Total Defense Review: Is It a Solid Solution in 2024?

#1 Total Defense Review in 2024

Total Defense has been around since 2011, but it's not as well-known as some other antivirus brands. I decided to thoroughly examine and see how it really performs. Is it worth your time and money? Can it protect you from the latest threats?

In this extensive Total Defense review, I'll share my hands-on experience with Total Defense Ultimate Internet Security. I've spent several weeks testing every feature, running scans, and seeing how it holds up against malware and other online dangers.

Here's what you'll learn in this Total Defense review:

• How well it protects against viruses, ransomware, and web threats
• The extra features like parental controls, and PC optimization
• How much impact it has on system performance
• If it's user-friendly for both beginners and advanced users
• How it compares to other top antivirus solutions

Let's jump in and see what Total Defense is really made of!

In a Hurry? Here's a Quick Summary

If you don't have time to read the full review, here's a quick overview of what I found for this Total Defense review:

What You'll Like:

• Easy installation process
• Intuitive user interface
• Effective web protection against malicious sites
• Includes 25 GB online backup
• Parental controls work well across devices

What You May Not Like:

• Limited customization options for advanced users
• PC optimization features are somewhat basic
• No password manager included
• Support options could be expanded

What Makes This Total Defense Review Different?

Many antivirus reviews you'll find online are just repeating information from the company's website. They don't actually install and test the software themselves. That's not how I do things.

For this Total Defense review, I purchased a subscription, installed it on my own devices, and spent weeks putting it through its paces. I ran it on my Dell XPS laptop with an Intel i7 processor and 16 GB of RAM, running Windows 11.

I tested every single feature, ran multiple types of scans, tried to access malicious websites, and even used ransomware simulation tools. I wanted to see how Total Defense would perform in real-world scenarios.

Throughout this review, you'll find over 20 screenshots I took during my testing. These give you an inside look at the interface, features, and how Total Defense actually works on a day-to-day basis.

My goal is to give you an honest, first-hand account of what it's like to use Total Defense, so you can decide if it's the right choice for your needs.

Buying Total Defense

I decided to go with Total Defense Ultimate Internet Security, which is their most comprehensive package for home users. Compared to their other options (Essential Anti-Virus and Premium Internet Security), the Ultimate version includes some nice extras like PC optimization, automatic software updates, and more online backup space.

The buying process was simple. Here's how it went:

1. I selected the 1-year subscription option.
2. Created a Total Defense account with my email and a password.
3. Entered my payment details (I used a debit card, but PayPal is also available).
4. Placed the order and received an order confirmation page.

After completing the purchase, I was able to immediately download the installer for Windows. They also provide installers for Android and Mac if you want to protect multiple devices.

I received a confirmation email with my order details, activation code, and instructions for installation. Overall, the process was quick and efficient and took just a few minutes.

Installation

Installing Total Defense was a breeze. The whole process took less than a minute, which is pretty impressive. Here's a quick rundown of what to expect:

The Total Defense installation process is quick and straightforward

1. Run the installer you downloaded.
2. Choose your language (only English and Spanish are available).
3. Select where you want to install the software.

That's it! Once installation finished, Total Defense automatically opened and started updating its virus definitions. It also ran an initial optimization scan.

I appreciate how simple they've made the setup process. It's great for less tech-savvy users who might be uncomfortable with complicated installations.

Interface

The first thing I noticed about Total Defense's interface is how clean and user-friendly it is. They've gone with a dark theme, which I personally like, though it would be nice to have a light mode option.

The Total Defense dashboard provides easy access to key features

The layout is pretty standard for antivirus software:

• On the left, you'll find tabs for the main features: Home, Security, Devices, Family Protection, Performance, Vulnerability, Online Backup, Settings, and Support.
• The Home tab gives you an overview of your security status and quick access to important features.
• In the upper right corner, there's a button to access your account and online backup portal.

One thing to note is that the interface isn't adjustable. However, I found the default size to be perfectly adequate - not too big or too small.

Overall, I think Total Defense has done a good job with their UI. It's intuitive enough for beginners but still gives you access to more advanced features if you need them.

Major Features

Now let's examine the main features of Total Defense and see how well they perform.

Web Protection

In today's online environment, a lot of threats come from the web. That's why effective web protection is crucial for any antivirus solution. Total Defense includes several web protection features that you can find under Security > Settings > Web Protection:

Web protection settings in Total Defense

Key features include:

• Website malware scanner: Scans visited websites for malware, phishing, and fraud.
• Powershell exploit protection: Prevents attacks that use Powershell.
• Windows firewall zones: Lets you enable or disable protection for private, public, and domain networks.

To test how well these features work for this Total Defense review, I visited several known malicious websites. Here's what I found:

• Maliciouswebsitetest.com - Blocked
• WICAR test page - Blocked 13 out of 13 threats
• AMTSO security features check - Blocked 14 out of 15 threats
• EICAR test file download - Blocked 4 out of 4 attempts

When Total Defense blocks a dangerous webpage, it shows a warning message like this:

Total Defense warning when blocking a malicious website

I was impressed with how well Total Defense performed in these tests. It successfully blocked almost all the threats I threw at it. The one miss on the AMTSO test is a bit concerning, but overall, the web protection seems solid.

Scan

Of course, one of the most important features of any antivirus is its ability to scan your system for threats. Total Defense offers several types of scans Quick, System, Full, and Custom:

Total Defense offers multiple scan types to choose from

Quick Scan

The quick scan looks for threats in common hiding places. In my Total Defense review tests, it took just 1 minute and 4 seconds to scan 94,738 files. It didn't find any threats on my system, which is what I expected.

Results of a Total Defense quick scan

System Scan

This scan checks all running processes and loaded libraries. It took 1 minute and 47 seconds, scanning 16,643 files. Again, no threats were detected.

System scan results in Total Defense

Full Scan

The full scan is the most comprehensive, checking your entire system for threats. It took 24 minutes and 20 seconds to scan 826,398 files on my computer. Interestingly, it detected and quarantined 2 threats that the other scans missed.

Full scan results showing detected threats

Custom Scan

You can also set up custom scans for specific files or folders. This is useful if you want to check a particular area of your system.

Scheduled Scan

Total Defense allows you to set up automatic scans on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. You can choose when the scan runs and how it behaves (minimized, maximized, or in the background).

Setting up a scheduled scan in Total Defense

Overall, I found the scanning options in Total Defense to be comprehensive and efficient. The scans were reasonably quick, and I appreciate the flexibility of the custom and scheduled scan options.

Privacy Protection

Total Defense includes a privacy protection feature that monitors which apps are using your camera or microphone. You can enable this in Security > Settings > Privacy.

Privacy protection settings in Total Defense

This feature alerts you when an app tries to access your camera or microphone. You can also set up exclusions for apps you trust. While it's not as comprehensive as some dedicated privacy tools, it's a nice addition to have built into your antivirus.

Device Management

If you're using Total Defense on multiple devices (you can install it on up to 10 with the Ultimate version), the device management feature is really handy.

Managing multiple devices in Total Defense

From the Devices window, you can see details about each device, including:

• Last scan date
• Last update
• Number of threats resolved
• Amount of data backed up
• Last optimization

You can also rename devices and change their avatar images. This makes it easy to keep track of all your protected devices in one place.

Ransomware Protection

Ransomware is one of the most dangerous types of malware out there, so effective protection is crucial. To test the ransomware protection for this Total Defense review, I used a ransomware simulator.

The results were pretty good - Total Defense successfully stopped 16 out of 22 ransomware simulation scenarios. This is above average, considering that most antivirus solutions, including Kaspersky and TotalAV, stop around 15 out of 22 or more.

While it's not perfect, it does show that Total Defense is capable of protecting against most ransomware attacks. Just remember that no antivirus is 100% foolproof, so it's always important to have good backup practices as well.

Parental Control

If you have kids, you'll appreciate the Family Protection feature in Total Defense. It allows you to set up profiles for your children and control what content they can access, when they can use their devices, and for how long.

Setting up parental controls in Total Defense

To use this feature:

1. Go to the Family Protection tab and sign in.
2. Enable the family protection shield.
3. Add child profiles (you'll need to have Windows user accounts set up for your children).

Adding a child profile in Total Defense

Once you've set up a child profile, you can:

• View reports on blocked sites and categories
• Set time limits for device usage
• Configure site filters to block certain categories of websites

Configuring parental control settings

You can also set up email notifications about parental control reports and alerts.

Setting up parental control notifications

In my Total Defense review tests, the parental controls worked well. When a child tries to access a blocked site, they see a message like this:

Message shown when a site is blocked by parental controls

Overall, I found the parental control features in Total Defense to be robust and easy to use. It's a valuable tool for parents who want to keep their kids safe online.

Performance Optimization

Total Defense includes features to help keep your computer running smoothly. The Performance tab lets you scan for issues related to speed, stability, and performance.

Performance optimization options in Total Defense

You can customize which types of issues to scan for in the Settings section. For example, you might choose not to scan for driver updates or registry fixes.

In my tests, the performance scan took about 5 minutes and found 36 issues. I was able to fix these with one click, which is convenient.

Results of a performance scan in Total Defense

You can also schedule these scans to run automatically on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis.

While the performance optimization features aren't as comprehensive as dedicated PC cleaning tools, they're a nice addition to have built into your antivirus software.

Vulnerability Scanner

The vulnerability scanner in Total Defense checks for outdated software on your computer and can update them automatically. This helps ensure that known security flaws are patched.

Results of a vulnerability scan in Total Defense

In my tests for this Total Defense review, it found 3 vulnerable apps in just over a minute. Updating these apps took only another minute.

Updating vulnerable apps in Total Defense

The list of supported apps isn't huge, but it does cover popular software like Adobe Reader and Google Chrome. You can set up automatic scans to run daily, weekly, or monthly.

Setting up scheduled vulnerability scans

This feature is particularly useful for keeping your system secure, as outdated software is a common entry point for malware.

Online Backup

One feature that sets Total Defense apart from many other antivirus solutions is its built-in online backup. This allows you to create copies of important files and store them securely in the cloud.

Online backup interface in Total Defense

With the Ultimate version, you get 25 GB of cloud storage. You can select which files and folders to back up, and restore them if they're ever lost or deleted from your computer.

Managing backup settings in Total Defense

You can schedule automatic backups and manage your backed-up data through an online portal accessible from any device. This is a great feature for ensuring your important files are safe, even if something happens to your physical device.

System Performance Impact

For my tests, I used a Dell XPS laptop with an Intel i7-1065G7 CPU @ 1.30GHz and 16 GB of RAM running on Windows 11. Here's what I found:

• While inactive: Total Defense uses minimal CPU and about 350 MB of RAM
• During a full scan: Uses about 70% CPU power and 350 MB of RAM

The CPU usage during a full scan is above the average of 25% for most antivirus programs. However, the RAM consumption is slightly above the typical 300 MB.

Overall, I didn't notice any significant performance issues while using Total Defense. It seems to be well-optimized and shouldn't cause performance problems on most modern systems.

Total Defense Review: Conclusions

After spending several weeks meticulously testing the antivirus solution, here are my final thoughts for this Total Defense review:

• Solid protection: Total Defense performed well in my malware and web protection tests. It successfully blocked most threats I threw at it.
• User-friendly: The interface is clean and easy to navigate. Even novices should have no trouble using the main features.
• Useful extras: I appreciate the inclusion of features like online backup, parental controls, and performance enhancement. These add value beyond basic antivirus protection.
• Fast scans: The various scan options were quick to complete and didn't hinder my system.
• Room for improvement: While generally good, some areas could be enhanced. The PC enhancement features are somewhat basic compared to dedicated products.

Is Total Defense the best antivirus out there? Probably not. But it's a solid, well-rounded option that should meet the needs of most home users. It provides good protection without being overly complicated or system-intensive.

If you're looking for a reliable antivirus solution with some useful extra features, Total Defense is definitely worth considering. It might not have the brand recognition of some competitors like Norton, Bitdefender, or McAfee, but it gets the job done effectively.

Octav Fedor (Cybersecurity Editor)

Octav is a cybersecurity researcher and writer at AntivirusGuide. When he’s not publishing his honest opinions about security software online, he likes to learn about programming, watch astronomy documentaries, and participate in general knowledge competitions.