How to choose antivirus software in Australia

Write the requirement before you open a plan

A buying decision made by reading vendor pages is a decision made on the vendor's terms. Every feature list is arranged to make its own product look complete, and because no two vendors use the same vocabulary, three lists side by side produce confusion rather than a comparison. The fix is unglamorous: decide what you need before you look at what is offered.

The requirement is short. On one sheet of paper, or one note on your phone, write the number of devices in the household and the operating system each one runs. Add anything specific: a family member who downloads a lot of software, a machine used for a small business, a teenager's phone where you want some parental control, a laptop your employer manages and which you should not install anything on without asking. Write the annual amount in AUD you are prepared to spend at renewal, not just in the first year. That sheet is now your filter.

Everything else on this page assumes you have it. If you would like help producing it, the device and licence planning page takes the counting step in detail, including the cases where a device does not need a licence at all.

The sequence, step by step

1. Establish your baseline

   Check what your devices already run. Current versions of Windows and macOS include security tooling as part of the operating system, and mobile platforms restrict what an application can do in ways that change what antivirus software on a phone can usefully offer. The Australian Cyber Security Centre's guidance for individuals and families, published at cyber.gov.au, is a reasonable plain-language reference for what the baseline measures are and why updates and backups matter as much as any product.

2. Name the gap you are paying to close

   Write one sentence that says what the subscription is for. Examples: cover for four family phones that have nothing on them at all; a single tool the household can manage centrally rather than four separate ones; support you can contact when something goes wrong. If you cannot write the sentence, the honest conclusion is that you do not yet know what you would be buying.

3. Shortlist on coverage, not on feature count

   Take your device sheet and discard any plan that does not cover the platforms on it within its licence limit. This usually removes most of the field in a minute, and it removes it on a criterion that is objective rather than persuasive.

4. Compare the survivors on the same terms

   Two or three plans deserve a proper comparison, and it should be written down. Use a table with one row per requirement drawn from your sheet, not one row per feature drawn from the vendors' lists. The comparison method page provides a blank table and the rules for filling it in.

5. Read the renewal and cancellation terms

   On the vendor's own site, find the renewal price, the term length, whether the subscription renews automatically, how to switch that off, and the refund window. Take a screenshot. These terms are the part of the purchase most likely to be different from what you assumed, and the part you will need evidence of if there is a dispute.

6. Buy from the vendor, and keep the record

   Buy through the vendor's own checkout or a retailer you recognise, and keep the confirmation email, the invoice and the licence key together somewhere you will find them in eleven months. Note the renewal date in your calendar with a reminder a fortnight ahead. That reminder is the single most useful thing in this entire sequence.

7. Check it once, then leave it alone

   After installing, confirm the software reports itself as active and that its updates are automatic, and confirm you have not ended up with two real-time scanners running at once, which tends to make a computer slower without making it safer. Then stop thinking about it until the reminder fires.

The price that matters is the second one

Consumer security software is commonly sold on an introductory term: a lower price for the first year, and a higher price when the subscription renews. Both figures are legitimate, but only one of them describes what the product costs to keep. Over three years, the renewal price dominates the total, and it is usually the figure printed smallest.

Work in AUD and work out the three-year total before you decide. Then check three things on the vendor's site: whether the subscription renews automatically by default, how many days before renewal you are notified, and how to cancel. In Australia, the practical protection against an unwanted renewal is a calendar reminder set by you, not a policy.

What the Australian Consumer Law gives you

Software bought by a consumer in Australia comes with consumer guarantees that apply regardless of what a vendor's own terms say. In broad terms, goods and services must match their description and be fit for the purpose they were represented as serving, and a business cannot contract out of those guarantees. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission administers the Australian Consumer Law and publishes guidance on consumer guarantees and on what to do when a business will not resolve a complaint.

Two practical consequences follow. First, a refund claim is stronger when you can show what was represented at the time you bought: this is why the screenshot in step five is worth taking. Second, misleading conduct in trade is enforced against the business that made the representation. That applies to this site as much as to any vendor, which is part of why nothing here is stated as fact unless it is linked to a source or drawn from the vendor's own published material.

If a dispute cannot be resolved with the business directly, the ACCC's site explains the escalation routes, including the consumer affairs or fair trading body in your state or territory.

Working the sequence on a real product

TotalAV is the product used as the worked example throughout this site. It is consumer antivirus and device-security software sold on a subscription basis, with applications for desktop computers running Windows, macOS and Linux, for Android and iOS mobile devices, and for tablets. It is available to customers in Australia.

Running the sequence above against it means: checking the licence limit against your device sheet; reading the current plan contents on the vendor's site rather than from any third party; finding the renewal price and the cancellation route; and keeping the record. The TotalAV overview page lists the specific questions to answer, including several the vendor does not address in its marketing and which you will need to look up in the account or billing terms.

Visit the TotalAV website

Paid link. Polaris Network is paid a commission if you subscribe after following it. The price you pay is the vendor's ordinary price and is not affected.

What to watch out for

Questions people ask

Do I need paid antivirus software if my computer already includes security tools?

Not necessarily. Current versions of Windows and macOS include security tooling in the operating system, so a paid subscription is an addition rather than a replacement for nothing. The useful question is what the addition gives you that you actually want, such as covering several devices under one licence, parental controls, or a support channel to contact. If you cannot name the addition, you probably do not need to buy it.

Does antivirus software on a phone work the same way as on a computer?

No. Mobile operating systems restrict what any application can see of other applications, so a security app on a phone generally cannot scan the whole device the way desktop software can. Mobile versions typically concentrate on web and link filtering, app permission checks and device location features. Compare mobile and desktop offerings on what they actually do on each platform, not on the assumption that a licence covers the same capability everywhere.

How many devices should one subscription cover?

Count the devices you actually use, not the number in the house. Machines that are switched off in a drawer, or a work laptop managed by an employer, should usually be left out. Buying a larger licence than you need is the most common way households overspend on this category.

What should I do if I think I have already been scammed?

Contact your bank first if money or card details are involved, then report the scam to Scamwatch at scamwatch.gov.au, which is run by the National Anti-Scam Centre. Cyber incidents such as account takeover or ransomware can be reported through the Australian Cyber Security Centre at cyber.gov.au. Software you buy afterwards does not undo a payment; the bank and the reporting services are the relevant steps.

Is a bundled VPN a reason to choose one plan over another?

Only if you have a use for it. A VPN routes your traffic through another company's servers, which is a privacy and public-network tool rather than an antivirus feature. Bundled versions sometimes carry data limits or a smaller choice of servers than the same vendor's standalone product, so check the specific terms of the bundled version rather than assuming it matches the advertised standalone one.

Related reading on this site

• How antivirus software works — what the detection methods behind the feature names actually do.
• Device coverage and licence planning — the counting step, in detail.
• Comparing antivirus features — the blank table and the method for filling it in.
• Online safety help in Australia — which government service to contact, and when.