Sophos Vs. Avast Comparison
Avast offers free anti-virus software in a basic version, and sells anti-virus software with more features. Sophos sells business anti-virus software in various configurations and license quantities. Both companies have versions that offer mid-range anti-virus protection and packages that protect against additional threats. Avast has the bigger installed base due to its free offering, and has achieved slightly better results in some evaluations. Both offer good reliability and high-quality protection against viruses and other malware, but there are some differences in the software.
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Detection
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Both Avast and Sophos anti-virus software detects almost all viruses and other malware that commonly attack computers. Typical rates of detection for common malware are over 99 percent for both companies. For newly discovered and identified malware, the detection rates are slightly lower but still similar. As far as detection of virus-type malware is concerned, there is little difference between the free or basic versions of the anti-virus software offerings and the more sophisticated, costlier packages.
Cleaning
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Both Avast and Sophos anti-virus software clean up and repair the damage caused by viruses that manage to infect a machine, either because it wasn't protected or because the virus was a new type, not in the software database. Both do an excellent job of detecting and limiting damage caused by infections. In evaluations carried out by AV-Test, an independent IT security institute, Avast was slightly better at removing malware components from infected machines.
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Speed
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Anti-virus software has to run continuously to do its job and protect the computer it is installed on, so it is critical that the software does not take up too many computer resources and slow down operation of other software. In tests run by AV-Test, Avast performed significantly better with respect to slowing down of the computer, scoring substantially better than the industry average. Sophos software slowed down computers an average of 60 percent more than the industry average.
Pricing
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Avast offers basic anti-virus protection for free while Sophos does not have a competing free version. For more advanced versions, prices as of the time of publication were comparable. Mid-range protection costs about $30 per year and advanced protection about $45. Sophos offers lower costs, down to about $20 per license, for purchases of large numbers of licenses. Sophos also offers packages billed as advanced protection for web browsing, activity tracking and reporting at a substantially higher price.
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References
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