windows defender free download for windows 10

Or you may have run into an issue where Microsoft Defender is blocking the installation of a legitimate, safe app because it believes it is malicious so you need to temporarily disable it - it certainly wouldn’t be the first time someone has had this problem. If you’re looking to install a third-party antivirus app, Microsoft Defender may not be able to coexist with it and will need to be disabled. However, there are several reasons why you may want to disable it.

You also have the option of requiring security data to be shared with the administrator who owns the Family Safety account that the devices are connected to.Source: Shutterstock Why Turn off Microsoft Defender?įor a free anti-malware app, Microsoft Defender works pretty well. Naturally, if it finds anything, it will pop up a notification. Microsoft Defender sniffs links that you access on your phone to ensure you’re not downloading malware, and also investigates any apps already on your phone to ensure that they’re not known to harbor malware. Yes, Google and Android work behind the scenes to protect your phone, but Microsoft Defender works to soothe that portion of your brain that seeks visible proof that your phone is being protected. On a phone, at least, Microsoft Defender is much more straightforward.

(Pulling out and cleaning up portions of Windows and repurposing them in other portions of Windows seems to be fairly common these days.) We don’t know, however, if Microsoft Defender will eventually replace Windows Security. In fact, Microsoft Defender simply cleans up the “Virus and Threat Detection” dashboard from the Windows Security portion of Windows Defender and presents it in a modern, Windows 11-ish style. Defender will also protect against browsing to unsafe sites on Android and iOS, too.įrom a PC perspective, Microsoft Defender Preview doesn’t appear to do anything materially different from the Windows Defender that’s already on your PC. (Windows Defender Firewall still appears in the Control Panel.) The new Microsoft Defender for Individuals offers antimalware protection for both Macs and PCs, and Android.

The name itself is a bit confusing, since Windows Defender was previously the name of Windows’ own security system, now renamed Microsoft Security.

Windows defender free download for windows 10