Norton 360

A surprisingly generous set of included features. $80/YEAR (STANDARD), $100/YEAR (DELUXE), $150 (PREMIUM) | AU.NORTON.COM

The revamped Norton 360 line includes a password manager, online backup software and storage and an unlimited-data VPN service. With the integration of LifeLock identity protection in the more expensive options, Norton is presenting itself as a one-stop shop for all your security and privacy needs.

As for the antivirus part of the package, the heavy system-performance impact that cursed Norton products a decade ago seems to be making a comeback, at least during scans. The software also comes with far fewer security tools than other brands’ antivirus offerings. But if you’re in the market for identity protection as well as antivirus software, Norton 360 with LifeLock protection can be a pretty great deal. All the new products include backup software, cloud storage, a password manager and a two-way firewall. All the Norton 360 products include unlimited VPN service, webcam protection and Dark Web monitoring. The top three products include various levels of LifeLock identity protection.

Norton 360 Standard costs $80/year for a single PC, Mac, Android or iOS device (though it’s not worth buying for a single mobile device) and adds webcam protection and LifeLock monitoring of your personal data on the Dark Web. It includes online storage of 10GB and gives you unlimited Norton VPN service for a single device, which isn’t chicken feed – no other antivirus brand we know of gives you unlimited VPN data for no extra fee.

Norton 360 Deluxe costs $100/year for up to five PCs, Macs, smartphones or tablets and adds extensive parental controls; 50GB of cloud storage; and VPN client-software licenses for up to five devices.

The more interesting one is Norton 360 Premium, a souped-up version of Norton 360 Deluxe for 10 devices that lists for $150 per year and comes with 75GB of online storage. This might be the one to get if you have a lot of devices – or a large family – but don’t need or want LifeLock. All Norton antivirus products work with Windows 7 through Windows 10, macOS 10.12 and later, Android 6.0 Marshmallow or newer and iOS 10 or later.

None of the new Norton 360 products have yet been tested by the major antivirus testing labs, but because they use the same Windows malware-detection engine as the previous lineup, existing lab results should be applicable. Norton is almost always in the top rung of lab results, alongside Bitdefender, Trend Micro and Kaspersky.

Norton detected every threat, both widespread and zero-day, in German lab AV-Test’s Windows 10 tests from January through June 2019. It scored the same 100 percent in all previous AV-Test bimonthly rounds on Windows 7 or 10 in 2017 and 2018, averaging only a couple of false positives each time. No other antivirus brand we regularly review could match that, although Kaspersky stopped short of 100 percent only once over those 30 months.

Whether and which Norton antivirus products to buy depends on what else you need. If you’re shopping around for a password manager, a VPN service or an online backup service, Norton’s bundling of these products at no extra cost is tremendously appealing. And if you think you also need an identity-protection service, no other antivirus company offers such a compelling package. However, if you just need antivirus software, Norton is only one of a few brands that offer excellent malware protection.