If you don’t, infected Windows computers may upload infected files to your Linux machine, allowing it to infect other Windows systems. The antivirus software will scan for Windows malware and delete it. It isn’t protecting your Linux system – it’s protecting the Windows computers from themselves.
If you are running a Linux-based file server or mail server, you will probably want to use antivirus software. If you don’t, infected Windows computers may upload infected files to your Linux machine, allowing it to infect other Windows systems. The antivirus software will scan for Windows malware and delete it.
Does linux have antivirus?
Believe it or not, there are antivirus programs targeted at desktop Linux users. If you have just switched to Linux and started looking for an antivirus solution, don’t bother — you do not need an antivirus program on Linux. There are some situations when running an antivirus on Linux makes sense, but the average Linux desktop isn’t one of them.
We should figure it out. Again on the official page of Ubuntu, they claim that you don’t need to use antivirus software on it because viruses are rare, and Linux is inherently more secure. You can still add antivirus software for additional security and mental satisfaction. Popular antivirus software for Linux includes Sophos, Comodo, and ClamAV.
Does antivirus software protect Linux from malware?
The antivirus software will scan for Windows malware and delete it. It isn’t protecting your Linux system — it’s protecting the Windows computers from themselves. You can also use a Linux live CD to scan a Windows system for malware. Linux isn’t perfect and all platforms are potentially vulnerable.
A quick look at the Ubuntu repositories shows there are also many antivirus programs and ClamAV plugins that help protect mail servers, web servers, and compressed files. In addition, ClamAV can detect viruses in cross-platform file types such as PDF, Flash, and file archives such as ZIP and RAR, as well as Unix-based ELF executable files.
Can Linux get viruses?
However, you are very unlikely to stumble on — and be infected by — a Linux virus in the same way you would be infected by a piece of malware on Windows. Whatever the reason, Linux malware isn’t all over the Internet like Windows malware is. Using an antivirus is completely unnecessary for desktop Linux users.
How to protect Linux from malware and viruses?
Here are precautions to take to protect your Linux machines from threats such as malware or viruses, Linux user is advised to get trusted software from authorized repositories such as Github. If you are running cross-platform with a windows workstation; make sure to get up-to-date anti-virus software.