ESET has three levels of home security software: Essential, Premium, and Ultimate. The differences between these levels tell you a lot about how the antivirus market has changed. Essential includes the antivirus protection that ESET was built on. Premium adds data encryption, file security and a VPN on top of that core protection. Ultimate sits at the top and includes the features you’d otherwise buy separately: an unlimited VPN, identity protection with credit monitoring, ransomware remediation that restores files instead of blocking the attack, and the browser privacy tools that round out the package. The Slovak company has been building security software for over 30 years and its NOD32 engine — the detection core that has won more than 100 VB100 awards — lies underneath every tier, even this one.
The logic of a top tier like Ultimate is that protecting a modern digital life means more than just catching viruses Identity theft can occur without malware ever touching a person’s machine. Their data could be exposed in a breach at a company they did business with. Advertisers can track their web browsing. Ultimate deals with those issues as well as the usual malware danger and protects up to 10 devices with each subscription, with the option to protect more devices with larger plans. ESET currently does not have an antivirus for iOS, but some privacy and identity features are available for iPhone and iPad.
Key Features
NOD32 Detection Engine
Ultimate’s core malware protection is powered by ESET’s NOD32 engine that combines signature detection, machine learning, and behavioral analysis. LiveGrid’s reputation system is based on data from over 110 million endpoints around the world, so when a new threat is discovered on one machine, the information about it is shared to protect other machines. ESET’s reputation in independent testing has always come down to a combination of high detection rates and a light system footprint — the engine has traditionally run with less performance impact than many of its competitors, which matters for those who feel the pain of security software slowing their machine down.
Ransomware Detection & Recovery
Two layers are about ransomware. Ransomware Shield detects and stops the encryption activity ransomware uses to lock your files, before it can lock your files. Ransomware Remediation, a feature found only in the Ultimate tier and ESET’s small business product, takes this a step further by automatically backing up files targeted by ransomware and restoring them if an attack slips past the shield. The difference matters because blocking an attack and recovering from an attack are two different problems, and Remediation addresses the recovery side that detection does not.
VPN Unlimited
Ultimate includes a VPN with unlimited bandwidth and servers in some 70 countries. It encrypts your connection and hides your IP address so your activity can’t be tracked, and it protects all of the devices on the subscription. The VPN for Router option protects all the devices on a home network with a single installation and provides VPN protection for devices that cannot run the app directly, e.g. smart TVs and gaming consoles.
Identity Theft Protection
The identity protection part checks if the user’s personal and financial information is showing up where it shouldn’t be. It also scans the dark web for the user’s data in breach databases, offers credit inquiry alerts, credit score tracking and simulation, and ongoing credit report monitoring. It also offers recovery and reimbursement services to victims of identity theft. “Credit monitoring is a step up from the breach alerts that most security suites offer.
Password manager
Password manager The built-in password manager saves login credentials in an encrypted vault, generates strong passwords, autofills logins, and syncs across devices on the subscription. It provides password management without the need for a separate subscription to a dedicated service.
Encryption Data
Ultimate encrypts sensitive files and removable media, particularly USB drives, with strong encryption. The idea is to protect data if a device or drive gets lost or stolen: an encrypted USB drive that falls into the wrong hands reveals nothing without the key. The feature also supports secure data sharing, enabling files to be encrypted before they are passed to another person.
Safe Browser and Folder Guard
When you use online banking or a web-based cryptocurrency wallet, it automatically launches a secure browser mode. This encrypts the communication between the keyboard and the browser so that keyloggers cannot capture your financial transactions. ESET Folder Guard protects selected folders by allowing only trusted applications to change the contents of the folder, preventing malware or unknown programs from making unauthorized changes.
ESET HOME Management ESET HOME is the platform that manages all of this, showing the security status of all devices on the account, managing licenses and giving central control over protection across the user’s devices from one interface.
