Webroot Antivirus Full Review: Radical Protection
Headquartered in the USA, Broomfield, Colorado, Webroot is an antivirus company that was a pioneer in utilizing the cloud and artificial intelligence to stop zero-day threats in real-time. Webroot products provide endpoint protection, network protection, and security awareness training solutions purpose-built for individuals, managed service providers, and small businesses.
Webroot Threat Intelligence Services are used by many market-leading companies such as Cisco, F5 Networks, Citrix, Aruba, A10 Networks, and many others. Using the power of machine learning to protect millions of businesses and individuals, Webroot secures the connected world.
Pros
Cons
Content
Quick Stats
Is Webroot the product for you? This article will discuss the features, prices, pros, and cons of Webroot antivirus to help you decide if it's the one for you or not.
Security and Protection
Antiviruses are the first and best tools for protection. In this section, we will discuss the protective functions of Webroot according to:
1. Third-party lab tests
In regards to antivirus security, how should an antivirus protection assessment be measured? Do we take the words of the AV creators for their own program?
The best way to assess an antivirus on its functionality is by using a third-party antivirus testing lab.
Webroot lacks data when checking most third-party independent testing labs, and that is due to the unusual way it functions. The way most third-party independent labs test antiviruses is relatively incompatible with the way Webroot functions.
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AV-Test lab
- Webroot got a 2/6 score on its ability to detect malicious ware, which is relatively low compared to other antiviruses in the industry.
- Webroot antivirus' scored 5.5/6 in the impact on device performance department, which means it won't take up your device's resources.
- Webroot antivirus has a false-positive rate of 4/6 usability score. This represents its likelihood to mistake regular files for harmful ones.
- Webroot got a 2/6 score on its ability to detect malicious ware, which is relatively low compared to other antiviruses in the industry.
In terms of AV-Test lab available tests, the latest data available on Webroot dates back to 2019.
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AV-Comparatives
Regarding AV-Comparatives lab, Webroot has extremely outdated data, dating back to 2012. Hence it won't be discussed further.
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SE Labs
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Webroot scored (AA) overall with a total accuracy rating of 94%.
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Webroot had a score of 750/750 with 100% legitimate accuracy, meaning it accurately differentiated the products classified legitimate applications and URLs.
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In terms of protection Webroot detected 97 out of 100, blocked 92, and neutralized 3. Thus, earning a protection score of 95/100.
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Webroot antivirus had a protection accuracy rating of 335/399 (84%).
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SE Labs rank products from AAA being the highest score, AA (intermediate), and B (lowest score).
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While Webroot lacks data when it comes to third-party testing, making it hard to assess, it happens to be that the way it works is different than many other antiviruses, making it relatively incompatible with most third-party lab testing methods.
2. Firewall Protection and IDS
Webroot provides a firewall service for its users which can be toggled on and off from the main user interface. As for firewall customization, it is done through the advanced settings menu.
3. USB rescue toolkit
Webroot lacks a USB rescue toolkit. A USB rescue toolkit helps remove malicious ware that prevents your device from booting up or malicious ware that is dependant on your device booting to infect it.
If you feel that the lack of third-party testing makes Webroot's protection unreliable then we recommend you take a look at our top recommended products with plenty of data on them Norton 360 or Bitdefender.
Plans and Features
Webroot has three main plans for its home users. The Antivirus plan, the Internet Security Plus plan, and the Internet Security Complete plan.
1. Webroot Antivirus
This is the most basic of plans providing users with:
- Threat protection against viruses, malware, and ransomware.
- Identity protection that detects attempts of leaking your information out, always-on security for your identity.
- Real-time anti-phishing blocks bad sites and e-mails containing malicious URLs.
- Firewall and network connection monitor to keep track of all incoming and outgoing data.
This bundle is compatible with Windows and macOS.
2. Internet Security Plus
This plan adds to the existing features provided by the Antivirus plan a few extra features, including:
- SecureAnywhere Password Manager that ensures your passwords stay safe and encrypted for you to use when needed using a master password. Not only does it help you store your passwords, but it also creates long and intricate ones so they won't be hacked easily.
Using the same password, again and again, runs the risk of getting hacked across all your accounts when hacked on one, while using different passwords runs the risk of forgetting them.
The Internet Security Plus plan is compatible with Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android.
3. Internet Security Complete plan
This is the full package plan provided by Webroot. It adds to features provided by the Internet Security Plus and makes it even better by including:
- Eliminates traces of online activity, protecting your privacy when surfing online.
- 25GB of secure online storage so you can reliably back up your important data.
The Internet Security Complete plan is compatible with Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android.
Webroot Rollback Feature
When Webroot finds a suspicious file, it can't determine whether it's good or bad.; it places it into a 'Monitored' state. It keeps the program under strict monitoring and prohibits any irreversible actions, and journals all the revisable actions are done.
Meanwhile, it awaits judgment from the cloud analysis system server on how to proceed with every file. It will then either become blocked (if determined as bad) or allowed (if determined as harmless). If blocked, the rollback feature is initiated, and all actions and changes will be reversed, including encryption via ransomware.
User Experience
Webroot user interface is extremely easy to use. All the options you need are in front of you, with the ability to customize the settings of each section by clicking on the small gear icon next to it.
In terms of scan speed, Webroot is one of the fastest, if not the fastest, in scanning speed. It took 26 seconds to scan my PC, which is much faster than all other antiviruses.
Customer support
Customer support is provided via a web-based knowledge base and the community forums, which is a user-based web forum with discussions.
The web-based knowledge base includes information in the form of links to web pages, PDF files, and video tutorials. There's also a ticketing system if you still need help with your issue, as they answer the ticket by e-mailing the answer to you.
A live chat option was unfortunately nowhere to be found on their page.
Webroot Pricing and Payments
The prices on Webroot antivirus plans are as follows:
| Plans | Antivirus | Internet Security Plus | Internet Security Complete |
|---|---|---|---|
| One year | $29.99/1 device $37.49/3 devices |
$44.99/3 devices $69.99/5 devices |
$59.99/5 devices |
| Two years | $59.99/1 device $79.99/3 devices |
$99.99/3 devices $109.99/5 devices |
$129.99/5 devices |
| Three years | $89.99/1 device $109.99/3 devices |
$139.99/3 devices $159.99/5 devices |
$179.99/5 devices |
Payment methods
Webroot provides for its customer the following means for payment:
- Major credit cards.
- Paypal.
Money-back guarantee
Webroot provides a 70-day money-back guarantee for users to try out their product, so you can try it out for more than two months and decide.
Final Verdict
Webroot is a peculiar case when it comes to antiviruses. The unique way it functions makes most criteria implemented by third-party testing labs undermine its effectiveness. However, when considering the ones that take into account the unique way it functions, it scores well, such as the case with SE Labs.
It is one of the fastest, if not the fastest when it comes to scanning time. It is very small-sized and compact and doesn't take many resources from your system. Webroot's most definitive feature is the rollback mechanism, which allows for the decryption of files encrypted via ransomware.
Webroot definitely has something to offer. So, if you want to try out Webroot, the good news is they provide a 70-day money-back guarantee for users to try out their product!