Panda Cloud AV Free Reviewed

Question

For some years now, I have limited my recommendations for a good free real-time AV to either Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE) or to avast! Free AV. However, I can't ignore the recent tests by AV-Comparatives which show that the real-world protection by Panda Cloud AV Free equals or exceeds MSE or avast! in detections. Their "Real-world" tests of Panda over the past several months show detection rates of 97-99%, with few false positive detections. These results rival both MSE and avast! and their paid competition. Hence this review.

Test Platform:
- Windows 7 Home Premium (64 bit) SP1, IE10
-Windows native firewall
- Resident MBAM Pro & WinPatrol Plus running in the background, otherwise all programs off.
- Fast broadband connection

Systems supported: XP, Vista, Win7, Win 8. (32 & 64 bit systems for all, except for XP 64 bit, which is not supported).

Download and Installation:

- The Panda installer was a 789 KB download (vs the MSE 13.5 MB installer, or avast! at 125 MB).
- Panda came with bundled/unwanted software that was pre-checked (Panda security toolbar, blekko search provider, MyStart as default HomePage). I unchecked all these options during the installation.
- Installer took 1-2 minutes to download/decompress and install files.
- New Windows services "PSANHost.exe" and "PSUASERVICE.EXE" were installed. Memory usage by these services is minimal.
- Got an Ad page, which I skipped. Installation completed uneventfully.

Impact on System Performance:

- A cold bootup to desktop (including a Windows password) on this system with no AV installed took about 55 seconds. With Panda installed, this was prolonged to about 65 seconds, which was also what I observed with MSE installed.
- I observed no noticeable differences in the times to open any browser or program (including the AV GUI itself) between MSE or Panda. If there is a difference, we are talking about fractions of a second.

On-Demand scans:

Scan times are perhaps the least important factors to consider when choosing an AV. They do not correlate with efficacy of detection. However, for folks who like to run scans as part of routine maintenance, I include the following info:
MSE: Consistently took less than one minute for a "Quick Scan".
Panda: Offers only an "Optimized scan" or a "Full Scan". A right-click on any file/folder also allows Panda to scan it. The "Optimized scan" averaged about 4 minutes, and a "Full scan" about 70 minutes. As expected, none of these scans detected anything. I could find no way to schedule any automatic scans (which I would never use anyways).

Conflicts:

None that I could see. MBAM, WinPatrol, Emsisoft AM, SAS, Windows Defender, Secunia PSI and Hitman Pro all worked as quickly as before.

Handling of Detections:

Panda "neutralizes" all detections by placing them in its own "Recycle Bin". ( Not to be confused with the Windows Recycle Bin, it sounds like a "quarantine" from which files can be restored). There is no option to "alert only" about detections. This is a bit worrisome, should Panda decide some critical Windows file is malware, and consign it to its Recycle Bin. Such a false positive detection could trash one's system.

Support:

- User support forum: http://www.cloudantivirus.com/forum/index.jspa
- Help Files: Located online, at http://www.cloudantivirus.com/help/01/h_en/nnv_en.htm#05.htm
Note that the above require a working internet connection. If you lose this, you are out of luck.
- The GUI gives a toll-free phone number, for help in removing malware. This is a paid service for users of the free version.

Ads:

Surprisingly little. No splash screens, or obnoxious ads. Just non-intrusive links to upgrade to the paid version.

Uninstall:

I haven't tried this yet, but here are the instructions:
http://www.pandasecurity.com/homeusers/support/card?id=55509

Summary & Impressions:

Overall, I'm satisfied that this is a simple and user-friendly free AV that I can tentatively recommend. Minimal configuration is necessary or possible. It's default installation (minus the bundled software) will suffice. As always, I can't comment on its protection, leaving that aspect to the AV test websites, where it fares well in recent tests against the paid competition. Suffice it to say that it has proved trouble-free for me so far, and plays well with all my layers of security.

I still have reservations about entrusting my security to the "cloud", but most AVs nowadays use it to a greater or lesser extent. For now, I will keep it.

ky331 · Answer

First off, let me commence by stipulating that I make use of, and recommend, Panda Cloud.

"The Panda installer was a 789 KB download (vs the MSE 13.5 MB installer, or avast! at 125 MB)". I have to point out that this statement is very misleading, as the Avast installer (and presumably that for MSE) is a full, OFFLINE installer. In contrast, the Panda "installer" is better described as a "phone caller", which calls the web to download and install all the necessary program and data files. Presumably, the totality of all files/data so downloaded would more fairly compare to at least MSE, if not avast, in size.

The best thing that I can say on behalf of Panda: I have implemented its used in an environment where multiple, non-trained users all have and share access to the computer systems there. I have no idea what their surfing habits are. The bottom line being, that having run it for almost two years, all the shared computers remain virus-free (to the best of my knowledge). Granted, there were other security features on these systems (for example, WOT set to BLOCK what it perceived to be unreputable sites), which may have mitigated some vulnerabilities that potentially slipped-by Panda. Regardless, I am pleased to conclude that Panda appears to have been effective in a real-world, shared/communal setting.

joe53 · Answer

Thanks for that perspective, ky. You obviously have more experience with Panda than I have. Am I correct in assuming that your use of Panda involved the paid version?

You are quite correct in your comments regarding the installer. Mea maxima culpa. I intended no invidious comparison. Installer size is pretty much irrelevent to the ease of installation of an AV. The fact is that MSE, avast! and Panda all have installed easily on my systems. And that is really the bottom line.

ky331 · Answer

No, I'm using just the FREE version of Panda Cloud. I'm not at my Panda systems now... I might have more to add next week.

joe53 · Answer

1) You ask a good question, RD. I am always distrustful of bundled programs, especially ones I never heard of, and never install them on principle. I suppose I'm happy to trust WOT, SpywareBlaster, hosts file and other layers to protect me from malicious URLs.

Your question prompted me to do a bit of research. The Panda Security Toolbar comes from Visicom, not Panda.

"Panda Security Toolbar is an ad-supported program installed into Internet Explorer, Firefox and Chrome. The programs collects and stores information about web browsing habits and sends this information to its remote servers in order to provide injected advertising in search results and various other places. It will also modify the browser's home page and search provider. It displays various pop-up advertisements and tracks and reports your web surfing behavior. It displays targeted search results and pop-up advertisements based on terms that the user enters for Web searches. The program also adds its own browser toolbar and installs a browser helper objects (BHO) in Internet Explorer for monitoring Web search terms and implementing the browser toolbar. It also may send event logs and other system-related information to a server, and may automatically download and install updates without notifying the user."
http://www.shouldiremoveit.com/Panda-Security-Toolbar-28829-program.aspx

I can't vouch for the above claims, but it sounds like stuff that a bundled toolbar might do. And I might have been hasty in not installing it, as it apparantly can easily be removed while keeping the URL filtering option:

1. Install Panda Cloud Antivirus including the toolbar.
2. Go to Control Panel, Add/Remove Programs. You will see two entries:
- Panda Security Toolbar
- Panda Security Toolbar URL Filtering
3. Uninstall only "Panda Security Toolbar"
With this process you will get the URL Filtering without the toolbar.
http://www.wilderssecurity.com/showpost.php?p=1774441&postcount=67

I suppose I could uninstall/reinstall Panda with the toolbar, then uninstall just the toolbar, but it seems like a lot of work!

2) I believe USB Vaccination was once included with the free version, but apparantly no longer:
http://www.cloudantivirus.com/en/forHome/

ky331 · Answer

'From the description of the toolbar in your quote above, it sounds like something you would expect an AV should maybe detect (as a PUP?), rather than come bundled with, lol.'   Ain't that the truth!!! I appreciate all the work you've done in this thread, and intend to follow-through by checking out my Panda systems in a few more days.

joe53 · Answer

Thanks for the info, RD.

Against my better judgement, I re-installed Panda with the Security Toolbar. It only took a few minutes. I then scanned it with MBAM, Hitman Pro, and EAM. None flagged the toolbar as a PUP.

However it seems that the info I gave earlier was a bit out-dated. In fact my Uninstall list did not include separate entries for both the toolbar and the URL Web Filter, just the Panda Security Toolbar, which I promptly uninstalled. Only then did the Panda Security URL Filtering program appear in my Uninstall list. It also loads at startup. I'm of 2 minds as to whether to keep it or not, as it is a Visicom product.

FWIW, Panda has a test page to see if the filter works - it did, in all my browsers:
http://download.cloudantivirus.com/eng/malicious/?id=panda2_0dn&url=www.cloudantivirus.com/testurlfilter/

ky331 · Answer

Okay, you all got me curious, so I made an effort to get to a Panda system to check some things out:

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First, I wanted to point out that the comparison of on-demand scan times is questionable, as we have no idea which files MSE's "Quick" Scan and Panda's "Optimized" Scan are each checking. If one checks more files, that can explain/justify a time difference in the operation.

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"There is no option to "alert only" about detections. This is a bit worrisome, should Panda decide some critical Windows file is malware, and consign it to its Recycle Bin. Such a false positive detection could trash one's system".

Actually, there is (at least, for on-demand scans)! Click on the Panda icon in your system tray to open Panda's interface. Click anywhere on the upper panel; e.g., on the SECURE shield. The click on Advanced Settings. The 5th option allows you to enable/disable "Ask before neutralizing viruses in on access scans".

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USB Vaccine is only available in the PRO edition; however, "Disable AutoRun" is available in the free edition, from the Panda interface (click the Vaccine tab).

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WOT blacklists Visicom Media: http://www.mywot.com/en/scorecard/visicommedia.com

joe53 · Answer

Thanks for the clarification on the 'ask before neutralizing' option. I feel better already, having made that change! :emotion-1: I agree totally with your comments on the relative merits of scan times. I included that info (which is not really 'questionable') only for the benefit of those that feel the need to run such scans regularly. No comparative merit was stated or implied. Longer and deeper scans do carry a greater risk of false positive detections  in general, in my experience. Which probably partially explains why MSE  has virtually no false positives. You are a tough critic ky - but you do keep me honest!

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Panda Cloud AV Free Reviewed

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