Anti-malware
Microsoft Defender Antivirus privacy rating
Antivirus built into Windows that scans for malware, unwanted software and potentially harmful apps, with cloud-delivered protection from Microsoft. It turns on automatically when no other antivirus is installed.
Summary
Microsoft Defender Antivirus scores 35 out of 100 (grade F) on the anti-malware criteria. It meets 1 of 4 criteria: no ads or data sales. It partly meets no trackers or telemetry. It does not meet open source and independent audit. It is based in the United States: Five Eyes member; subject to the US CLOUD Act.
Score 35 out of 100. How scoring works
Criteria
- No
-
Partial
No trackers or telemetry Weight 3 of 3
Are the website and apps free of third-party trackers, with any analytics anonymous and any telemetry off by default?
Reports on suspected malware and file samples are sent to Microsoft by default; this reporting can be turned off.
-
Yes
No ads or data sales Weight 2 of 3
Is the product funded without advertising, ad targeting or selling user data?
Included with Windows licenses and shows no ads.
-
No
Independent audit Weight 2 of 3
Has an independent security or privacy audit been published within the last three years?
No independent audit is published.