DFNDR Security Antivirus Review 2024: Is It a Good Choice?

DFNDR Security is a device-cleanup app for Android. It comes with free tools like a malware scanner, quick cache cleanup, phishing and web protection, and a range of premium features such as a Safe App Installer, App Privacy Scan, and identity theft protection.

The app is really difficult to use — on the one hand, it displays way too much information at all times, while on the other, it could be more transparent about what it scans. Also, there are graphs, charts, buttons, and notifications everywhere, making navigation way more difficult than it has to be.

It also asks for too many permissions, like access to location, contacts, camera, making and managing phone calls, and system admin access. Having to grant so many permissions will likely make many users uneasy about using it. But if you’re ok with that, DFNDR Security does offer some decent functionality.

Overall, I found DFNDR Security useful, but you have to look past all the clutter. The free plan is riddled with ads, while the paid plans are ad-free and provide more functionality — but the issue is that they’re more expensive than Norton’s Mobile Security plan, which doesn’t make any sense given Norton’s reputation and extensive feature set.

DFNDR Security Full Review — Useful Antivirus App (But It Has Too Many Ads)

At first sight, DFNDR Security seems like a good antivirus app for Android. It comes with an antivirus scanner, several system cleanup tools, real-time “hacking” protection, and even web protection.

However, upon closer inspection, I can’t fully recommend it. The first reason is that the free version is riddled with annoying and intrusive ads that constantly prompt you to upgrade. The second is that it requests excessive permissions like access to your location, contacts, and phone calls — which is not good for privacy.

DFNDR Security Plans & Pricing — Expensive Plans That Are Light on Features

DFNDR Security offers a free tier and 2 paid subscriptions. The free tier includes most functionalities but lacks identity theft monitoring and the Safe App Installer, and it displays ads. The PRO plan is ad-free, costs $29.88 / year, and includes the Safe App Installer. It comes with a 3-day free trial. To get identity theft monitoring, which basically includes just real-time breach alerts for an unlimited number of accounts, you’ll need the ULTRA plan, which costs $29.99 / year.

However, I don’t recommend buying a subscription. It’s quite expensive for what you get, especially compared to alternatives like Norton Mobile Security. Norton’s Android app offers superior real-time and web protection, an SMS spam filter, a virtual private network (VPN), and a Wi-Fi network monitor — all of which are features DFNDR Security doesn’t provide.

DFNDR Security Features — Several Useful Features (Detects All Malware)

DFNDR Security comes with various device security and cleanup tools — but it’s nowhere near as full-featured as the best antivirus apps on the market. That said, I did find some of its features useful.

The Complete Antivirus tool doesn’t scan your entire device, as you might expect from its name. Instead, it focuses on scanning apps (and some files and folders, but not all of them), which is the same task performed by the Antivirus App Scan. I found this overlap between the two tools a bit odd. I also had to click through several messages before the scan would start.

Despite lacking transparency in terms of what areas of your phone it scans, DFNDR successfully detected all the malware samples I tested. It even identified an app I had installed that turned out to be malware, allowing me to safely uninstall it directly from within the app.

Next up is Applock. It allows you to password-protect specific apps, ensuring that others using your device can’t access them freely. I tested this feature, and it works as advertised, providing an extra layer of privacy and security for your sensitive apps.

Anti-hacking is a somewhat misleading name for the anti-phishing tool that claims to “monitor over 387,000 scams daily” and block them from SMS messages, web browsers, and messaging apps. But as far as I could tell, it doesn’t work any better than built-in browser/messaging app protections. I tried accessing multiple phishing sites, but instead of the app displaying a warning, I was simply notified by my web browser (Google Chrome) that I was about to access a potentially dangerous site.

Another feature is the Safe App Installer, which checks apps in the Google Play Store for malware and lets you know if any aren’t safe to install. Similar to Norton’s App Advisor, this feature adds a much-needed second layer of protection for users frequently downloading apps from Google Play.

You also get some other handy security tools, like:

• WhatsApp Theft Alert. Notifies you if someone impersonates your WhatsApp account.
• URL Checker. Lets you copy and paste web addresses to verify their safety.
• Wi-Fi Device Manager. Shows you devices connected to your Wi-Fi network, their IP addresses, and details about your network like IP address and DNS servers.

DFNDR Security also offers several non-security-related features that improve your device’s performance. App Uninstaller lets you uninstall multiple apps simultaneously and sort them into categories, making it easier to manage and declutter your device.

Additionally, the Duplicate Photo Cleaner and Duplicate Videos tools help you identify and remove identical photos and videos. Lastly, the Quick Cache Cleaning feature allows you to clear cache from selected apps, which can accumulate over time and take up a ton of storage space.

DFNDR Security Ease of Use & Setup — Lots of Ads + Unnecessary Permissions

DFNDR Security is easy to download and install, but it offers a poor user experience. The app bombards you with endless information, ads, buttons, notifications, and icons. It’s like the movie Everything Everywhere All at Once — a confusing mess!

However, once I got a handle on where all the tools were, it was fairly simple to remember and navigate to the right place. It just took a little bit of trial and error, which is something I can overlook.

For example, though there are seemingly an endless number of options, each function is split up into 3 categories. These include Cleanup, Protection, and Everyday Use. You can access these by tapping Tools from anywhere within the app.

I also found that the app does a fairly decent job of explaining what each feature is and does. But this certainly isn’t always the case — for example, again, Complete Antivirus doesn’t exactly tell you what it’s scanning at any given moment. When the scan is complete, it also just shows you a list of apps it scanned, even though I know it was scanning some files and folders, too.

DFNDR Security Customer Support — Quick Responses & Solid FAQs

DFNDR Security’s customer support is available through a chatbot in the app, but finding the option to send a message requires some navigation. You need to type “agent” and then repeatedly respond “no” to prompts asking if the provided information was helpful. Eventually, you will be prompted to enter your name and email address to send a message.

However, the chatbot often sends confusing information, sometimes in a foreign language (Portuguese, in my case), which can be jarring (or amusing, depending on your turn of mind). Despite this, once I managed to send my question, the process was smooth. I was pleasantly surprised by the quick and professional response from a real human being.

I also appreciate the availability of a solid FAQ. I found more than 70 questions with in-depth answers, including how to use each feature and how to troubleshoot any issues that might arise.

But even still, sending an email and awaiting a response when you’re strapped for time isn’t my favorite option. The best antivirus apps for Android have real-time support channels like proper live chat and phone lines.

Is DFNDR Security a Good Choice for Android Antivirus Protection?

DFNDR Security is easy to download and install, but it’s not the best choice for antivirus protection on Android. The free tier includes most features, but you’ll deal with annoying ads and a cluttered interface. The paid subscriptions, starting at $29.88 / year, add some extra features, but they’re expensive for what you get.

The user experience with DFNDR Security is also pretty rough. The app bombards you with endless information, ads, buttons, notifications, and icons.

All things considered, there are better options out there. For instance, Norton Mobile Security offers way more bang for your buck with features like superior real-time and web protection, an SMS spam filter, a virtual private network (VPN), and a Wi-Fi network monitor, which DFNDR Security doesn’t have.

So, while DFNDR Security has some useful features, the poor user experience and high cost of premium features make it hard to recommend over more feature-rich and user-friendly alternatives.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need DFNDR on my phone?

You don’t specifically need DFNDR Security on your Android phone, but you should use good antivirus software. Though DFNDR does come with some decent security features, there are far better options out there.

For example, Norton offers one of the best Android antivirus apps out there. It offers all of the functionality DFNDR does and more, including a virtual private network (VPN), Wi-Fi protection, parental controls, a password manager, and more.

Is DFNDR security a good app?

DFNDR Security is a decent antivirus app for Android. However, it’s pretty confusing to use, with more than 20 tools and features available spread across 2 screens. It comes with tools like virus scanning, anti-phishing, a notification manager, and various device cleanup tools like cache and duplicate file cleaners.

You also get some other tools like an app uninstaller, a download cleaner, a gallery assistant, and various others. It’s not really the best antivirus app out there; rather, it’s a jack-of-all-trades antivirus and system optimization app with some decent features.

What is DFNDR?

DFNDR Security is a security app designed to protect Android devices from various threats. It offers features like malware scanning, real-time protection, and privacy tools. The app includes a free tier with most functionalities, but it displays ads and lacks advanced features like Unlimited Identity Theft Reports and Full Scan for Privacy Threats, which are available in the paid subscription.

Additionally, DFNDR Security provides tools for cleaning junk files, managing apps, and monitoring Wi-Fi security. However, the user experience can be overwhelming due to a cluttered interface filled with ads and notifications.