How to Use the Built-in Windows Defender Antivirus on Windows 10
Windows 10 has a built-in real-time antivirus named Windows Defender, and it is actually very good. It automatically runs in the background, ensuring that all Windows users are protected from viruses and other nasties. Here's how it works.
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Starting with the Creators Update for Windows 10, Windows Defender's interface changed slightly, and it was integrated into the new Windows Defender Security Center — which deals with security-related tools such as family protection, firewall settings, device performance, and health reports Provides access to, and browser security controls. If you have not yet been updated for the Creator Update, you should still be able to follow very well.
What Is Windows Defender?
Microsoft offered a standalone antivirus app called Microsoft Security Essentials in the days of Windows XP, Vista and 7.. With Windows 8, the product was slightly tied up, bundled with Windows, and renamed Windows Defender. And that's great, if there is a mixed bag. It is true that other antivirus apps — such as BitDefender and Kaspersky — protect against more viruses in the benchmark.
But Windows Defender also has some advantages. It is by far the most non-invasive app, whenever it can handle things in the background and cannot do you all the time. Windows Defender also plays well with web browsers and other apps - respecting their security and privacy settings compared to most other antivirus apps.
What you use is up to you, but Windows Defender is not a bad option (and has overcome most of its problems a few years ago). However, we recommend running anti-malware apps like Malwarebytes in addition to whatever antivirus app you choose.
Take Advantage of Automatic Scans and Updates
Like other antivirus apps, Windows Defender automatically runs in the background, scans files when they are downloaded, transferred from external drives, and before they open them.
You don't have to think about Windows Defender at all. It will notify you when a malware is found. Can't even ask what you want to do with the malicious software it finds - it just cleans up things and quarantines files automatically.You’ll occasionally see a notification popup to let you know when a scan has been performed, and you can usually see the details of the last scan by opening the Action Center in Windows 10.
If there is no threat to Windows Defender, you will also see a notification telling you that it is taking action to remove those threats - and no action is required from you
Antivirus definition updates come automatically through Windows Update and are installed just like any other system update. This type of update does not require a reboot of your computer. In this way, there is no need to worry about updating Windows Defender, as it is all silently and automatically in the background.
View Your Scan History and Quarantined Malware
You can view Windows Defender's scan history at any time, and if you have reported that it has blocked the malware, you can view that information as well. To fire Windows Defender Security Center, simply hit Start, type "Defender" and then select "Windows Defender Security Center".
In the Windows_Defender Security Center window, go to the "Windows Defender" tab (shield icon) and then click the "Scan History" link.
The "Scan History" screen shows you information about all current threats, plus your previous scans. If you want to see the complete history of the entire threat, click on the "View full history" link in that section.
Here, you can see all the threats that Windows_Defender has quarantined. To see more about a threat, click the arrow to its right. To see even more, click on the "View Details" link, which appears when you expand a particular threat.
You don't really need to do anything else here, but if you haven't found a threat to Windows_Defender when it was found, you'll be given the option to do so on this screen. You will also be able to restore items from quarantine, but you should only do this if you are absolutely sure that the malware detected is a false positive. If you are not completely, 100 percent sure, do not allow it to run.
Back to the main "Windows Defender" tab, you can also run a quick manual scan of Windows_Defender by clicking the "Quick Scan" button. Generally, you do not need to bother with this because Windows Defender provides real-time protection and also performs automatic scans regularly. However, if you want to be safe, you may have just updated your virus definitions - there is no harm in running a quick scan.
You can also click the “Advanced scan” link on that screen to run three different types of scans:
- Full scan: The quick scan only scans your memory and common locations. A full scan checks every file and running program. It can easily take an hour or more, so it’s best to do this when you don’t plan on using your PC much.
- Custom scan: A custom scan lets you choose a particular folder to scan. You can also do this by right-clicking any folder on your PC and choose “Scan with Windows_Defender” from the context menu.
- Windows Defender Offline scan: Some malware is tough to remove while Windows is running. When you select an offline scan, Windows restarts and runs a scan before Windows loads on the PC.
Configure Virus and Threat Protection Settings
By default, Windows_Defender automatically enables real-time protection, cloud-based protection, and sample submission. Real-time protection ensures Windows_Defender automatically finds malware by scanning your system in real time. You could disable this for a short period if necessary for performance reasons, but Windows_Defender will automatically re-enable real-time protection to keep you safe later. Cloud-based protection and sample submission allow Windows Defender to share information about threats and the actual malware files it detects with Microsoft.
To enabled or disable any of these settings, click the “Virus & threat protection settings” link on the main “Windows Defender” tab. And then toggle the settings on the screen that appears.
Set exclusion for some folders or files
If you scroll down to the very bottom of the same "Virus and Threat Security Settings" page, you can also set exclusions - files, folders, file types, or processes you don't want Windows Defender to scan. Just click on the "Add or Remove Exclusions" link.
If the antivirus is dramatically slowing down a certain app that you know is safe by scanning it, then creating an exclusion can speed things up again. If you use a virtual machine, you may want to exclude those large files from the scanning process. If you have a huge photo or video library that you know is safe, then you really don't want to slow down your editing.
To add exclusions, click the "Add Exclusion" button, select the type of exclusion you want to add from the dropdown menu, and then point to the Windows Defender for any exclusions you want to exclude.
Just be careful to use exclusions sparingly and smartly. Each exclusion you add reduces your PC’s security by a bit, because they tell Windows Defender not to look in certain places.
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What if You Install Another Antivirus?
Windows 10 automatically disables Windows Defender if you install another antivirus app. While another antivirus app is installed, Windows Defender won’t continue performing real-time scans, so it won’t interfere with your other app. You can still use Windows Defender to perform a manual—or offline—scan as a backup to your preferred antivirus app, though.
If you ever uninstall the other antivirus, Windows Defender will automatically kick into gear once again and take over, providing antivirus protection.
Do note, however, that certain anti-malware apps—like Malwarebytes—can be installed alongside Windows Defender and both will offer complimentary real-time protection.
Whichever antivirus product you prefer, it’s good that every single new Windows installation going forward will come with at least a baseline built-in antivirus protection. While it may not be perfect, Windows Defender does do a decent job, is minimally intrusive, and—when combined with other safe computing and browsing practices—might just be enough.
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