Bitdefender Premium Security Review 2024: My Findings + 54% Discount
With its unlimited VPN, advanced password manager, sophisticated firewall, email protection for scam-free digital life, compatibility with multiple operating systems, Ad blocker & anti-tracker, advanced parental control, scam copilot that blocks any form of online scam, secure online banking, and total network protection, Bitdefender Premium Security is most reliable anti-malware, virus and ransomware solution for individuals and families that want premium digital protection, complete security and enhanced privacy.
I used the 30-day free trial to explore this cybersecurity product that protects up to 25 devices for just $89 annually.
In this Bitdefender Premium Security review, I share my findings and experience to show you how it protects your devices and networks so you can enjoy a cyberattack, threat, and scam-free digital life.
Bitdefender Premium Security At A Glance
Pros of Bitdefender Premium Security
Offers you unlimited VPN. Browse the web privately without bandwidth limits
Protects up to 25 devices simultaneously
Advanced password manager where you store your passwords, passkeys, and other sensitive details, sync them across all your devices, and use them safely.
Online management and remote control that ensures you monitor and track your devices from a single dashboard from anywhere.
Award-winning multi-device level security product trusted by 1 million users around the world.
Plenty of bonus features including ransomware protection, webcam protection, Wi-Fi security adviser, social network protection, microphone monitor, etc.
You can invite your family and friends to join your subscription package, installation and setup are easy- thanks to the manual guide, plus it doesn't consume much of your computing resources
The PC system requirement is low. It runs perfectly on Windows 7 and above, with 2GB RAM, Internet Explorer version 11, and 2.5 GB free space on the hard disk.
Offers up to 54% discount for yearly and 2-year plans, plus offers a 30-day free trial
Cons of Bitdefender Premium Security
While using it, it often flagged some files and applications as threats, which disrupted my activities online.
Parental controls aren't as advanced as standalone parental control software like Bark and Mobicip.
If you use it on older devices, it can take much of your device resources and still perform slowly.
Renewal prices are high, no, thanks to the discounts that won't apply again.
The password manager lacks some advanced features standalone password managers like LastPass and NordPass have.
Bitdefender Premium Security Price Explained
Bitdefender Premium Security has two plans with different prices - The Individual and Family Plans.
The Individual plan is specifically meant for Individuals. It supports one account and protects up to 5 devices. The yearly plan costs $69.99 while the 2-year plan costs $168.99.
The Family plan is designed for families with multiple devices. It supports 5 accounts and protects up to 25 devices. This means each of the 5 accounts protects up to 5 devices. The yearly plan costs $89.90 while the 2-year plan costs $220.99.
When you consider that Bitdefender Premium Security = Bitdefender Total Security + Bitdefender VPN + Password Manager, you see that Bitdefender Premium Security price for a year is a good deal compared to the total yearly cost of Total Security, Password Manager, and Premium VPN.
What's the difference between the Individual and Family plans of Bitdefender Premium Security?
The difference is clear. The Family plan supports more accounts and protects more devices compared to the Individual plan. This explains why the Family plan is more expensive than the Individual plan.
However, both offer discounted prices and have a 30-day free trial.
Bitdefender Premium Security Features
Let me show you the features of Bitdefender Premium Security, how they work to protect your devices and networks against viruses, malware, and ransomware, plus my experience using them
Unlimited VPN
Bitdefender Premium Security offers unlimited VPN, and this is one of the major reasons many individuals and families prefer it over Bitdefender Total Security and other Bitdefender products that have limited or no VPN traffic.
It keeps your internet connection private and hides your identity when using public and shared Wi-Fi.
While testing this feature, I discovered it has over 4000 servers in 50 different countries like the US, UK, Canada, and Australia. Also, I accessed content in locations where internet traffic is censored.
On the Individual plan which I used, it supports only 1 account while on the family plan, it supports 5 accounts.
The benefit of having a VPN feature in a cybersecurity product like Bitdefender Premium Security is that it saves the cost of subscribing to a standalone VPN like NordVPN and Surfshark. That's like using a stone to kill two birds.
Password Manager
With the Password Manager, you secure your password, passkeys, credit card, and other sensitive personal details in a cyber-vault and access them anytime.
There is also an option to autofill online forms with your personal details stored in a folder. This saves you the stress of manually entering them.
I doubted the performance of Bitdefender Password Manager until I used it to store a few of my passwords.
Interestingly, it synchronizes my passwords across the devices I use, which makes it easy to access my accounts on my tablet, Android phone, and Windows PC without having to enter my login details.
This is time-saving while at the same time protecting my personal details. Another interesting feature I discovered is the Password Recommendation. It tells when a password is weak or has been reused.
Then recommends a stronger password to keep your accounts secured always. While it might not be as advanced as standalone password managers like NordPass and 1PASSWORD, it is still a great value for someone who wants a basic password manager.
Email Protection
Email scams are on the increase. Every day in the US, UK, Canada, and around the world, an unsuspecting person is scammed of their hard-earned money via phishing emails.
Even companies face a similar issue - Business Email Compromise.
This is why Bitdefender Premium Security offers email protection so you can outsmart these fraudsters and block them from stealing from you.
The email protection scans all incoming emails and flags the phishing ones so you don't engage them. This saves you from falling for different tricks scammers use to convince you to take action that will lead to them stealing your personal details like credit cards, passkeys, social security numbers, and passwords.
Multiple Devices and Operating System Support
Bitdefender Premium Security protects up to 25 devices and is compatible with multiple operating systems.
On the Individual plan which I used to test it, I connected 5 devices successfully. The installation and setup didn't take up to 15 minutes. It runs seamlessly on my PC, Android phone, tablet, and two of my cousin's iPhones.
The Family plan protects up to 25 devices. So if you have a family with plenty of devices, Bitdefender Premium Security gets you covered.
It runs smoothly on Android, Windows, iOS, and macOS operating systems. I installed it on my Windows 7 PC with 2GB RAM and 32-bit. Surprisingly, it worked seamlessly and didn't even slow down my system.
Even on my cousin's iPhone X, which is a bit older version of iPhone, it worked fine.
Multi-layer Ransomware Protection
This feature protects you against various degrees of ransomware. It includes a data-protection layer that safeguards your documents, pictures, videos, and music against all kinds of ransomware attacks.
It collaborates with the Advanced Threat Defense module to protect your sensitive and most important files from ransomware attacks. Let's assume you have some family photos or a documentary video of your family vacation, and you want it to remain safe from any ransomware for years to come, Bitdefender's multi-layer ransomware protection will do that exactly.
Advanced Parental Control
You have total control over the activities of your kids on the internet. This is an interesting feature I love, and I believe every parent or guardian reading this will also love it. Kids can go the extra mile and harm themselves online if their activities aren't controlled.
With the parental control feature on Premium Security, you set a limit on their internet usage, filter out inappropriate content you don't want them to consume, and get a unified report on all your kids' devices connected to Bitdefender which makes it easier to have a better overview of their online activities.
Privacy Firewall
With the privacy firewall from Bitdefender Premium Security, you put hackers out of business. This extra layer of security protects your network so the personal and sensitive details on your devices can remain safe no matter how hard hackers and data snoops try to get access to it.
Cryptomining Protection
The bad guys are always looking for ways to make money with your devices. With the cryptomining protection feature from Bitdefender Premium Security, you block any type of leech software they want to inject into your devices which makes them money without your consent.
Many Individuals complain of higher electricity bills, but they don't know a leech software that mines crypto on their devices can contribute to it significantly.
Scam Copilot
Every day in the US and around the world, people complain of being scammed online. This is why Bitdefender launched the scam copilot, which is an AI-assisted scam protection that alerts you in real-time when your activities online are likely to end in your being scammed.
You browse the web pages and interact with people on social media platforms, and you never can tell when someone wants to scam you.
What I like about this feature is that it has sophisticated scam detection tools, including specialized chatbots that protect you from various degrees of online scams.
For example, there is SMS Protection which detects phishing and dangerous links in those SMS scammers spam you with. When you browse the web, you often give out your phone number just to access a service. This is one of the ways scammers collect your phone.
Another is Scam Protection Notification, which detects scams even in push notifications. So immediately you swipe down your phone home screen, you get notified of a phishing email, chat, or SMS. There is also Calendar Invites Protection that protects you from clicking fraudulent web pages that appear as calendar event invitation links.
Data Breach Detection
Some organizations and firms are bent on breaching your personal data for their personal gain. This usually happens when you browse their site, use their mobile app, or any of the services they offer online.
Bitdefender Premium Security fights this by providing you with a comprehensive list of all organizations that compromised your personal details and offering actionable tips to fortify your online security to prevent it from happening subsequently.
Vulnerabilities Assessment
Instead of waiting for hackers to attack your device and networks before you fix loopholes, Bitdefender Premium Security launches a vulnerability assessment to identify all loopholes in your device and network security and fix them before hackers take advantage of them. This is a proactive measure that saves you from unexpected and unprecedented cyberattacks.
Here is how it works: It scans your PC for security loopholes and vulnerabilities like outdated and vulnerable software, missing window security patches, and unsafe system settings, thereafter suggesting the best way to fix it.
For example, I once installed a video recording software on my PC and within 10 minutes of doing that, Bitdefender Premium Security scans the entire PC and suggests that I uninstall the software as it is a potential threat to sensitive details in my PC. I did not doubt it because it's free software and downloading and installing it wasn't seamless.
Ad Blocker and Anti-tracker
Block those unsolicited ads advertisers target you with and enjoy ad-free web surfing. With the Ad blocker and anti-tracker feature from Bitdefender Premium Security, you bypass all cookie settings on websites that advertisers use to collect your personal data, track you and serve you targeted ads around the web.
What is the difference between Bitdefender Premium and Total Security?
Bitdefender Premium Security has a slight edge over Total Security. To start with, it offers unlimited VPN traffic while Total Security offers limited VPN traffic of 200MB/Device/Day, which isn't enough for an individual or family that spends lots of hours surfing the web daily.
Email Protection which is an important feature that protects you from phishing emails is missing on Bitdefender Total Security. Premium Security has this feature that filters all emails that land in your inbox with the aim of flagging spam and phishing emails that could lead to you being scammed.
Scam Copilot is another feature missing on Bitdefender Total Security, which is available on Bitdefender Premium Security. This feature leverages artificial intelligence to protect you from being scammed online. This had intuitive tools like:
Scam Wave Alert - This informs you in real time about scam outbreaks in your region. The aim is for you to be cautious so you don't fall victim. For example, there was a time when email scams were on the increase in my region, luckily that was when I subscribed to the 30-day free trial of Bitdefender Premium Security. I got several alerts on that from Bitdefender. It even suggested measures I could take to avoid falling victim.
SMS Protection - This protects you from clicking phishing links in the SMS you receive on your phone.
Chat Protection - This detects scam attempts in your WhatsApp, Telegram, Facebook Messenger, and Instagram chats. This is helpful if you are the type that loves chatting with random people online.
There is also remote access scam protection, email protection, calendar invites protection, etc.
On Bitdefender Premium Security, a security expert is assigned to you to help you with any technical issues you face. This is in addition to the priority support you enjoy.
Bitdefender Total Security doesn't assign you a security expert. You only enjoy 24/7 support, which sometimes isn't enough, especially if you want to resolve a technical issue instantly.
In terms of pricing, Bitdefender Premium Security is more expensive compared to Bitdefender Total Security. This is due to the more advanced features it offers.
Bitdefender Premium Security Individual Plan protects 5 devices and costs $69.99 per year and $168.99 for a 2-year plan. The Family Plan protects up to 25 devices and costs $89.90 per year and $220.99 for a 2-year plan.
On the other hand, Bitdefender Total Security Individual Plan protects 5 devices and costs $49.99 per year; $142.99 for a 2-year plan.
The Family Plan protects up to 25 devices and costs $69.99 per year; $181.99 for a 2-year plan.
Summing up the differences between the 2 which I stated above, you can see that Bitdefender Premium Security offers more features. If money isn't an issue, I strongly recommend it for complete security and enhanced privacy.
Read this article where I compared Bitdefender Premium Security to Total Security
What's the difference between Bitdefender Premium and Ultimate?
The Advanced Identity Protection which Bitdefender Ultimate Security offers is a major difference between it and Bitdefender Premium Security. Also, it is more expensive but compensates that with the monthly plan which isn't available on Premium Security.
Let's look at the differences in detail.
Bitdefender Ultimate Security's Advanced Identity Protection has the following tools:
Digital Identity Protection: Every time your personal information ends up in a breach, Bitdefender Digital Identity Protection informs you so you can act immediately and minimize the impact. While browsing websites or using applications, hackers can get access to your personal information without you knowing, and this can have negative consequences if nothing is done. Bitdefender's Digital Identity Protection notifies you of this data breach and suggests the best way to fix it.
Data Breach Detection: As you browse the web, many organizations, especially those run by scammers and hackers, look for security loopholes to collect your personal information. With Data Breach Detection, you have access to a comprehensive list of all these organizations that have exposed your personal details, plus actionable tips to address each of the breaches and reinforce your overall online security.
Dark Web Monitoring: Bitdefender Ultimate Security constantly scans the web especially the dark web to identify unauthorized leaks of personal data and offer real-time alerts so you can take appropriate security measures like changing your password, deleting your account, and freezing your credit card before a serious incident occurs.
Digital Footprint Visualization: This tool identifies precisely the website, application, or service that has compromised your sensitive details and recommends how you can undo the damage. Let's assume your personal details were leaked to the dark web, and you suspect two websites you visited recently.
With the digital footprint visualization, you get to know the exact website that compromised your personal details. No need for guessing.
Real-Time Breach Notification: Get an instant alert when your personal details have been breached. This keeps you one step ahead of hackers and empowers you to take immediate action.
Coming to price, Bitdefender Ultimate Security is more expensive than Premium Security.
For the Individual plan, which protects up to 5 devices:
The monthly plan costs $6.99, the yearly plan costs $69.99 and the 2-year plan costs $207.99
For the Family plan, which protects up to 25 devices:
The monthly plan costs $8.99, the yearly plan costs $89.99 and the 2-year plan costs $259.99
Comparing it to the price of Bitdefender Premium Security, which I explained earlier, you can see that Bitdefender Premium Security is more affordable.
So if you want Advanced Identity Protection in addition to all the features available on Bitdefender Premium Security, go for Bitdefender Ultimate Security. It offers up to 56% discount for a yearly and 2-year plan subscription.
Read this Bitdefender Premium Security vs Bitdefender Ultimate Security comparison article.
Bitdefender Premium Security Review On Reddit
I jumped on Reddit to get a feel of what verified users of Bitdefender Premium Security got to say about it. From the first 5 comments I read, it's all about the unlimited VPN traffic and the innovative email protection tool.
A Dad who subscribed to the Family Plan to protect the devices of her 3 daughters likes the unlimited VPN traffic which allows them to browse the web privately. He described the installation and setup of the product as seamless.
A mom who has kids who use the internet for school assignments likes the parental control feature that allows her to set limits on the kids' internet usage and also monitor their overall activity from a single dashboard.
Is Bitdefender a Russian company?
Bitdefender isn't a Russian company. It's a Romanian company founded by Florin Talpes in 2001. It had its headquarters in Bucharest, Romania, and offices in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, and other countries.
Does Bitdefender Premium Security have a firewall?
Yes, Bitdefender Premium Security has a firewall that protects your network, so your personal data on your devices remains safe and secured. This puts hackers who deploy different tricks to access it out of business.
Final thoughts
If you want complete internet security plus enhanced online privacy, Bitdefender Premium Security is your best bet. It offers unlimited VPN traffic, email protection, a privacy firewall, an AI-powered scam copilot, and other advanced security features that protect your device, network, and personal data from hackers and scammers.
I used the 30-day free trial to explore it, and I can tell you that it's a reliable cybersecurity product from Bitdefender that every individual and family needs to fortify their online security.