When you can stop using the antivirus and why

Having security programs is important in order to be protected and not have problems such as password theft or the system becoming infected with viruses. Now, when can we do without the antivirus and be unprotected? Under what circumstances can it be even better? We are going to talk about it in this article, where we will see some examples of each case.

When is antivirus not necessary?

When you can stop using the antivirus and why

First of all, it should be noted that in the vast majority of circumstances it is essential that you have a good antivirus. In this way your computer, mobile or any device will be protected and you will avoid problems. However, at certain times it is possible not to use this type of security applications.

A clear example is when you use an old computer simply to make backup copies and it is not connected to the Internet. For example, if you connect an external hard drive to copy files and have them stored there as an extra backup, but you do not use that PC for anything else. You just have to make sure that the hard drive or external memory you use does not have viruses.

You can also avoid having an antivirus when using a virtual machine . In this case you are not really exposing the system. Of course, you should bear in mind that you can also suffer certain attacks, such as a Phishing attack or a keylogger sneaking in and stealing your passwords if you log in.

Another case in which you could do without security programs is when using alternative operating systems to Windows, such as Linux distributions . It doesn’t mean that they are 100% safe and there can be no threats, but it is true that most malware is designed to attack Microsoft systems.

Why stop using security programs

After explaining some examples in which it is not necessary to use antivirus or at least it is not so essential, we are going to talk about why it might be interesting not to use it. Once again, this must be taken with caution as security must be present at all times and it is not good to take risks.

One clear reason is for performance . Think that any program is going to consume resources. Maybe that old computer that you only keep backups on doesn’t have a large capacity and it’s better to avoid installing applications. There, since you are not going to connect to the Internet and you will not need to update it, you can avoid installing an antivirus.

It can also be a good idea when using a virtual machine for the same reason, but also to be able to carry out tests . You may be interested in installing certain audit programs and they can be blocked by the antivirus. By not having a security program of this type, you will not have that problem. You should keep in mind that there are differences between firewall and antivirus.

In short, as you have seen, there are some cases in which you can avoid installing an antivirus. It is not at all advisable when you are going to make normal use of the computer, such as simply surfing the net, but it is advisable when using old devices that do not connect to the Internet or are not going to have any risk.