

These devices must get updates at least every 90 days and 2 major Android version upgrades.

 

[GoldenKindness]

Hello everyone, I wanted to know if it really is necessary to use antivirus on the Android phone, and what name would have good protection and not spend a lot of battery?

My phone is a Moto G5S Plus.

Personally, I do not use any antivirus on my phone. I tried some of them before but finally gave up due to the large consumption to the phone memory which results into a slowdown of system and a faster drain of power. Plus, the constant annoying ads and pop-ups bundled in them, and even worse, sometimes they downloaded and installed things automatically. You're actually not in a need of an antivirus app on your phone to download apps from playstore, to surf the safe websites or to connect to a clean outside device.
If you really need one anyway, since Moto phones run the Android OS, just simply find antivirus that offer support for Android. I would recommend free antivirus rather than a premium one, as for most of us, there is not a necessnity to deploy a complex, heavy, pricy premium security suite on our phones or other devices even personal or home computers. So, check these free lists of antivirus for 2018:
- 11 Best Free Android Antivirus丨Fossbytes
- TOP 5 Free Antivirus for 2018丨SnailDriver
Cheers

 

[Moonhorse]

I dont use any, but i can recommend comodo