G Data Internet Security earned high marks from independent labs AV-TEST and AV-Comparatives for its ability to effectively protect against malware with minimal impact on performance. Its SecurityCenter dashboard displays your current level of protection, including an update time stamp of when virus signatures were last installed or updated.
G DATA Internet Security includes anti-ransomware software to safeguard against such attacks and protect files that might otherwise become locked down until payment has been made.
Virus Scan
G Data Internet Security offers a full suite of security features, such as antivirus, firewall and parental controls. In addition to offering mobile app and online backup support for PCs, the software costs an annual $60 subscription for single PCs but may be significantly less costly when purchased in multi-device packages or signed up for longer subscription plans.
This program is easy to use. The dashboard’s upper menu bar features a default crimson hue; most features can be accessed via advanced menus beneath this bar, which may look unprofessional but is much simpler to navigate than many competing products’ overly-cluttered dashboards.
G Data Internet Security uses hourly updates of virus signatures to detect new threats as soon as they download, more advanced than old-style firewalls which rely on users deciding if certain unknown programs pose threats or not. It also blocks any incoming connections from hackers or any form of spyware software.
Other security features include a password manager that supports up to 20 entries, file encryption that scrambles files so they cannot be read even if stolen, malware scanning for USB devices and an anti-theft tool to keep an eye on where your laptop or tablet is when away from home or the office.
BankGuard is one of the most essential security features, protecting against malware that might attempt to gain entry and steal banking details from your computer. When activated, this feature identifies and repairs multiple malicious programs – such as banking trojans – which target online shopping or digital transactions.
As well as its standard security features, this software features a secure shredder to permanently delete files so they cannot be recovered with forensic tools – a useful addition that compliments its anti-ransomware abilities.
G Data offers an optional add-on called Mobile Security for Android and iOS that extends protection to these devices. While free to use, this product lacks real-time protection as well as anti-theft features found in other products from Bitdefender and Kaspersky that provide similar mobile protection at no extra cost.
Email Scan
G Data Internet Security’s email scanner is an important addition to its antivirus, helping prevent malware from infiltrating your PC through infected attachments. It scans both incoming and outgoing email, looking for viruses or spam-like content; keyloggers that collect passwords as you type; links leading to dangerous websites; any suspicious content will be alerted; it also features a local spam filter that automatically diverts any marked-as-spam messages into its junk folder; in addition, G Data’s keylogger blocker prevents anything typed into Notepad while blocking keylogger blockers cannot prevent you clicking suspicious links in email messages containing dangerous links!
Comprehensive exploit protection is another new feature in this version, providing defense against malware that exploits flaws in installed software. It uses multiple scanning engines to detect malicious code, while running programs are checked against potential attacks using real-time security checks. My hands-on tests confirmed its success by blocking several dangerous samples intended to spoof browsers to steal sensitive information from sensitive accounts.
GDATA’s dashboard shows your system’s current status with a color-coded menu bar: green denotes complete protection and security; yellow indicates antivirus and firewall updates may be needed; red signals that action needs to be taken immediately. At first, this may be confusing as all features of the suite are listed here; you can click any option listed to learn more; though ideally color coding would match up better with its rest of interface.
G Data offers extra features not found in top competitors such as Norton, such as parental controls and a backup tool. Plus, its price point makes it considerably less costly than similar full-scale suites that include mobile coverage; although some other providers may provide superior cloud backup systems which are vital given the prevalence of ransomware such as Locky and Petya.
Anti-Phishing
G Data employs real-time analysis and cloud-block list lookup to protect against phishing sites that try to steal login credentials. Although it fared well during my tests of this feature, Bitdefender still came out on top–those products scored higher overall.
G DATA’s antiphishing tool also does an effective job at protecting you against ransomware encrypting files or pictures and demanding payment in return, which is especially crucial since much malware of this sort targets personal data and other highly valuable files. Furthermore, its antivirus protection includes an extra layer to address common exploit techniques like switching off operating system backups or encrypting conspicuous files with unusual extensions like.locky).
G DATA offers unique settings not typically seen with other suites, including the ability to scan flash drives inserted in USB ports for malicious code and prevent devices from acting as keyboards and typing passwords on PCs unauthorized by typing passwords surreptitiously. You can also adjust virus scans, web protection and email settings, though G DATA offers less customization than some alternatives.
BankGuard, an additional feature available through Bitdefender Security Suite, helps combat banking trojans that attempt to manipulate money transfers through online banking websites by monitoring RAM content to detect and prevent alterations. Though useful, BankGuard doesn’t compare to its more advanced and comprehensive counterpart.
G DATA Security’s antivirus component excels in tests conducted by independent research organizations like AV-TEST and AV-Comparatives. It boasts strong malware detection and protection, though it does lack some of the advanced technologies found in competing suites that prevent attacks in the first place. A 10-device version is available for approximately $230 annually compared with competing suites from other vendors; additionally it comes with several extra features, such as password manager functionality as well as backup tools that store files locally as well as in Dropbox or Google Drive storage options.
Device Control
G Data Internet Security offers an encrypted storage feature to protect important documents and keep prying eyes from seeing them. From plans (dare we say?) for (incidentally?) (we daresay!) developing plans (happily ever after?), G Data has you covered! G Data offers secure document storage solutions designed to help protect these vital documents from prying eyes. Create one or more encrypted volumes resembling disk drives; they’ll only be accessible with an assigned password. Once your safe is set up, its software automatically backs up documents and other data to it. You can choose a file system for it as well as whether or not it will appear on your hard drive or be removable device – and even set read-only access so others can view its contents but cannot change them.
G Data offers adequate protection, yet their system lacks many of the advanced features found in other solutions such as Bitdefender’s suite of products. Their content blocking system covers just five categories such as drugs, hackers, violence extremism and pornography and doesn’t offer social media feed monitoring as our top pick does.
G Data’s firewall does an admirable job of monitoring how programs use your network connection, an improvement over older firewall systems that simply leave users to make these decisions themselves–usually by blindly clicking Allow or Block buttons.
G Data offers another useful feature in its ability to detect infected USB devices, unlike some competitors that require installing browser add-ons in order to do so. Instead, G Data simply checks to see if a inserted USB is a keyboard and alerts you of any attempts by it to inject malware.
G Data’s mobile management system makes an additional benefit available: keeping an eye on Android smartphones or tablets you own remotely and controlling apps installed. You can even track their use with the G Data application should one be lost; should that occur, G Data offers assistance in recovering it.
