Windows Security Essentials is available on Windows 7 and Windows 10. I'm using Windows Defender, and the agent is deployed on-premises on my laptop. I don't know if it has some background cloud services.
I use it for flash memories, portable memories, real-time scanning, threat protection, and capturing the data downloaded from the internet.
I am using it for very simple purposes. It is perfect and quite effective. I have been using it for a while, and I have never had any virus infection, data leak, or other security breaches.
It works fine for standalone purposes. If you log on to OneDrive, it has ransomware protection.
Windows Firewall is integrated with Windows Defender. Over the last few days, I have had a problem with defining a wildcard on Windows Firewall. For example, I wanted to pull out the connection of my program and install a software package with a lot of executable files. I wanted to prevent it from accessing the internet. I could not select executables by using a wildcard. I had to select a single executable with its full name.
I've been using this solution for five years or more.
It is very stable.
I don't know about scalability because I have always used it on a single laptop, but I'm sure that there are business options, and you can use it on Windows 7 computers. It must be very scalable.
I live in Iran, and there is no product support in Iran. If there is a technical issue, I prefer to use online information and resources, such as forums and Wiki pages, to resolve the issue.
It is very easy to install. It is preinstalled when you install Windows. If you install other antiviruses, you have to deactivate it in order to use third-party products.
Microsoft has started to integrate the interface with new Windows 10 settings. Previously, there was a lack of information. Users weren't aware of the status of the product in terms of what it was doing on your computer and whether it was actually protecting you or not. In the background, it must have been doing its job, but you couldn't be very well aware of the status of the software. All those issues are now resolved. The information now is very handy, and the user interface is also great. I would recommend this solution to others.
I would rate Microsoft Defender Antivirus a nine out of ten.
We use it at home on some personal machines at home, and there are a few machines inside of the Enterprise that has it.
We use this solution for general antivirus protection.
We like that it has a free version available.
The frequency of the patching, and the frequency of the updates, are not included with the free version.
The platform I used in the past would check every hour and deploy every two hours down to the client, every patch that came through.
It was actively looking for updates, the latest threats, which is something that the Microsoft Defender product did not have in the free version.
The Enterprise version that we had, didn't have visibility. If somebody were to uninstall it or turn it off, I'd have trouble seeing that easily. There are tools that I can install, but from a reporting standpoint who has it on and off is included with the Enterprise package that you pay for, or it comes included with Office 365 Enterprise, but not in the free version.
We have been using Microsoft Defender for Endpoint for two and a half years.
We are using the latest version. It is always up-to-date.
We had absolutely no issues with the stability of Microsoft Defender for Endpoint. We did not experience any bugs or glitches.
It is pretty easy to scale. it was basically one click to agree that you wanted to use it.
We did not contact technical support.
Previously, we were using another solution and were forced to uninstall it to patch Windows. It was an annoyance to reinstall it.
The initial setup was straightforward. It was extremely simple.
We are using the free version.
When you are centrally managing it, you can't get there without a much more expensive Microsoft solution to control the rollout and to make sure that it is up-to-date.
We didn't research that, it was a stop-gap measure until we figured out what we're going to do in the long term.
We are looking into a product that gets into the EDR, XDR, the fully managed patching, and everything else, versus just the anti-virus that package includes.
I would rate Microsoft Defender for Endpoint and eight out of ten.
I haven't experienced any problems.
They could improve the information about how they are dealing with people who could attack minors. This is my main concern.
Another concern is ransomware, whether people can penetrate and encrypt my data or steal my credit card/banking information.
I have been using it since 2019.
It performs well. The stability is seamless.
Scalability is not a problem because we don't have servers. We don't do anything more with the computers than use them for studies, reading papers and books, watching movies, and communicating with our family. So, we don't need to scale up.
If they could send me more information, then I could evaluate, read more, and give them opinions. For example, if someone tells me about a problem, then I can give solutions and also write to Microsoft regarding this information.
From the beginning of the pandemic, we received another kind of software when we had to be at home, but it caused us problems with the performance. So, I decided to quit the other software. Then, I installed Windows Defender on all my computers, including my grandchildren's computers.
I was using Sophos previously, but it was causing problems with the performance. For example, when my grandchildren were trying to assume a session, they opened Excel or Word with a 4 GB computer using Windows 10 and then they always lost the connection or the continuities because the computer slowed down. However, when we decided to quit using Sophos and install all the features of Windows Defender, then those problems were resolved.
The initial setup is very easy and straightforward.
My deployment process: I put some checks in the questions that they have. It was very easy. I read about it in the tutorial. I installed it on my entire family's computers (six computers) in less than half an hour.
It is free.
We are totally satisfied with performance and price. However, there is still the question, "Is it safe and secure enough for home, primary-school-age children, and minors?" Despite having a Masters degree in Computer Sciences and Mathematics, I have not been able to say if Microsoft is doing bad or good things.
Many companies may say that they have the best product, but I recommend always watching the news about what a company is doing. Stay informed. Don't be complacent.
The solution is a nine out of 10.
We are using it for protection. We had a request from one of our customers, and we just started to implement it. We don't have any great idea about it. We are in the process of implementing it for the first time.
We are using its latest version. It is on-prem. The problem with going for a cloud version is that most of our customers prefer to work with on-prem solutions. So, we need all the features to be available on-prem as well as on the cloud.
We have just started to implement it. It is useful for protection from malware and ransomware. We are not exactly sure about zero-day, but we are trying to see if it will be effective for everyday antivirus purposes.
Auto recovery is the most important feature that we would need from this solution. For decryption, similar to Malwarebytes, there should be something to be able to recover the data up to the last normal status. Its ability to recover data to the last normal copy must not exceed 5 to 10 minutes.
We just started to use it.
We need to test its functionality in heavy environments.
Their support could be faster through the phone. The support through chat is very unuseful. It takes a lot of time and effort and but does not help in any way. We provide the first line of support to customers, so it is not a big issue for us.
We work on most of the protection products, such as Kaspersky, Malwarebytes. We normally use a lot of them. We had a request from one of our customers, so we started to implement Microsoft Defender for Endpoint.
Its initial setup is straightforward. The solution itself doesn't take more than 15 to 20 minutes, but the configuration duration depends on the environment, such as the number of policies, users, etc. It will vary according to the environment in which you are doing the implementation.
We implement it ourselves. Currently, we have only one customer of this solution.
Its price is fair. It has approximately the same price as the other products such as Kaspersky. It is much cheaper than Malwarebytes.
I would rate Microsoft Defender for Endpoint a seven out of 10.
The product is useful for projects, finding tech, and finding firewall actions on computers.
There's no impact on other applications. Most other solutions have more of a possibility of an impact on other applications and due to that, you must make some special configurations to those other applications. The Microsoft Defender impact is very small.
The intelligence mechanisms are good.
The initial setup is easy.
We have found the technical support to be helpful.
The detection of viruses could be a little bit better.
We've used the solution for maybe two years.
Our company is only a small company. We only have 10 people who use the solution. However, we have clients who have a lot of users.
We likely will increase usage in the future.
We've been in touch with technical support. Their level of support is fine and they are very fast. We are satisfied with their level of service.
We had some problem and, after four hours, we had new signatures for the environment by our customers for more than a thousand clients so that we can protect and improve the new setup. It was a very quick turnaround.
The initial setup is not difficult. It's simple. We have just rolled it out to 6,000 clients which have been, by far, more than other customers we've had so far. We have deployed a Microsoft configuration.
In the environment, we needed one or two days to deploy it. In smaller environments, you only need two hours of work.
It can be done by technical personnel in-house. If they have good knowledge of Microsoft environments, and how to use Microsoft tools, then it's easy.
It's always good if you know how to use OutShare. With OutShare, you can make many things extremely effective and extremely easy.
It is possible to handle it in-house if you have a knowledgeable team. We implement the solution for our clients.
Clients need to pay a yearly licensing fee.
This is an on-premise solution where all connections have a cloud connection.
I would recommend the solution to other companies. I'd rate the solution at a nine out of ten.
We use this solution and we also implement it for customers. We mainly use it for its anti-malware and threat protection capabilities. If a client comes to us who uses Office 365, then we suggest this solution.
At the moment we have between 10 to 50 customers.
We definitely plan to keep using this solution. We're currently just pushing out all other solutions because they're not integrated and they have additional deployment costs. The only thing which is a bit peculiar is that you need to convince the customer that you're not talking about an antivirus solution. If we do, then they end up comparing things that are incomparable.
The primary advantage is that you don't need to install it. It's included in the Windows 10 delivery.
It's part of the Microsoft 365 suite, so it's integrated. We also use it for collaboration with other components within the suite. These two things are the most important for us at the moment.
Some integration components for Mac should be added. We use both Windows 10 desktops and Mac desktops, but presently, the Mac component is still lagging a bit behind. However, I think this is a temporary case.
I have been using Microsoft Defender for roughly one year.
On Mac, it's quite unstable and unusable; however, it's very stable for Windows. We're content with what it does and how it works.
It's on the cloud, so scalability is not an issue.
We've had no problems with customer support.
There's no installation to be done on the device itself, so it's quite easy. Configuration takes roughly two to three days.
Our company acts as both a consultant and integrator.
Licensing options vary. Some customers buy it as an enterprise agreement and pay yearly. Others buy it as a CSP, so they pay per month. It completely depends on the customer's needs.
Overall, on a scale from one to ten, I would give this solution a rating of nine. Some integration components on Mac should be improved. It should be more stable on Mac. If they fixed this, I would give it a rating of ten.
We use it for antivirus. You can use it for malware and Zero Trust. Some people use it for fact-checking too. I can also use it with Intune, which is good.
We deploy Microsoft Defender on all kinds of devices, including Microsoft, iOS, and Mac.
Auto-remediation: When the product sees malware, it resolves the issue immediately. This protects the machine.
I like the tamper protection. For example, if I buy a notebook with Windows 10 and put Microsoft Defender on it, then I can activate the tamper protection. This keeps people from entering the machine, encrypting it, and changing passwords.
Microsoft Defender is fully integrated with Azure Sentinel. In addition, GPO can be connected with Microsoft Defender and Azure AD.
It needs to improve the cybersecurity for lateral movements. For example, when a hacker tries to enter a machine, they try to get the password by doing a lateral movement.
With Windows 10, version 18.0.3, I couldn't see the documentation to open the ports. If you don't open the ports, then the machine can't communicate with the console.
I like its stability a lot.
You push out all the devices that you want. There is no limitation beyond money and licenses.
In the past, I have used McAfee and Kaspersky.
I only work with Microsoft products right now. It integrates well with other products. I also work with Microsoft Defender for Identity.
The deployment process is not difficult because Microsoft Defender comes with Windows 10. You just right click, then it connects you with Azure.
There are other processes that can be connected, e.g., Microsoft Download Center.
I implement Microsoft Defender for Endpoint. It takes me one or two days to design Microsoft Defender for Endpoint. It is easy to do this, and the more you implement, the easier it gets over time.
Sometimes, when I change the configuration, I have to wait six to eight hours.
It is so expensive. It isn't cheaper than McAfee or other solutions.
I prefer Microsoft Defender for Endpoint instead of McAfee, Kaspersky, and other products.
I would rate this solution as 10 out of 10.
This product is our antivirus for Windows 10 machines, Windows Server 2016, and in our Azure environment. In addition to this, we have a project for an oil company that is implemented in Azure, and we had to migrate the majority of their systems to that platform. Once the migration was complete, we configured Windows Defender as its antivirus.
It is very simple to use and easy to scan systems.
This product is flexible, and it is very easy to get updates from the Microsoft website.
We are using the firewall features.
The central management console should be improved because it provides limited options to configure Windows Defender. It should provide a lot of options and features, in the same way, that Symantec does, or the Kaspersky Central Management Console does. Essentially, we should have a central management console on Azure that can be used to manage Windows Defender on all of our machines.
This is a very stable solution and we plan to continue using it.
The company that I implemented this for has approximately 2,000 staff and 1,000 virtual machines on Azure.
I have not been in contact with Microsoft support. Rather, I have learned by using the materials that are provided online.
We were originally using a product from Symantec before we switched to using Windows Defender. After that, we adopted the Microsoft solution for Azure.
I have configured Windows Defender for different locations by using Group Policy Settings and each time, it took between five and ten minutes, based on the guidelines.
I configured it personally by downloading and reading materials that I found on the Microsoft website.
This is an expensive product and licensing for all Microsoft products is a big issue. However, Volume Licensing and Educational Licensing are good options to decrease the cost.
In general, Windows Defender is a good feature for the Windows Operating System.
I would rate this solution a seven out of ten.
