Full disclosure first

IT Broliai sells, installs and maintains ESET PROTECT for its clients. So this lesson isn’t neutral — and we don’t hide it.

So that you can trust it, we first give you the criteria you can use to judge any solution, including ours. And only then — why we ourselves choose ESET.

Isn’t the antivirus in Windows enough?

For one computer — often it is. Microsoft Defender, built into Windows, is serious protection, not “just anything”.

The trouble starts when there are five, fifteen or fifty computers. Then the question is no longer “is there an antivirus?”, but:

  • are all the computers protected — including the one the sales manager carries around?
  • which computer hasn’t been updated for a month?
  • where and when was a threat found — and did anyone notice?

These questions aren’t answered by an antivirus, but by central management and a person who reads the alerts.

What you're really buying

QuestionAntivirus on each computerCentral console + a person
Are all the computers protected?✗✓
Which ones haven't been updated for a long time?✗✓
Where and when was a threat found?✗✓
Who will respond at night or at the weekend?✗✓
In the left-hand column the protection may be excellent — it's just that nobody knows whether it works everywhere.

Six criteria for any solution

  1. Central management. All devices in one console, ideally in the cloud, so that you can also see laptops outside the office.
  2. Who reviews the alerts. Your employee, an IT company or the vendor’s service. How quickly — agreed in writing.
  3. More than scanning files. Protection in the browser against scam pages and infected websites, ransomware protection, control of plug-in devices.
  4. All your systems. Windows, macOS, phones, file servers — as many as you actually have.
  5. Impact on work. Protection that slows computers down gets switched off sooner or later. Ask for a trial period.
  6. Independent tests. Labs such as AV-Comparatives and AV-TEST regularly test protection solutions. Look at the latest results, not last year’s.

Why we choose ESET

By the same criteria:

  • One console for all devices — Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and iOS. We see the protection status, threats detected and computers that haven’t connected for a long time.
  • Protection beyond files. A real story from the lesson How to spot a phishing email: a .zip attachment held a PDF with a link, and it was the ESET web filter that stopped the infected website.
  • Low impact on work. Our clients’ computers don’t slow down so much that anyone wants to switch the protection off.
  • A European vendor. ESET is based in Slovakia, in the EU — for managers who think about NIS2 and where their data is kept, this is a frequent question.
  • New: protection for AI tools. As more and more employees use AI agents that download files and reach outside services on their own, the latest ESET PROTECT plans include a protection layer built for this.

You’ll find a comparison of the plans, and what we do, on our ESET PROTECT page. But if your IT company already looks after another solution that meets the criteria above — there’s no need to switch.

Check your computers — with AI

The first task is to find out what you have now. Copy and paste:

You are my IT security adviser. Help me check whether all our company's
computers are protected, and prepare a short report.

ABOUT US
- Number of computers and systems: [e.g. 12 Windows, 2 Mac]
- What protection I believe is installed: [... / don't know]
- Who looks after the computers: [an employee / an IT company / nobody]

PROCESS
0. TOOLS. Tell me whether you can run commands on this computer yourself.
   If you can — use ONLY read-only commands (e.g. a query of the Windows
   security status) and explain what each one does before you run it.
   If you can't — explain what to open and what screenshot to send.
1. ASK. Ask me the missing questions, one at a time.
2. TABLE. For each computer: which protection → is it active → when was it
   last updated → who will see the alert.
3. GAPS. Rank them by risk and suggest what to do, but change nothing.

GOAL
The job is finished when I have a table with ALL the computers and a clear
list of gaps — not general advice.

STRICT RULES
- Never switch off, uninstall or "temporarily pause" the protection.
- Don't install any programs without my explicit consent.
- Never ask for passwords.
- Answer in English.

AT THE END
Separately — WHAT YOU DID NOT CHECK (e.g. computers you couldn't see).

🤖 AI route recommended

The AI reads the status itself

An AI that can run commands on the computer reads the Windows security status with a single read-only command and explains it in plain language. On the other computers it will ask for a screenshot.

“Start with this computer. Before you run a command, tell me what it does.”

Your job: approve the commands and send screenshots of the other computers. If the AI ever suggests switching the protection off — stop.

✋ Manual route

Two minutes per computer

  1. Start → Windows Security.
  2. Virus & threat protection — it should say that no action is needed and show which program is protecting the computer.
  3. Write down the program's name and the date of the last update.

What to do this week

  1. Use the prompt above to draw up a protection table for all your computers.
  2. Answer for yourself who reviews the alerts. If the answer is “nobody”, that’s the first job.
  3. Check that employees work without administrator rights.

Want us to look after this for you? pagalba@itbroliai.lt

Check yourself

Five questions on what you’ve just read. At the end you’ll get a certificate with your score.