Our smartphones and tablets carry much more personal information than we used to store on our own computers just a few years ago. Now, that smartphone in your pocket knows more about you than many of your friends do, and it’s just not what you’ve been looking at on the web, either. No, our smartphones now know our payment details, where we live, where others live, where we’ve been and more. While that all sounds a little scary, that’s the world we live in today – everything and everyone is connected. For the most part, this explosion in mobile technology has been adopted by almost everyone these days. With all of this comes a whole lot of risk. Imagine if your smartphone became compromised? Imagine if it were lost or stolen? With ESET Mobile Security & Antivirus you don’t have to fear these occurrences, as your smartphone or tablet is protected. Read on to find out what ESET Mobile Security & Antivirus can offer you.
Description: Coming from the same folk that offer the Desktop AntiVirus Suite, ESET Mobile Security & Antivirus offers a vast range of protection for either your Android smartphone or tablet. With features beyond the standard AntiVirus scanning, ESET comes with Anti-Theft measures, the ability to check up on installed apps, real-time protection, phishing protection and more. More than that though, the Premium edition comes with a comprehensive SMS and Call Filter, so you can keep on top of those pesky calls at unwanted hours. Some of the Core features of the app are free however, if you’re looking for true protection signing up for a license is a great idea. ESET Mobile Security & Antivirus is not your typical mobile antivirus app, in fact it’s highly regarded by the community. Scoring 99.7% detection rate in AV-Test’s May/June 2013 as well as scoring 99.6% detection rate in AV-Comparatives mobile test for August.
How it Works: Setting up ESET can be as easy as downloading the app from the Play Store but, if you need a little help, ESET have your back with this guide. Getting started with the app is relatively simple, all you have to do is to agree to a few things and then ESET will do the first scan of your device.
That’s the main menu of ESET Mobile Security & Antivirus. If a scan is running you’ll see a little progress wheel on the corresponding tile. ESET will also display subtle progress notifications, too. The persistent notification can be turned off in the settings.
You’ll find that ESET Mobile Security & Antivirus comes with a whole host of features. Each of which will need setting up and activating. Some of them are nice and simple to set-up, like Anti-Phishing, which scans to see if your device’s browsers are compatible, and then you just need to enable it. Only Browsers that use a Public API are supported, so your mileage may vary but as you can see Chrome and the stock Android browser are supported.
Anti-Theft is one of the more comprehensive parts of ESET and something you should definitely think of if you’re a forgetful person. Leaving your smartphone behind with all that data is never a good idea.
You’ll need to set-up some passwords, preferably something that you’ll remember. When setting up Anti-Theft measures, you’ll have to add ESET as a Device Administrator, which is easy enough.
ESET will use the current SIM-card in your device as the trusted SIM.
You can also add a trusted friend to send a message if your device has been compromised, which is pretty handy, too.
SMS commands will help you control your device when it’s out of your hands. These are pretty important so it’s worth spending the time to memorize them, maybe even write them down somewhere safe. These commands can wipe your device remotely, which is great if you have sensitive corporate data on your smartphone or tablet.
As with everything in ESET Mobile Security & Antivirus, the Anti-Theft set-up and options are transparent – giving you information on just what you’ve done and whether or not you want to keep it enabled.
A key feature of the app is the SMS and Call Filter. Which is super-easy to set-up.
ESET will list the last SMS sender, as it has done above. It’ll list their full name from contacts – if present – and their number, I’ve just blocked out information for personal reasons. That’s my girlfriend’s number there, and I have no desire to block her number so, I can go ahead and create comprehensive rules of who to block and how.
Unknown Numbers absolutely infuriate me, so being able to block them all out is really great. Once you’ve set-up your rules, you’ll be given an overview of them in the app.
You’ve seen what ESET Mobile Security & Antivirus can do so, how would you like the chance to win a 1-year Premium License Key? With help from ESET, Android Headlines will be giving away 25 1-year License Keys. The first 25 people to e-mail me at tom.dawson [at] androidheadlines.com with the subject header “ESET” will be sent a 1-year Premium License Key!
Opinion: As someone who’s been around computers since the days of Windows 95, I know how important it can be to protect your digital life. Sure, “common sense” goes a lot further on Android than it does on Windows, thanks to its Linux-roots. However, sometimes that’s not enough and for those that love to do shopping on the go from their smartphone, phishing protection is superb as too, is real-time protection. Google are doing their part by monitoring what gets into the Play Store but, we all know there’s far more out there than that. Many Android users prefer to browse the web than rely on apps – which is more true of tablet users than smartphone users – and no matter how secure Chrome or your device’s browser is, threats will often find a way. Having all of this protection under one roof in one app from ESET is great. The app itself isn’t too obtrusive and there’s minimal effects on your device’s performance, which is more than can be said of other mobile protection apps. For me, ESET Mobile Security & Antivirus is one of the best out there and I’ll be recommending it to my friends, especially those that aren’t too “tech-savvy”.
Ratings
- Speed (4/5) – Generally, ESET is quick to use and scans don’t take too much time at all. Not just that but, there was no noticeable effect to how my device performed, and the app didn’t “get in the way” at all.
- Features (5/5) – ESET Mobile Security & Antivirus pretty much has it all. From general antivirus protection to powerful Anti-Theft measures, this has everything you could want to keep your device protected – be it smartphone or tablet (SIM-Card is required for Anti-Theft measures)
- Theme (4/5) – While the font size is a little on the large side, the rest of the app looks great. Sections are divided well and options are easy to understand, and to change.
- Overall (4.5/5) – ESET Mobile Security & Antivirus is a great application for those looking for some extra protection for their Android device. It’s almost perfect, and offers one of the most comprehensive suites for mobile.
Pros
- Easy to understand interface will appeal to everyone. After all, it’s no good having these features if you don’t know how to use them.
- Great variety of features from precise antivirus detection, call filtering and anti-theft features.
- Each section of the app is divided well, and is easy to identify from one other.
- Real-time protection and Phishing protection are perfect for those using their device for business or those that do a lot of shopping.
Cons
- Font-size looks a little big on the phone app.
- Even basic call or SMS filtering isn’t available in the Free version of the app -however, there is a 30-day trial.
Conclusion: ESET Mobile Security & Antivirus offers one of the most comprehensive security packages out there for Android right now. This new and improved version now brings support to tablets, bringing your beloved Nexus 7 under its wing for the first time. With features like call filtering and enhanced Anti-Theft features, ESET Mobile Security & Antivirus has it all. Whether or not you’re a tech-savvy person is irrelevant, the UI on offer here is easy to follow and the options are easy to change. There’s no barrier for entry and just like smartphones themselves, this is an app for everyone. For those out there that really value their personal information – their credit card info, their photos, their contacts – then ESET Mobile Security & Antivirus is a must-have for your Android device. Even more so if you’re using your device’s for business. In that case, this is a no-brainer. You can try out ESET Mobile Security & Antivirus for free, so why not give it a go and get your device protected, today.