BullGuard vs Bitdefender – How Does Norton Come into the Picture?

Dave Miller with Online Cloud Security

Dave Miller – Tech Enthusiast & Security Expert – December 23rd, 2022

Norton buys out BullGuard antivirus

Major players in the market frequently acquire or take over companies that are either of their interest or competing significantly; And BullGuard is one such organization, and today we will compare BullGuard vs Bitdefender for your security. Let me clarify further by stating that BullGuard and Norton are now one business, and BullGuard goods and services got migrated to Norton. And as we are all aware, Norton is presently the world’s most prominent participant in the antiviral market.

They have a decade of experience protecting consumers with their reliable technology, and even people who don’t know anything about antivirus software have heard of them. Additionally, considering that BullGuard customers can switch to a more powerful Norton product at no additional cost, you would want to consider whether you would switch to Norton or go with another company currently competing with Norton.

It is what I’m going to talk about today, and you’ll be able to learn more about how the transition took place and what services BullGuard currently offers.

Note: Avira purchased BullGuard in 2021 when Norton still owned it; nevertheless, within a year, Norton’s software had supplanted it. Products from BullGuard have consequently got included in Norton. So the Norton vs. Bitdefender contrast is crucial.

BullGuard vs Bitdefender – How Does Norton Come into the Picture?​

BullGuard vs Bitdefender – Company Overview

BullGuard

When it was first made available, BullGuard got regarded as a multi-layer, anti-digital threat and network security software. It offers a powerful defense against malware, spyware, viruses, and other online threats. Its award-winning anti-malware, dynamic machine learning, and top-notch identity protection quickly attracted users and Norton’s attention.

Since its founding as Symantec Corporation in 1982, Norton has purchased over 70 businesses, and they have no plans to slow down any time soon. Their collective enterprise continues to draw attention. But I’ll talk about this later some other day, so let’s concentrate on what Bullguard has to do with Norton.

Norton buys out BullGuard antivirus

In 2020, Norton LifeLock disclosed that Investcorp Technology Partners had agreed to sell Avira to Norton LifeLock in exchange for $360 million in cash. BullGuard then joined Avira as part of Norton LifeLock, according to a later announcement from Avira. Avira and BullGuard have helped make the connected world a safer place for people worldwide with their combined 50+ years of cybersecurity innovation.

By joining Norton LifeLock, these businesses can use their combined knowledge, technological capabilities, and geographic reach to safeguard more individuals. Because BullGuard and Norton are now a single business, BullGuard products and services got included in Norton. You may use Norton 360’s all-in-one security to secure your online safety.

To expand your understanding, the Windows anti-malware program industry was dominated by Symantec Corporation in August 2021, with a 79 percent market share. With a 13% market share, Norton 360 was its closest competitor. Millions of users trust Norton 360, and thanks to Norton technology, it stops thousands of attacks every minute. Additionally, they have years of experience and a track record of consistently making people safer.

Bitdefender

Bitdefender is a Romanian cybersecurity technology business with its headquarters in Romania that was founded in 2001 by Florin Talpeş. Through partners, they provide their products in more than 150 nations. They are recognized as a leader in cybersecurity and provide best-in-class threat prevention, detection, and response solutions on a global scale after receiving several awards over the past two decades.

The Bitdefender leadership team comprises business and security visionaries supporting technological development, innovation, and excellence. They know what they are doing to deliver robust service, making them ideal for homes or businesses looking for powerfully simple security. And just in, Bitdefender celebrated its 20th anniversary. There are other awards and nominations that I can go on to emphasize their credibility, but let me say that Bitdefender’s service is quite a contender in line with Norton.

BullGuard Vs Bitdefender - Features

Since both businesses pride themselves on their threat detection, I’d want to go through the features comparison to make your choice simpler. Even though Norton now holds the most market share, I can assure you that it will not be an easy decision to make because both programs are fiercely competitive.

Protection

Norton is proud of its products and offers a 100% Virus Protection Promise. It is so strong that even if another refund right does not apply, you will be entitled to one if it cannot get fulfilled. Every Norton 360 plan includes antivirus, malware, ransomware, hacking protection, and defense against viruses and malware that may render your devices useless. When the independent tester employed detection of widespread malware recently revealed in testing and applied for protection against 0-day malware assaults, including online and email threats, they consistently earned full marks.

While Bitdefender, as you may be aware, has frequently been named the best anti-malware program for sophisticated attacks in independent studies. Bitdefender installed on your devices. Nothing can harm your device, including Trojan horses, worms, ransomware, zero-day vulnerabilities, rootkits, or malware.

The only thing that offers Norotn an advantage is their confidence in their 100% Virus Protection Promise; other than that, they are both rather sturdy, so comparing them may not be what you want to do. But remember that you may need to see the terms and conditions for Norton’s claim.

Dark Web Monitoring

Norton Dark Web monitoring feature

No one knows the exact size of the dark web, but most estimates place it at around 5% of the entire internet, and frequently cited studies suggest that a deep grid just above the deep web is 400 to 550 times greater than a surface network. Despite this, the dark web is frequently portrayed as an enigmatic Internet shrouded in mystery. However, something occurs rather often: hackers can sell your personal information on the dark web.

When you receive a signal that your data got discovered on the dark web, the Norton Dark Web Monitoring function enables you to take appropriate action. Dark Web Monitoring includes Norton 360 Deluxe and Norton 360 Premium subscriptions.

While Bitdefender Digital Identity Protection offers a service called “Dark Web monitoring,” it also continuously audits your online footprint and keeps watch for imposters. Each data breach alert contains the kind of information exposed and the crucial precautions you should take to minimize your exposure.

No one can promise they will entirely and continuously monitor the dark web and private forums since they constantly change. However, Dark Web Monitoring, a service offered by Bitdefender and Norton, looks for your exposed or stolen information and is your most excellent chance of learning whether your data is for sale online.

Identity Theft Protection

2017 saw the completion of LifeLock’s acquisition by Symantec, which was Norton’s parent firm at the time. After that, Norton began offering identity theft protection and identity lock services. By securing your credit file, Identity Lock provides a proactive option to guard against fraudulent account openings. Identity Lock lets you lock and unlock your credit file with only one click. It can assist in preventing account creation without authorization. Identity Lock provides you with a means of preventing these kinds of risks.

In contrast, Bitdefender is providing a competitively similar service to help you regain complete control by giving you immediate online access to your credit reports and ratings. It also keeps an eye on your private information on social media, the internet, and the Dark Web, notifies you quickly with detailed notifications, and offers identity theft insurance. Their Premium package covers identity theft up to $2 million, whereas Norton only covers up to $1 million in stolen funds.

VPN Private Internet Connection

When you need more security for your online safety, a VPN is essential as it gives an extra layer of privacy protection to your online activities by routing your traffic over an encrypted tunnel.

To address this, Norton has included the VPN private internet connection service and Norton secure VPN in its bundles. If you connect to dubious Wi-Fi networks, you instantly have your connection and personal information safeguarded. Your internet activity is not logged or recorded, and sensitive data is protected and anonymized without affecting local services. Approximately 2,000 servers in 31 countries are now accessible to you via Norton.

While Bitdefender offers a superior alternative with 4000+ servers in more than 49 countries and offers online privacy and safety as well as unlimited encrypted traffic for up to 10 devices with Bitdefender Ultimate Security, additionally, they don’t keep any logs so that you can use the entire area without any limitations.

Downloading and installing a VPN solution through your provider is often simple, but it is more straightforward when it includes antivirus services. Both Norton and Bitdefender provide excellent options, but Bitdefender outperforms the competition in terms of the locations and servers that are accessible.

Cloud Storage

To ensure that you don’t lose your computer files if they get stolen, destroyed, or infected with ransomware, consider using cloud backup.

According to the package you choose, Norton offers cloud backup storage starting at 2GB and extending up to 250 GB. It is helpful to keep the files you need most when a cyber-criminal encrypts any of your data with ransomware. With the Cloud Backup tool in Norton 360, your images, financial information, and other essential files get automatically backed up on your Windows PC.

However, Bitdefender Safebox, which previously offered customers 2 Gigabytes of free cloud storage and up to 60 Gigabytes for premium users, is the simplest and fastest method to share, sync, and save information in the cloud. Once a backup gets taken correctly, the BitDefender Total Security application provides several device restoration capabilities.

While Norton does provide consumers with a substantial amount of data, there is currently little information available about Bitdefender’s cloud storage. While they offer gravity zone storage cooperation, the need for shared storage systems grows due to expanding digital transformation and higher workplace productivity requirements.

Ease of Usage

Both Norton and Bitdefender have slick, intuitive user interfaces with all the features put out very neatly and customizable options. However, as far as instructions for using the program go, you won’t have to put in any effort because they are both considerably simpler. Additionally, you may go to the official website, where each function got described in greater depth, and usage instructions get provided.

Why Norton Buys Other Antivirus Companies?

Norton has a long history of collaborating with other businesses to market their products, as seen by their latest partnership with Avast, another well-known brand in the sector. You might wonder what it means for customers when two antivirus industry titans unite. Why did Norton do it, and what does it represent for the cybersecurity sector?

In 2022, Norton LifeLock stated that the previously announced acquisition of Avast got completed. It occurred when Norton LifeLock purchased all of Avast’s shares for between $8.1 and $8.6 billion. Plans call for Norton’s CEO to stay in control while Avast’s CEO will take over as the organization’s new president. During the fiscal year 2023 second-quarter earnings conference call, the Combined Company will discuss its expected financials and KPIs and do business as NortonLifeLock Inc.

One of the key reasons they were able to achieve their desire to invest even more time, money, and knowledge into developing new products and improving the customer experience, which would advance the cybersecurity industry. But given that Norton and Avast were already massive businesses, how does the industry see this? They don’t constitute a monopoly collectively, but each time a merger like this one takes place, the industry loses a bit of competition.

To maintain its position at the top of the market, Norton will use the combined user base of Avast to increase their market share significantly. Although it is too soon to predict the future results, they have a history of successful mergers. A significant merger like this one should benefit companies and the customers who will use their products in the future.

BullGuard vs Bitdefender: Bottom Line

Norton and Bitdefender’s features may be compared in many different ways since there is too much at stake for both companies and a fundamental conflict between them. Both companies have excelled in the independent testers’ results and provide a wide range of user-friendly features.

Choosing this situation is challenging because both offer comparable protection from known and unknown dangers. Still, Norton’s results have been reliable from the beginning, despite Bitdefender occasionally losing points. However, both companies play a similar game in purchasing, promising a meager price the first year before charging the actual fee for the service. Norton may appear to be expensive, but Bitdefender is not far behind.

Therefore, whether you choose to join Norton, which currently has the finest value on the market, or move to its top rival, truly depends on you. As with their recent merger with Avast, previously mentioned, it’s somewhat intriguing, so you might want to stay to see what new stuff you’ll soon acquire.

Overall, whatever choice you decide, you will undoubtedly receive the finest protection. However, if you want to test the program before using it, you can only do so for a week with Norton 360’s free antivirus. Although, you may pick a product and download a free 30-day full trial version of the most recent Bitdefender products right away!

Frequently Asked Questions

Can You Buy BullGuard Products/Service Now?

BullGuard goods and services get no longer purchased as of July 25, 2022. Instead, you should put your faith in Norton services because they get used by millions of people worldwide and provide a wide range of goods and services to keep you safe online. Or you can also cancel the subscription plan.

If you already use BullGuard, your account already got switched to Norton. Additionally, you can access your Norton account using your current BullGuard login information. But remember that to access your Norton account, you must add the @BullGuard.com domain to the username in the email address box. Your current BullGuard subscription’s remaining days are carried over to your Norton subscription and preserved intact.

Also, don’t forget to deactivate the auto-renewal feature. If you previously had a BullGuard membership that did this, it got converted to a Norton subscription that does the same.

Does Support For BullGuard Still Exist?

Because BullGuard’s products and services are no longer supported. The product you get migrated to, Norton 360, contains all the information you might need to seek for. If you haven’t moved yet, your only choice is to do so as soon as possible. While Norton LifeLock and BullGuard get dedicated to giving you transparency when it comes to your data. They shall handle the personal data processing in compliance with any relevant laws.

Do Norton and Bitdefender Provide Phone & Live Chat Support?

Norton provides 24/7/365 assistance via phone, live chat, email, the company’s community forum, and social media channels on all package tiers. Like Norton, Bitdefender Support is accessible by phone and other similar mediums. You don’t need to worry here because both businesses offer many possibilities.

**Onlinecloudsecurity.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a way for websites to earn advertising revenues by advertising and linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. As an Amazon Associate we earn affiliate commissions from qualifying purchases.**

Dave Miller with Online Cloud Security

Dave Miller

IT Consultant at Online Cloud Security

Dave Miller is an IT Consultant for Online Cloud Security and has over 7 years of experience in the Information Technology space. He also specializes in repairing laptops & computers. In his spare time, he loves to talk about new technologies and hosts monthly IT and Cyber Security meetings in the Houston area.

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About Online Cloud Security:

Online Cloud Security is here to recommend you the most secure devices, from laptops to smartphones, we only want to provide you with products that we have tested and used ourselves for online security. Every product that we recommend is heavily inspected and tested for security against hackers, viruses, malware, and any other intruders that may want to steal your information. 

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Online Cloud Security Logo (500x500px)

About Online Cloud Security

Online Cloud Security is here to recommend you the most secure devices, from laptops to smartphones, we only want to provide you with products that we have tested and used ourselves for online security. Every product that we recommend is heavily inspected and tested for security against hackers, viruses, malware, and any other intruders that may want to steal your information. 

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