Antivirus software keeps your phone free of malware and other threats, however they also offer additional features to improve the security of your smartphone. They could include a password manager that helps protect your login credentials, VPN functionality to enhance your privacy and security and tools to help you locate and remotely erase stolen phones.
The majority of antivirus programs will check your phone on a regular basis to look for malicious software signatures that could have infected the phone. Typically, they conduct these checks according to a schedule that you set and will notify you in the event of any security issues being discovered. They will also test your Wi-Fi connection to make sure that you’re connecting to secure networks which could expose your personal data to hackers.
Depending on the company, some antiviruses might have additional features, such as anti-theft protection and call blocking. For instance, Kaspersky offers a feature that allows you to take a picture of the person trying to unlock your phone three times. It also lets you wipe or lock the device remotely. Other companies offer system tune-up tools that can get rid of junk files, speed up the performance of your device and alert you to unsafe settings or applications.
One way to assess the level of security a service offers your device is to determine how it does in the security ranking of independent labs for testing. Some of these rankings are based on the number of threats identified, while others consider things like how fast the service detects threats and removes them. Additionally, some companies go above and beyond by offering features such as a money-back guarantee or support for customers that is available 24/7.