Update your antivirus software

If you get notified that you have updates, you should always choose to run any essential Windows updates if you are prompted. You can always check to make sure that your updates are up-to-date. Click on your Windows 10 icon and then click on the Settings icon. In the Windows Update window, you can click on the Check for updates button.. Use the steps on this page to make sure the antivirus program has the newest information about viruses that might infect your computer.

The majority of new antivirus programs programs or computers purchased after the year enable users to update their antivirus program through the software.

Open the antivirus program and look for "Update," "Check for updates," "Live Update," or something similar. Below are examples of how a user may update their antivirus program. How To. Security Center How To 5 reasons why general software updates and patches are important. Revised Jan. Join today. Cancel anytime. Start Free Trial. Software updates do a lot of things Software updates offer plenty of benefits.

Updates help patch security flaws Hackers love security flaws, also known as software vulnerabilities. Software updates help protect your data You probably keep a lot of documents and personal information on your devices. Updating your software and operating systems helps keep hackers out. You deserve the latest and greatest Updates not only patch security holes, they can also add new features and improve existing ones. Editorial note: Our articles provide educational information for you.

NortonLifeLock offerings may not cover or protect against every type of crime, fraud, or threat we write about. Our goal is to increase awareness about cyber safety. Please review complete Terms during enrollment or setup. Remember that no one can prevent all identity theft or cybercrime, and that LifeLock does not monitor all transactions at all businesses. Security and Critical Updates servicing phase - When running the latest platform version, you will be eligible to receive both Security and Critical updates to the anti-malware platform.

Technical Support Only phase - After a new platform version is released, support for older versions N-2 will reduce to technical support only. Platform versions older than N-2 will no longer be supported. If you are manually deploying Microsoft Defender Antivirus Platform Update, or if you are using a script or a non-Microsoft management product to deploy Microsoft Defender Antivirus Platform Update, make sure that version 4.

The below table provides the Microsoft Defender Antivirus platform and engine versions that are shipped with the latest Windows 10 releases:. For Windows 10 release information, see the Windows lifecycle fact sheet. Keeping your OS installation images up to date helps avoid a gap in protection.

For more information, see Microsoft Defender update for Windows operating system installation images. Package version: Package version: 1. Skip to main content. This browser is no longer supported. Download Microsoft Edge More info. Contents Exit focus mode.

Is this page helpful?