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List of Anti-Virus Software Working on Windows XP After April

These are the apps you should use to protect your Windows XP computer

Jan 16, 2014 16:31 GMT  ·  By
Microsoft itself will continue to update Security Essentials on Windows XP until July 2015
   Microsoft itself will continue to update Security Essentials on Windows XP until July 2015

Windows XP will be retired by Microsoft on April 8 and since so many users are still running it right now (about 28 percent of the desktop computers worldwide are powered by XP, according to Net Applications stats), Redmond has created quite a dispute among its users.

On one side, there are those still running Windows XP right now and claiming that their operating system should never die, so Microsoft should continue providing support for this particular OS version.

On the other side, there are Windows 7 and Windows 8 adopters who explain that Windows XP no longer has what it takes to cope with today’s requirements and it’s a very vulnerable operating system.

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Windows XP will be retired on April 8, but Security Essentials will still receive updates until July 2015. In the end, one thing is for sure: after April 8, every single vulnerability found in Windows XP would basically represent an open door for hackers, as Redmond would no longer provide updates and security patches for this operating system.

As a result, running up-to-date anti-virus protection is a must for those still on Windows XP, in an attempt to block as many incoming attacks as possible, especially when involving malware.

Many Windows XP computers are running Microsoft’s Security Essentials, the freeware anti-virus product that can be installed by any pre-Windows 8 user at no charge.

Microsoft, on the other hand, has thought this out very well, so in April, the company will officially remove the download links for Security Essentials on Windows XP.

In other words, Security Essentials will still be up for grabs, but not for Windows XP users, so the available versions will only work on Windows Vista and Windows 7. Windows XP machines still running MSE, on the other hand, will continue to receive virus definition updates until July 2015.

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Security Essentials will live on for Windows XP until July 2015, but no new installations will be allowed.By that time, Microsoft expects all users to move from Windows XP which, to be honest, sounds really doable given the fact that the company is also planning to launch Windows 9 in about one year.

Even though Microsoft tries so hard to scare away users and move them from Windows XP to another platform, third-party security vendors will continue to provide support for this particular OS version, so their apps will still work on XP after April.

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AV-TEST has created a list of security vendors that will continue to work on Windows XP after April, explaining that users who want to stick to this platform also need to move to alternative software, such as Mozilla Thunderbird instead of Outlook. Some apps that are part of Windows XP will also become vulnerable, so switching to software that continues to provide support for this OS is vital.

Here are the security vendors that will continue to provide support for Windows XP after retirement, so make sure you download one of their apps if you want to stay fully protected.

AVG - No end of support announced; support available for at least 2 more years Avast - No end of support announced; support available for at least 2 more years Avira - Support will end on April 8, 2015 Bitdefender - Support for home-user products available until January 2016; support for corporate products available until January 2017 Bullguard - No end of support announced; support available for at least 2 more years Check Point / ZoneAlarm - No end of support announced; support available for at least 2 more years Comodo - No end of support announced; support available for at least 2 more years ESET - Support available until at least April 2016 Fortinet - No end of support announced; support available for at least 2 more years F-Secure - No end of support announced; support available for at least 2 more years G Data - Support available until at least April 2016 K7 Computing - No end of support announced; support available for at least 2 more years Kaspersky Lab - Support will continue at least until 2018 for consumer and at least until 2nd part of 2016 for business products Kingsoft - No end of support announced; support available for at least 2 more years McAfee - No end of support announced; support available for at least 2 more years Microsoft (Security Essentials) - Support will end on July 14, 2015 Microworld - No end of support announced; support available for at least 2 more years Norman - Support available until at least January 2016 Panda Security - No end of support announced; support available for at least 2 more years Qihoo 360 - Support available until at least January 2016 Quickheal - No end of support announced; support available for at least 2 more years Sophos - Support will continue at least until September 30, 2015 Symantec / Norton - Products support Windows XP, no end-of-life decision has been made yet Tencent - No end of support announced; support available for at least 2 more years ThreatTrack / Vipre - Support available until at least April 2015 Trend Micro - Support will end on January 30, 2017 Webroot - Support available until at least April 2019