Index / Norton AntiVirus Plus at a glance

Norton AntiVirus Plus at a glance

This is the one entry in the library that describes a product rather than a concept, and it is written under a deliberately strict rule. True Aspect has a paid affiliate relationship with this product, which makes it the page where a publisher is most tempted to be generous. The response is to narrow the page rather than widen it: nothing appears below unless the vendor states it, and the gaps are shown as gaps.

Readers who want a feature list, current pricing in Australian dollars, system requirements, trial terms or refund conditions should read them on the vendor's own site, where they are maintained and where they are binding. They are not reproduced here, because a copy made on one date and left in place becomes wrong without anyone noticing.

What the vendor states

The platform lists above are reproduced as given. They describe the device types the vendor associates with the product and should not be read as a statement that every component behaves identically on each one. As set out in device performance, mobile platforms sandbox applications in a way that makes continuous file inspection impossible, so the function of security software on a phone differs structurally from its function on a desktop computer regardless of which vendor supplies it.

What the vendor does not state here

The following are not stated by the vendor in the material this entry is drawn from. Each is listed because it is a question a reader would reasonably ask, and because an absence is more useful to a reader than a guess.

Price, in Australian dollars or any other currency

Not stated by the vendor. Subscription pricing varies by term, by region and by the number of devices covered, and first-term and renewal pricing are frequently different. Both figures should be read at the vendor's checkout before purchase.

Number of devices covered by one subscription

Not stated by the vendor.

Subscription length and renewal terms

Not stated by the vendor, including whether renewal is automatic and how it is cancelled.

Refund or money-back terms

Not stated by the vendor. Australian readers should note that the consumer guarantees under the Australian Consumer Law apply in addition to any policy a seller offers; the ACCC explains them.

Detection methods used

Not stated by the vendor. The general approaches are described in signature detection and behavioural detection.

Whether a firewall component is included

Not stated by the vendor. The entry on firewalls explains what such a component would and would not add to the one already present in the operating system.

Whether cloud backup storage is included, and how much

Not stated by the vendor. Cloud backup sets out the questions that determine whether an included allocation is useful.

Whether a password manager is included

Not stated by the vendor. See password managers for what to check in any bundled manager, export in particular.

System requirements and supported operating system versions

Not stated by the vendor at the level of specific versions.

Support channels and hours for Australian customers

Not stated by the vendor.

Independent test results or detection rates

Not published here in any form. True Aspect does not conduct tests and does not restate figures it cannot verify, for this product or any other.

How to check this at the source

The vendor's site is the authoritative place for everything in the second list, and it is current in a way a third-party page cannot be. Before buying any subscription, the four things worth reading there are the price for the first term, the price on renewal, the number of devices covered, and how to cancel.

Visit the Norton AntiVirus Plus website

Paid affiliate link. KLIMA Z.A.I., s.r.o. earns a commission on subscriptions bought after following it, at no additional cost to the reader. See the Affiliate Disclosure.

Reading this entry alongside the rest of the library

A product entry answers a narrow question: what is this thing, according to the people selling it. It does not answer the broader question of what a particular reader needs, which is what the concept entries are for. A reader who has read phishing and ransomware will be better placed to judge any antivirus subscription — this one included — than a reader who has read a feature comparison, because those two entries describe where the losses actually occur and which of them software addresses.

Norton AntiVirus Plus is a trademark of its holder. Naming it here does not indicate any relationship beyond the paid link described above and on the disclosure page.