AhnLab Antivirus Review 2024: Can It Protect Your Company?

AhnLab’s antivirus is a great option for small to medium-sized businesses. It’s good at detecting malware in real time and comes with endpoint protection, and the pricier plans offer additional safeguards for cloud environments.

The antivirus scored very well on all of my tests, proving its reliability as an anti-malware engine. It wasn’t perfect, however. AhnLab missed a few threats that Bitdefender’s enterprise product was able to catch. Still, it offers better protection than most business antiviruses.

The endpoint protection is my favorite feature. The firewall provides comprehensive coverage of your entire network and passed all of my intrusion attempts. AhnLab has various plans that can cover different areas of your business, from endpoint security and the cloud to institutional security.  Depending on what you need, you can get a sandbox feature, DDoS mitigation, endpoint detection and response, and more.

There are a few problems, but nothing too bad. AhnLab is a South Korean company, and the language on the website can be quite confusing. It also suffers from a few odd design choices. These might be annoying, but they don’t impact the quality of AhnLab’s security features. I’d like to see the international website improved, though. The Korean version of the site is much more fleshed out.

Also, while every AhnLab feature works well, it lacks something special. It has nothing to make it stand out against Bitdefender and the other top antiviruses for businesses. Bitdefender’s sandbox system is easier to use, and it provides great insights about the threats and anomalies that it detects. And Norton, another great option for small businesses, provides excellent tools for managing employee credentials.

AhnLab Full Review — A Solid Enterprise Product

AhnLab’s antivirus is reliable. It doesn’t boast a perfect malware detection rate, but it’s certainly capable of beating the majority of threats your business might face. It can be a bit cumbersome to buy a plan due to issues with the website, but it’s a good antivirus nonetheless.

AhnLab includes the antivirus in the majority of its security suites. It also has excellent endpoint and cloud environment protection plans that complement the antivirus to provide your company with comprehensive security.

AhnLab Plans & Pricing — A Wide Range of Business Bundles (Plus a Home Plan)

AhnLab’s antivirus is available as a standalone purchase or as part of multiple AhnLab bundles. I only included the bundles that contain the antivirus, to keep it simple.

Plans have flexible pricing, so you’ll have to work out a price with a sales representative. There are multiple tiers for customer support as well, so let your representative know which support option you need.

The basic antivirus, Anti-Malware, includes the malware scanner, real-time protection, the firewall, and a few other security features that flesh out your company’s protection against viruses. There’s also a standalone mobile antivirus that includes a tool for remotely controlling your security console. If you just need a simple antivirus, this is your best bet.

AhnLab Endpoint Plus contains a broader range of security features that focus on protecting your network from intrusion and exploits. On top of the malware scanner and endpoint protection, it comes with a unique sandbox mode for testing files and EDR protection.

The most comprehensive plan, AhnLab Plus, contains all of AhnLab’s applications and features (including the antivirus and everything included in Endpoint Plus). Altogether it provides you with comprehensive malware, endpoint, and cloud protection for your business (including built-in DDoS protection and a whole host of other features).

There’s also a free antivirus for home users, but it’s not fully available for international users. You can access it by going to the Korean website and letting your browser translate for you, but the premium version is restricted to Korean users.

If you’re interested in any of the plans, reach out to the sales team and ask them about a trial. Each trial request is processed by a sales rep just like purchasing a plan, so it will take a few days to set up, and there’s no guarantee they’ll accept your request.

AhnLab Security Features — Strong Measures for Protecting Endpoints & Networks

Ahnlab’s standalone antivirus is light on features, but the antivirus-bundled plans offer a lot. To start, the malware scanner lets you choose between quick, full, and custom scans, plus you can schedule scans to run automatically in the background. When I put it to the test, I was happy to see that AhnLab detected the majority of my malware samples. That said, it didn’t meet the 100% detection threshold that some of my top antiviruses for businesses scored.

The basic antivirus kit, Anti-Malware, also comes with web protection that blocks phishing scams and monitors your internet activity. If it detects an unsafe website, it blocks it automatically. You can also set up which sites you want blocked on your company’s network.

The firewall also provides an extra layer of protection against network intrusion by protecting your endpoints. The basic plan contains a few network-protection features to ensure you’re not hacked, while more expensive plans build on how comprehensive your endpoint security is. On the whole, AhnLab’s firewall is reliable at preventing unauthorized access to your systems.

There are a ton of features specifically built to protect your network. The EDR protection uses behavioral analysis to find zero-day threats. The software also provides a neat visual representation of your overall cybersecurity, including graphs, threat detection charts, and a ton of information on everything happening on your network.

There’s also a sandbox mode that lets you run files in a virtual environment to test them out. If there is malware within, it’ll be confined to the sandbox, preventing wider infection. It’s not very complicated to use, making it perfect for small business owners.

AhnLab comes with a remote console you can use to control your company’s security from afar. The management console is simple to use and gives you a ton of control over your settings and features without needing to visit the office.

The priciest plan comes with a host of additional security features on top of everything else. It comes with advanced tools like protection for all of your cloud environments and DDoS mitigation (which is helpful for both preventing DDoS attacks and accidental DDoSing that happens when you face extreme website traffic). It also reinforces your cloud endpoints, provides threat intelligence responses, and a ton more.

Overall, AhnLab comes with a wide range of tools to keep your business safe. The basic malware scanner is reliable and effective, but I’ll admit it doesn’t get the same 100% malware detection ratings that Bitdefender and Norton get. And the extra features are all pretty great, even if the plan that includes them all is pretty pricey.

AhnLab Ease of Use & Setup — Despite a Tricky Website, the Software Is Intuitive

I found Ahnlab to be easy to install and start using. The website has a few shortcomings, but the antivirus and other security products are effective. Some features have a bit of a learning curve, such as setting up your advanced endpoint protection, but this is the case with pretty much every business-grade antivirus suite.

The user interface is easy to use as well. From the homepage, you can use the tab to jump to your various feature categories. If you’re using the AhnLab Plus collection, you will have a few apps to download, but none of them stood out as being particularly hard to use.

The website still needs a bit of work. Plans are confusingly laid out, and the lack of a personal option for the international site makes it nearly impossible to use some of AhnLabs products. The Online Support page doesn’t have a single article or entry listed, which isn’t particularly helpful. I was also redirected to Korean-language pages on a few occasions. Overall, the website leaves a lot to be desired, especially for a first-time user.

Despite that, AhnLab is generally simple and easy to install. As soon as you get past the clunky website and install AhnLab, the apps are all intuitive and beginner-friendly (though they have an initial learning curve).

AhnLab Customer Support — Multiple Support Tiers to Meet Your Needs

AhnLab offers multiple forms of customer support based on your plan. I’m not the biggest fan of multiple tiers of paywalled support, since it means that just buying a plan doesn’t give you every support option, but I’ll admit that the number of resources you get when you need help is impressive.

The basic tier of support gets you access to an FAQ, live chat, email support, and a live chatbot. Email support responds within several business days, so it’s not helpful for live emergencies. The FAQ on the international page is extremely light on information, but the support agents are informed and helpful.

You can pay extra to get the Premium support plan. This grants access to 24/7 support, phone support, and even remote access support from an IT expert. There’s onsite training included with the plan, but the availability of onsite representatives varies by country.

The Platinum support tier can be added to other plans for an additional fee and includes onsite installation and support, plus a designated architect to help manage your business’s cybersecurity. Make sure to mention you want the Platinum support tier when negotiating for your plan.

Overall, there are plenty of support options. Some people might like the flexibility of multiple support tiers available with every plan, but personally I prefer it when support is more standardized for all customers.

Will AhnLab Protect Your Business?

Yes, AhnLab will protect your business from the vast majority of online threats. The malware scanner was reliable (though not perfect), and the real-time protection performed well during my tests. Higher-tier plans provide thorough endpoint security and cloud protection as well.

AhnLab’s advanced features were easy to set up and start using and proved to be secure during every test I threw at it. The endpoint protection, DDoS mitigation, cloud antivirus, firewall, and dozens of other tools all come together to create a comprehensive security suite.

I had a few issues with the website’s design, and buying it can be a little bit annoying, especially if you’re an international customer who isn’t available during the support team’s usual hours of operation. But while AhnLab’s presentation could be improved, the security products it offers are pretty solid.

Overall, AhnLab works great for protecting small businesses. It may not be the best option for large firms since you only get one device license per plan, but if you run a small to medium-sized business and need lightweight but effective security, you could do much worse than AhnLab.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is AhnLab free?

AhnLab’s business plans are not free, but there is a free antivirus you can use. AhnLab V3 Lite is available for international users to download, but it’s not technically on the international plan. If you switch to the Korean website and click on the Personal tab in the top left of your screen, you can find V3 Lite and install it. Your browser should give you a pop-up to translate text from Korean to your language.

It provides lightweight but excellent malware protection and real-time protection (which is always great for a free antivirus). It’s good, but it’s not quite as well-rounded as many of the best free antiviruses on the market.

Is AhnLab only for businesses?

AhnLab’s international products are only available for businesses, not individual use. There are personal security tools within the South Korean website, but to purchase the premium home antivirus, you’d need to be a citizen of Korea (even changing your IP address won’t work).

How do I reach out to AhnLab for pricing?

You need to contact email support to purchase AhnLab. When you first arrive on the website, you may be thinking to yourself “Huh, how do I buy it?” Don’t worry, I did too. On each product page, there will be a bubble that says “Contact Sales.” Click on it and fill out the form that pops up. A representative will review it and give you a price quote based on what you need and how many computers you need to cover.

If you’re an individual user and not part of a company, you won’t be able to buy AhnLab Anti-Malware or EndPoint Plus. If that’s the case, I’d highly encourage you to check out Norton or another top antivirus for home use.

Is AhnLab safe?

Yes, AhnLab is safe. For the most part, AhnLab has maintained a strong reputation for over 20 years within the cybersecurity market and constantly pushes out updates, new products, and new features. The malware detection rating is excellent (plus it recently got a large update to improve on some shortcomings), and the endpoint protection is fairly comprehensive on the more expensive plans.

Especially with the higher-tier plans, you get a ton of extra features that protect every aspect of your business, including cloud security protection and full endpoint protection. The only thing it lacks is a good VPN.