Welcome to Gosoftware’s McAfee Antivirus review! In the digital age, staying safe online is a top priority, and antivirus software like McAfee plays a crucial role. But the question is whether McAfee anti-virus is the right choice.
In this review, Gosoftware will break down McAfee’s features, how well it works, and whether it’s worth the price. But first, let’s answer the question: What is McAfee Security?
What Is McAfee Antivirus?
McAfee Antivirus, known as McAfee Total Protection, is a widely recognized cybersecurity software developed by McAfee, Inc. It is designed to protect computers and other devices (Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS) from various online threats, including:
- Viruses
- Malware
- Spyware
- Ransomware
- Phishing attacks
McAfee offers real-time protection by monitoring a device’s internet activity, file downloads, and email attachments to identify and block threats.
Why You Should Use McAfee?
If you wonder why you should use McAfee Security, the answer is simple: It is a well-known and trusted name in cybersecurity that brings many benefits, as follows:
- It keeps your devices safe from viruses, malware, and other online dangers. For example, it can protect Microsoft Office (for MAC and Windows).
- It stays current with the latest threats to ensure you’re always protected.
- It doesn’t just protect from viruses. It also has a firewall, a safe web browsing feature, a VPN service, and more.
- It can also make your device run faster while keeping it safe.
- You can use it on various devices like computers, phones, and tablets.
- It is easy to use, and you can adjust the settings to match your needs.
With these benefits, McAfee Antivirus is a bright choice if you are looking for quality antivirus software to protect your apps. Even essential apps such as Microsoft Office in Office 2019, Office 2021, Microsoft 365, or Office 365 can also benefit from this software.
Besides, in case you need to reinstall the operating system with an ISO file, for example, Windows 10 ISO, McAfee Antivirus will help you scan to ensure that the installation source is free from any malware or viruses.
Read more: Office 2019 vs. Office 2021 for Windows: What is The Best Choice for You?
McAfee Antivirus Pro And Cons
Before diving into the in-depth review, here’s a table summarizing the pros and cons of McAfee Antivirus:
| Pros | Cons |
| Good virus protection No-limits VPNSimple password managerUser-friendly | Poor app-boosting featureLimited customer support |
McAfee Antivirus offers solid virus protection with the bonus of an unlimited VPN and a user-friendly interface. However, it falls short in app-boosting features and has limitations in its customer support services.
How Many Types of McAfee Antivirus Are There?
As of 2023, McAfee Antivirus comes in three main types:
- Individual package: For one person who wants to protect just one device, like a computer or a phone.
- Multi-device package: If you have more devices, like several computers, phones, or tablets, this package covers up to five of them.
- Household package: For larger families or those with even more devices, this package covers up to ten. It keeps everyone’s devices safe.
With these options, you can choose the one that matches your needs. Gosoftware will go deeper into the features and pricing policy of this software in the following sections of this blog.
McAfee Security Feature
Gosoftware tested six of McAfee Antivirus’s most outstanding features, from scans to password manager. Below is an in-depth review of these features!
McAfee Scans
McAfee offers two types of scans to keep your system safe: Quick and Full scans.
- The Quick scan focuses on the most likely areas where malware hides and takes approximately 5 to 10 minutes
- The Full scan is more comprehensive, examining a larger number of files, and can take around 30 minutes.
In tests, the Quick scan identified no planted malware out of 10, while the Full scan detected 8/10. So, the Full scan provides higher accuracy. While not the best in the market, they provide decent performance regarding the scan feature.
Firewall
McAfee’s firewall acts as a protective barrier to filter out potentially malicious processes and prevent them from entering your system. It helps in identifying threats before they can cause any harm. Here’s what this firewall allows users to do according to Gosoftware’s testing:
- Open specific ports for other devices to access your system.
- Block/allow particular Internet connections and IP addresses.
- Use the Stealth mode to hide your PC from external view.
- Enable the Lockdown feature to turn off the Internet connection on the device.
- Utilize the Net Guard feature to monitor attempted connections to the device and decide whether to trust them.
Regarding ease of use, McAfee’s firewall is user-friendly, offering easy navigation and accessibility to its functions within a well-organized interface.
Tracker Remover
McAfee’s Tracker Remover is a helpful feature that scans your computer for tracking cookies and temporary files. These cookies and files not only occupy valuable storage space but can also provide hackers with information about you.
After scanning, Tracker Remover provides a report on the space that can be freed up. You can review the findings and clean up your system with a single click.
File Shredder
File Shredder is a valuable feature for securely deleting files. Typically, simply deleting a file only moves it to the Recycle Bin, which can still be accessed and recovered. Yet, McAfee’s Shredder overwrites the file’s data multiple times before deletion, ensuring no one can recover it.
This McAfee Security software offers three levels of shredding security:
- Basic (2 overwrites)
- Safe (5 overwrites)
- Complete (10 overwrites)
You can also shred your entire Recycle Bin or Temporary Internet Files in one go. This way, it is easy to ensure that your sensitive data is permanently removed.
McAfee WebAdvisor
McAfee WebAdvisor is a browser extension that provides access to McAfee’s suite of security features.
When testing, Gosoftware found that it protected users from malware and phishing attempts while browsing the internet. The best part is that in tests, it didn’t cause significant performance issues.
McAfee’s Password Manager
The last notable feature of this antivirus software is password manager, a secure solution for managing your passwords. It uses strong encryption (AES-256) to protect your login credentials, ensuring that only you can decrypt them.
Gosoftware found that it offers multi-factor authentication for added security, requiring verification of at least two factors before granting access. So, you can rest assured when storing logins, safe notes, and credit card details. You can even import passwords from other managers or browsers.
McAfee Speed Up
Besides the outstanding features, Gosoftware also tested the speed-up performance of this antivirus software. Below is a table summarizing the test results:
| Feature | Description |
| Web Boost | Speeds up web browsing by preventing auto-play videos.Displays a ‘Paused by McAfee Web Boost’ message over videos.Works effectively on Google Chrome but does not impact browser speed significantly. |
| App Boost | Diverts resources to apps that need them to cut load times. Improves 6% in load times.Improves app performance by 8%. |
| VPN | Provides basic security and privacy essentials. Features include a kill switch, auto-connect options, and specifying trusted networks. Offers some anonymity and security when browsing. |
| Identity Theft Coverage & Restoration | Offers identity protection services, including credit and transaction monitoring, security freeze, and more.Provides a $1 million ID theft coverage in case of data compromise.Full package of features for added security. |
These results show that its speed-up feature works well in web boost, VPN, and identity theft coverage & restoration tasks. However, in app-boosting tasks, a 6% improvement in load times and an 8% improvement in performance don’t show much difference.
McAfee Plans And Pricing
McAfee offers four plans: Plus, Premium, Advanced, and Ultimate. Each varies in features, coverage, and pricing. Let’s check these plans to know which is for you!
| Plan | Plus(2 years) | Premium(1 year) | Advanced(1 year) | Ultimate(1 year) |
| Price (2023) | $39.99/year | $49.99/year | $89.99/year | $219.99/year |
| Platforms | Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, ChromeOS | Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, ChromeOS | Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, ChromeOS | Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, ChromeOS |
| Number of devices | 5 | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| VPN | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Antivirus protection | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Protection score | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Personal data cleanup | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| security freeze | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| $1M identity theft coverage | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ |
| $25K ransomware coverage and credit lock | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
Note: These prices represent introductory offers for the first year of your subscription. Upon renewal, the cost may increase. Also, there is no free desktop version, but a 30-day free trial is available.
Get McAfee With A Discount From Gosoftware
Now, this is a special deal for you: Gosoftware offers fantastic discounts on McAfee Antivirus plans! Keeping your devices safe is super important, and now it won’t cost as much. Here’s the scoop:
- A 50% discount on the 10-device package
- A 56% discount on the 5-device package
- A 40% discount on the 3-device package
Check the price here! Don’t miss out on this limited-time offer to get McAfee Total Protection at these discount prices!
To let Gosoftware best support you in using this antivirus software and provide the latest IT solutions, sign up today! Gosoftware guarantees to give you the best pricing possible for quotes!
How To Install McAfee
After choosing a suitable plan, purchasing a subscription, and creating an account, it’s time to install it on your device! Just follow these steps:
1/ Download McAfee by going to the dashboard and selecting ‘Downloads & devices’ under the ‘Protect all your devices’ section.
2/ Complete the installation by launching the downloaded McAfee file and clicking ‘Install.’
3/ Once installation is done, click ‘Get started.’
Now, just familiarize yourself with the app by exploring the main dashboard to discover other useful features and tools. To increase security for your device, you can use this McAfee software with Microsoft Intune.
How to uninstall McAfee? After a period of use, if you do not want to use this software anymore, you can follow these steps:
- Open the Control Panel.
- Navigate to Programs & Features.
- Right-click on McAfee Security Center and select Uninstall/Change.
So you know how to install and uninstall this software. Now, take advantage of its features to optimize your cybersecurity!
Conclusion
As Gosoftware wraps up the McAfee Antivirus review for 2023, the verdict is in. McAfee proves itself as a robust guardian against the ever-present digital threats. Its real-time protection, firewall, and additional tools make it a strong contender in the antivirus market.
Gosoftware will be back with the latest blogs about other helpful software. So, stay tuned!