What is our primary use case?
I work as an external consultant for a consulting and teaching company with around 50 employees. We teach courses and do examinations for customers that want to become certified once they complete the courses. In fact, I'm more than an external consultant yet I'm paid differently to a standard employee, and I'm using my whole technology infrastructure here.
I use ESET Endpoint Security on-premises at home because everyone is working from home now and no one has worked in the office for more than a year. For general security, I use the built-in Microsoft firewall and the services offered by ESET. And that's all, because I don't have servers.
ESET Endpoint Security is included on every machine that I have at home, including my wife's, my son's, and my daughters', because we're exposed to the internet. I also have routers which have some functions as a firewall, so that nobody comes into the network uninvited, and I have passwords for every access point.
I have 10 licenses in total, because I also use ESET Endpoint Security on the smartphones and some tablets as well. And in terms of maintenance, I'm the only one in charge of these networks and devices.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable thing for me is that when I'm using the internet and I reach some site that isn't so secure, or isn't recommended because they don't have a good reputation, ESET will notify me. Many times I will decide to just accept ESET's advice and I will stop visiting that website. In some very rare cases, I go through to the site anyway because I already know that it's secure.
What needs improvement?
Sometimes, ESET sends alerts within my own network that cause confusion. That is, it might warn about contamination, or that the VM has crashed, but it doesn't go further than that. It just shows me the alert and sometimes I am not sure what to do about it.
Regarding email security, I would like something more when it comes to preventing phishing attacks. With some of the emails I've received, I have found things that made me refuse to open them, but ESET does not seem to notice. I think that I should be better advised of problematic situations concerning potential phishing emails.
In general, I also think that there could be more in the way of advanced threat detection, for identifying advanced malware and the like. Having an extra service that could detect more advanced malware than typical antivirus software does may be very expensive to have on my entire premises, but I would consider it.
Then, when it comes to the smart TV and the printer, I can't really figure out what's happening when there's a problem. For example, it's difficult to find out whether the appliance has been attacked or not, and it's not so easy to see what is actually going on in the case of a malicious situation.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using ESET Endpoint Security for four years now.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
My impression of stability is good. It's a stable product and it's not very obstructive. I have used other software like ESET Endpoint Security and it was impossible to work because the machine kept filling up with files that they were trying to send back to their company.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
I don't have a need to implement ESET Endpoint Security for more than 10 machines, so I don't know how they would handle a higher volume. I'm not sure how I could automate that, in terms of how to download the new versions, and all the security signatures, etc. I assume it can be done, but I have no idea.
How are customer service and technical support?
I haven't spoken with ESET technical support yet because I've never had a reason to.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I have previously used the antivirus software from both McAfee and Norton. In fact, my technical support consultant has been recommending that I go back to Norton, and I'm not against the idea, but I would need to have a better comparison to make the switch.
How was the initial setup?
The setup was simple. I set it up manually by installing it on every machine I have. So it was not an automatic process, but it is straightforward enough. It took only 10 minutes per machine.
Where I had a problem was with the smart TVs. It was supposed to function there, but on the HiSense TV I got stuck because I think that the operating system is not the correct version for it to work.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I pay about $100 a year, so it's really cheap. I'm sure that if I need something else beyond more technical support, I'll need to pay more.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
In the past year I have evaluated Norton, but as I told my technical support consultant, I don't have enough information to make a change. I'm glad to have what I have, even though I know it could be better.
What other advice do I have?
I have recommended ESET Endpoint Security to friends and colleagues already. As a technical person, I would recommend it based on its performance and the way in which it does not block you or get in the way when doing work. Although it could do more with preventing phishing, it catches most other problems.
The solution is very good for what it is sold as, which is not necessarily a complete solution for security. And I would say that I got what I paid for.
I would rate ESET Endpoint Security a seven out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Other (consultant)