Virus Definitions Apps and Alternatives

Once installed, anti-malware applications have to be regularly updated with the latest definitions to be able to protect your computer from the newest threats, whether we're talking about ransomware, Trojans, spyware, rootkits, backdoors, or something else.

Most antivirus tools run these checkups automatically and frequently, so you don't have to worry about doing this yourself. However, many companies release virus definitions as separate, offline files, which can be manually downloaded by users.

This might seem unnecessary for those with a round-the-clock Internet connection since the automatic checkup mode should take care of everything in the background, but the virus definition packages can be used to update antimalware programs that don't have Internet access.

For this hub, we've carefully selected the virus definitions of antivirus tools with frequent updates, from daily to weekly and, in some rare cases, monthly. Most of them contain the date of last update in the program version, so you can easily spot the daily updates.

If you're not sure about which antivirus to use, you can check out our hubs with free antivirus and portable antivirus utilities. We also have hubs with apps designed to scan for viruses, along with small-sized tools made to uninstall antivirus products.