A Complete Zemana AntiMalware Review: Can You Get Reliable Protection?

Zemana AntiMalware has been around since 2015, helping users protect their PCs against cyber threats. Many people have some similar questions: how reliable is it? Can it detect novel malware and block zero-day attacks? Is it resource-hungry? Does it work well with third-party antivirus software?

Find out in our unbiased Zemana AntiMalware review, where we address these and other burning questions to help you make an informed decision.

Zemana Overview

Zemana is a Turkish cybersecurity company providing innovative solutions for detecting and blocking cyber threats. Zemana AntiMalware is its most sought-after product, offering Windows users free and premium malware removal. It eliminates viruses, adware, rootkits, spyware, ransomware, browser hijackers, and other potentially unwanted programs (PUP).

Its other products include Zemana AntiLogger, Deepware (for detecting AI-generated videos), and PAGI Gen (an imaging video framework), the last two under the Deepware AS brand.

Zemana has recently discontinued its highly praised mobile antivirus to focus on PC malware protection and the latest AI technologies.

Here's what you can expect from its antimalware solution.

Pros & Cons

Zemana AntiMalware's benefits outweigh its few drawbacks, but we'll let you be the judge.

Core Features

Zemana AntiMalware is a no-frills solution offering standard malware protection. You won't find many features on its dashboard, but it will still equip your PC with solid defenses against cyber threats. Here are its core functionalities.

Malware Scans

Zemana AntiMalware offers scheduled and on-demand Smart and Deep scans to find potential malware on your PC. The former focuses on the most at-risk areas, while the latter (exclusive to premium users) lets you choose a folder or drive.

Checking roughly 2,400 files with Zemana's quick scan takes approximately 15 seconds. Its Deep counterpart is more time-consuming, which isn't surprising, although some alternatives are faster.

For instance, scanning 182,000 files takes about 18 minutes. Some antimalware tools can check approximately four times more data in 12 minutes.

Still, Zemana AntiMalware can find all malware in your system, making the scanning worth the wait. The best part is it doesn't hog many CPU resources. Its CPU usage stays at 0% when idle, increasing to approximately 10% when performing scans. It also works well with third-party antivirus tools without negatively affecting your PC's performance.

Malware Removal

Once Zemana AntiMalware detects potentially unwanted programs, it automatically quarantines them to prevent them from spreading through your system. You can then access the quarantine to remove them from your PC.

However, you can change the default action from Quarantine to Delete. That way, the software will eliminate threats without previously isolating them. That's perfect for preventing PUPs from activating while you evaluate if they're malicious or safe. Other actions include Report as Safe and Exclude.

The best part? Malware removal isn't exclusive to premium users. Unlike most alternatives, which only quarantine suspicious files if you're not a paying customer, Zemana AntiMalware deletes them without asking for your money.

Additional Features

Zemana AntiMalware has no firewall, password manager, VPN, web and email protection, and other extra features that many alternatives offer.

However, its premium version has real-time ransomware protection. It relies on a cloud-based infrastructure to block zero-day attacks using heuristics and its growing malware signatures and definitions database.

The premium edition also offers browser cleanup, which detects PUPs like browser hijackers, adware, and spyware.

Additionally, free and premium users can use an allowlist (you can find it under the Whitelist) for specific files that Zemana AntiMalware puts in quarantine. That's helpful if the software mistakenly flags something as malicious. You can mark it as safe and restore it to its original location.

Reporting is another extra feature that both premium and free users can enjoy. It may seem insignificant, but in-depth reports let you stay on top of potential threats. They include information on all the blocked attacks, including their origin, helping you avoid malicious websites and apps.

Ease of Use

Zemana AntiMalware has an intuitive interface. Whether you get the bare-bones free version or the premium edition, you can seamlessly navigate the platform and leverage its easy-to-use features without jumping through hoops.

The best part is you won't see annoying ads in the free version. Also, you won't get obtrusive offers to upgrade to the premium edition once your 14-day free trial (with all the features) expires. Aggressive upselling isn't part of Zemana AntiMalware's forever-free model.

Pricing & Coupon Discount

Besides the forever-free version, Zemana AntiMalware offers premium subscription plans to Windows users looking for advanced malware protection. They include one-year, two-year, and three-year licenses for one, three, five, ten, or 15 PCs.

Here's the pricing structure for one PC:

• One year – $24.95
• Two years – $49.90
• Three years – $74.85

As for discount coupons, be wary of sites offering those deals because they might be malicious. Zemana doesn't support that option at checkout, meaning you can't enter a promo code.

However, like many other providers, Zemana offers seasonal deals (e.g., on Black Friday or Christmas), so stay tuned for those offers.

Customer Support

Zemana AntiMalware has a convenient "Help & Support" feature in the primary interface for premium users, enabling them to get 24/7 technical support.

However, there's no phone support or live chat on the website. Users can only contact the Zemana team via email at support@zemana.com.

Free users can also submit a ticket, but the Zemana team will prioritize their paying counterparts when responding. Still, they don't need to wait long for a response because the support agents are highly responsive.

Final Verdict

Zemana AntiMalware is an excellent solution for blocking malware, including known threats and zero-day attacks. Unlike most competitors, it removes malware for free, making it fantastic for Windows users looking to fortify their PC defenses without paying a dime.

However, real-time protection is exclusive to paying customers. They can also enjoy browser cleanup and avoid ransomware.

Another unique selling point is the compatibility with third-party antivirus software. That's perfect because you might need a solid antivirus tool. After all, Zemana has no extra features like a VPN, firewall, email and web protection, or password manager.

Overall, we recommend Zemana AntiMalware to all Windows users looking for impressive malware protection at an affordable price, assuming they combine it with reliable antivirus software.

Bonus Advice: How to Prevent Data Loss in Case of Malware

What if novel malware slips through the cracks before Zemana AntiMalware or another tool detects it? It could delete or modify multiple files, causing data corruption. Fortunately, you can reverse the damage once you remove the threat from your system.

That's where data recovery tools come into play. An excellent example is Wondershare Recoverit, a prominent data retrieval solution compatible with 1,000+ file formats and 2,000+ devices. It can recover data in 500+ scenarios, including malware attacks, disk corruption, formatting, accidental deletion, a system crash, and software malfunction.

We recommend downloading the free version for Windows or macOS to explore the features before committing to the premium edition, which doesn't limit you to recovering only 100 MB of data.

Once you do, follow these steps to recover lost data due to malware:

1. Go to Hard Drives and Locations, click Start, and select the affected storage unit.

   

2. Filter the results by file type, size, time, tag, or status (or use the search bar) to accelerate the scan (unless you wish the software to find all lost data).

   

3. Preview the recoverable videos, images, PDFs, emails, music, presentations, and other items, click Select All (or choose specific files), and hit Recover.

   

4. Browse your PC for a safe location to download the recovered data and click Recover. Don't choose the original folder because you might cause corruption and permanent data loss.

   

Conclusion

Strengthening your PC defenses is critical in the wake of ever-looming cyber threats and constant malware development. That includes equipping it with reliable antivirus and antimalware tools. Zemana AntiMalware is only one example.

Although impressive, it requires additional protection layers, so we recommend pairing it with dependable antivirus software. However, if malware slips through its binary fingers, leverage a data recovery tool like Wondershare Recoverit to prevent data loss.