Overview
Avast Premium Security is the paid tier of a product most people have met in its free form. The scanning engine is the same, what changes is what surrounds it: a two way firewall, ransomware protection with a folder shield, a sandbox for running unknown files, webcam access control, a file shredder, and filtering that flags fake shopping and payment pages before a form is filled in.
The resident shields are the part that runs all day. File, behaviour, web and mail shields watch activity in real time, with the behaviour shield the one that catches things without a signature by looking at what a process does: mass file rewrites, injection into other processes, changes to startup entries. That is the layer that turns a scanner into actual protection.
Scanning options cover the usual ground. A quick pass over the common locations, a full disk sweep, a targeted folder scan, a removable media scan on insert, and a boot time scan that runs before the desktop loads so anything that hooks into startup is caught while it is inactive. Scheduled scans can be pinned to idle so they never interrupt a working session.
The premium configuration in this build has the modules unlocked and the upgrade nagging removed, which is the main reason people take it over the free tier. Definition updates continue to arrive normally, so the detection side stays current without touching the licence state.
What it does well
Real time shields
File, behaviour, web and mail shields running resident, with the behaviour layer catching unknown activity by pattern rather than signature.
Ransomware folder shield
Nominated folders reject writes from any process that has not been approved, which stops a mass encryption pass at the first file.
Two way firewall
Per-application rules for inbound and outbound traffic, network profiles for trusted and public connections, and a leak test view.
Sandbox and shredder
Run a suspicious file in an isolated container that leaves nothing behind, and securely overwrite files that should not be recoverable.
Web and payment filtering
Blocks known bad domains and flags spoofed shopping and payment pages, with a browser cleanup pass for unwanted extensions.
Changes in this build
- Behaviour shield retrained, with fewer false positives on developer tooling and installers.
- Firewall rule editor rebuilt with a searchable application list.
- Boot time scan runs considerably faster on NVMe systems.
- Reduced idle memory footprint of the background service.
- Web filtering updated for the current browser release channels.
What is in the package
- Avast Premium Security installer, 32 and 64-bit
- Firewall, sandbox, folder shield and shredder modules
- Offline definition set current at packaging
- Browser extension for web and payment filtering
- Multilingual interface files, 32 languages
System requirements
| Processor | Any x86 or x64 processor, dual core recommended |
| Memory | 2 GB minimum, 4 GB recommended |
| Graphics | Not applicable |
| Storage | 3 GB free |
| Display | 1024 x 768 minimum |
| System | Windows 7 through Windows 11, 32 or 64-bit |
Installation
- Uninstall any other resident security product first, two engines will fight.
- Extract the archive and run the installer to the default location.
- Reboot when prompted so the shields register with the system.
- Apply the included configuration step to enable the premium modules.
- Run one full scan and then set the schedule to idle time.
Before you start
Running two real time engines makes a machine slower and less safe, not more. Remove the other one.
The firewall starts in a permissive learning mode. Tighten it once the usual applications have been seen.
Definition updates are separate from program updates. Leave definitions on and program updates off.
Questions about this title
Do definitions still update?
Yes, the definition channel is untouched in this configuration.
Is the firewall included?
Yes, the two way firewall is a premium module and is enabled here.
Can it run alongside the built in Windows protection?
The built in scanner steps aside automatically when a third party engine registers.
Does the sandbox leave anything behind?
No, the container is discarded when the sandboxed process closes.
About this listing
This entry was checked on a clean install of Windows 7 / 8 / 10 / 11 before it was published, and it is rechecked whenever the package is rebuilt. The figures on this page come from the site index rather than from the publisher, so the download count is what people here have actually pulled.
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