“Comes closer to providing actual antivirus protection than any competitor.” Best Free Antivirus for iPhone: ZoneAlarm Mobile Security “Blocks attempts to access your private data, and even monitors for malicious apps.” Best for Phishing Protection: Avira “It’s great at blocking malicious websites that are designed to phish your personal information.” Best for Anti-theft Tools: McAfee “The anti-theft tools include options to track your device on a map and sound an alarm.” Best for Blocking Web Threats: Trend Micro Mobile Security “Features include a password manager, identity theft protection, parental controls, and more.” Best for Parental Controls: F-Secure SAFE “Block unwanted sites from search results, and even set reasonable browsing time limits.” The fact is that iOS devices are inherently very secure, and that very security makes it difficult for antivirus apps to scan for suspicious behavior and impossible to repair infected files. Lookout is one of the only iPhone apps that actually monitors other apps for suspicious behavior, using its App Monitor feature to alert you if any apps on your device are running malicious processes. Lookout also warns you if you’re missing any important security updates that could leave you vulnerable to attack through its System Advisor, uses jailbreak monitoring to warn you if your OS has been hacked, includes a safe browsing feature, and can tell you whether or not a Wi-Fi network is safe to use. The best thing about ZoneAlarm Mobile Security is that it monitors your downloaded and installed apps for suspicious activity. If it detects that your phone has downloaded a malicious app, including apps known to initiate ransomware attacks, it will provide you with a warning so that you can take appropriate actions. ZoneAlarm Mobile Security also blocks any attempts to access your camera, mic, and data such as photos, videos, and messages. So if you are attacked, or you do end up installing a malicious app, ZoneAlarm is still able to keep you safe. Another great thing about this free app is its Wi-Fi monitoring feature. This feature scans available public network and provides a warning before you can accidentally connect to a fake, malicious, or infected network. The best thing about Avira Mobile Security is how good it is at blocking malicious websites that are designed to phish your personal information. This is accomplished through the Avira URL Cloud, which is a cloud-based system that allows the app to effectively identify and block phishing sites without taking up unnecessary memory or processing power on your iPhone. In addition to protecting you from phishing attacks, this versatile app includes a call blocker, anti-theft tool that’s capable of sounding an alarm, and a robust contact backup function designed to help you pick up the pieces if your device is stolen. Avira Mobile Security also includes a fantastic Identity Safeguard feature that monitors security breaches and leaks for your e-mail and personally-identifying information. The anti-theft tools included with McAfee Mobile Security start with basic features, like options to track your device on a map and sound an alarm even if your stolen device is set to silent mode. If you have an Apple Watch, you can use it to initiate the alarm. McAfee Mobile Security comes with its fantastic CaptureCam feature. This feature kicks in whenever an unauthorized person tries to access your phone, quickly snapping a photo and then sending it to you via e-mail. You also get an encrypted storage vault to protect your files that you can open using Touch ID and Face ID, a remote contact backup feature, and even the ability to wipe your device remotely if it looks like you won’t get it back. Trend Micro Mobile Security is a subscription-based service that costs about $30 per year, but the price goes down if you pay for multiple years at once. For that investment, you get a host of features that are designed to keep your device safe from online threats. The top of the line web filtering offered by this app works right in Safari, and other popular browsers, so you aren’t limited to a hamstrung custom browser. Trend Micro does provide their own Safe Surfing browser with a private mode, but you aren’t forced to use it. You also get social network protection, which monitors your social network accounts for security issues. Other features include anti-theft measures, a password manager, identity theft protection, parental controls, and more. F-Secure SAFE features great parental controls that allow you to filter content by category based on what you want your child to have access to. You also get the ability to block unwanted sites from search results, and even set reasonable browsing time limits. The catch is that iOS doesn’t allow apps to restrict each other, so you have to manually disable Safari and other browsers for this feature to actually protect your kids. Excellent web filters also protect you from malicious websites, above and beyond the parental controls. This extends to banking protection, which is specifically designed to mark websites as safe for banking or online shopping. This versatile app also includes some very basic anti-theft features, such as an alarm and device tracking, but it can’t wipe your data remotely.
