Antiviruses that can scan for viruses in offline mode
Many antivirus programs have the capability to scan in offline mode, where they do not rely on an active internet connection to detect and remove threats. Here’s a list of popular antivirus programs that support offline scanning:
Windows Defender (Microsoft Defender), Kaspersky, Bitdefender, ESET NOD32 Antivirus, Avast, AVG Antivirus, Malwarebytes, McAfee, Norton Antivirus, Sophos.
- Windows Defender (Microsoft Defender)
- The built-in antivirus for Windows can perform offline scans using a feature called “Windows Defender Offline.” This is especially useful for detecting and removing persistent malware.
- Kaspersky
- Kaspersky Antivirus offers offline scanning, allowing users to run full or custom scans even when not connected to the internet.
- Bitdefender
- Bitdefender can perform offline scans using its built-in virus definitions. However, real-time protection and cloud-based scanning features will be limited offline.
- ESET NOD32 Antivirus
- ESET NOD32 provides offline scanning capabilities with its local virus signature database.
- Avast
- Avast Antivirus offers offline scanning using its local virus definitions, although some advanced features like cloud detection will be unavailable.
- AVG Antivirus
- Like Avast, AVG (which is owned by the same company as Avast) also supports offline scanning using local definitions.
- Malwarebytes
- Malwarebytes Anti-Malware can scan and remove threats in offline mode, although its effectiveness improves with access to online databases.
- McAfee
- McAfee Antivirus supports offline scanning using the local virus signature database.
- Norton Antivirus
- Norton provides offline scanning through its local virus definitions, though it also relies heavily on cloud-based scanning.
- Sophos
- Sophos offers offline scanning, with the caveat that it will use its last-updated definitions until an internet connection is available.
Special Mention: Rescue Disks
Some antivirus vendors, like Kaspersky, Bitdefender, and others, offer “rescue disks” that can be booted from a USB or CD to perform an offline scan on a compromised system. These are especially useful when dealing with rootkits or other malware that might prevent normal scanning.