New mission to further digital rights and reset digital
citizens' relationship with the internet for a better online world;
delivers new Avast One free protection platform for users
worldwide
PRAGUE, Sept. 16, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Avast (LSE:AVST),
a global leader in digital security and privacy, today unveiled its
new brand identity and expanded purpose to protect digital freedom
for all online citizens. Avast is committed to furthering digital
rights, especially in the critical area of privacy, with a new
digital freedom strategy that includes policymaker engagement,
philanthropy, and innovation. The new brand look and tone reflects
Avast's wider purpose, a new and innovative approach to total
digital protection with Avast One, and a call to action for people
to reset their relationship with the internet for a better online
experience.
In a world now transformed by the pandemic, Avast has identified
how online harms have expanded beyond security issues to include
serious threats to personal privacy and identity. Research*
published by Avast today in its Digital Citizenship Report
found that, while six out of ten people acknowledged the increased
importance of the internet during the pandemic, security and
privacy concerns have prevented 65% of people worldwide from doing
something online; women and those aged 18-24 (68%) were the most
concerned demographics.
Ondrej Vlcek, CEO Avast,
said, "The digital world has reached a crossroads. Over 4.8
billion people are online today - over half the world's population
- and ensuring people have the ability to access a safe and secure
internet is increasingly a fundamental digital right. It's not
enough to simply trust online providers to always have our best
interests at heart, and people are looking for help to address the
inequality in their relationship with the internet and protect
their safety and privacy. We believe, as a digital protection
company, that we can do more to improve online security and defend
against covert surveillance through unwanted tracking and
monitoring. Avast is therefore committed to fighting for
digital freedom and to protect the privacy of digital citizens
online today and those who will join us in the future."
As part of the company's new purpose-led strategy, Avast is
today announcing:
- Avast One, a new digital protection service: Avast
pioneered free antivirus 20 years ago and is committed to providing
the best free protection products for all of its users. Avast's new
hero product combines the company's award-winning antivirus
technology with a firewall and software updater feature to protect
people from using outdated software and supply chain attacks,
extensive privacy protection in the form of a Virtual Private
Network for regular browsing use, and identity protection through
our data breach monitoring service, all for free with the Avast One
Essential version.
- The new Avast Foundation program: the company's
charitable Foundation celebrates its first year this year, and has
debuted a new program tackling digital freedom issues and
supporting vulnerable people. Building on a previous decade of
philanthropy, the Avast Foundation is focused on enabling a more
equitable and inclusive digital future in which everyone has access
to the tools and opportunities to reach their full potential.
- Shaping policy on security and privacy
technologies: Avast believes that protecting people's
privacy needs to go beyond product innovation and that it has a
role in helping shape policy on technology adoption and use. Avast
advocates for digital freedom with political stakeholders worldwide
by serving as a resource. Avast is proactively engaging on critical
topics such as online surveillance, privacy, AI and encryption
technologies to educate and ensure people-first policy-making.
Digital Citizens are waking up to concerning internet
issues
The Avast Digital Citizenship Report reveals that for 34% of
people globally, the internet has made the pandemic more bearable
by enabling social contact, new experiences, access to important
services, and inspiration. Globally, 40% used the internet to keep
in touch with loved ones, with 22% saying they used video calling
for the very first time in their lives. For 27% of internet users
worldwide, the internet empowered them to experience and learn new
things.
However, the report also shows that people enjoy the internet,
yet do have concerns about their safety and privacy. This confirms
what customers have told Avast - that it's simply the price they
have to pay for using it. The majority of digital users (83%) say
the protection of their data is very important to them, however,
less than half (43%) say they have strong trust in data protection
laws.
Uncertainty about security and privacy can also inhibit people
online, with many deciding against certain online activities, for
example, 36% chose not to register for certain online accounts
requiring personal details, 20% decided against online banking, and
30% refrained from using public Wi-Fi.
Avast One: next-level protection for today's digital
life
Avast One provides digital citizens with a single solution to
online security, privacy, identity and performance issues, keeping
people and their data safe and their devices running smoothly. With
built-in personalization capabilities, Avast One adjusts to the
individual needs of people and their family members.
With the free Avast One Essential offering, users get protection
from cyber threats such as ransomware, spyware and
phishing attacks; security from malicious incoming connections via
its firewall; and a generous VPN allowance of 5GB per week, which
is highly competitive. Given the reasonable concerns, people have
about public Wi-Fi, using a virtual private network (VPN) can help
users keep their personal information safe while connected.
The paid Avast One Individual and Avast One Family products
include additional features, including protection from Address
Resolution Protocol (ARP) spoofing, DNS hijacking, and webcam spy
attacks. It also offers data breach monitoring to allow people and
their families to see if the passwords of their online accounts
have been exposed and provides them with unlimited VPN services.
Avast One users can also significantly improve their PC performance
with a Disk Cleaner that allows them to find and clean redundant
junk files to keep their device clean.
Avast One is available from today in the United States, Canada, United
Kingdom, and Australia and
will roll out to non-English speaking markets soon.
*Avast survey regarding global digital citizenship trends
among 16,147 online users in 17 countries around the world
conducted by YouGov and Forsa. Avast commissioned the survey to the
research institution YouGov who ran the survey from June 15th to June 27th in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Czech
Republic, France,
India, Japan, Mexico, New
Zealand, Russia,
Slovakia, Spain, United
Kingdom and the United
States, and to the research institution Forsa in
Austria, Germany and Switzerland (German-speaking
population only). The survey was run as a representative survey
among over 1,000 people in each region, apart from Austria and Switzerland, where Forsa surveyed over 500
people each. The global data points in this report cover results of
all regions, apart from data points that show results by age groups
or gender, where results from German-speaking markets are
excluded.
About Avast:
Avast (LSE:AVST), a FTSE 100 company, is a global leader in
digital security and privacy, headquartered in Prague, Czech Republic. With over 435 million
users online, Avast offers products under the Avast and AVG brands
that protect people from threats on the internet and the evolving
IoT threat landscape. The company's threat detection network is
among the most advanced in the world, using machine learning and
artificial intelligence technologies to detect and stop threats in
real time. Avast digital security products for Mobile, PC or
Mac are top-ranked and certified by VB100, AV-Comparatives,
AV-Test, SE Labs and others. Avast is a member of Coalition Against
Stalkerware, No More Ransom, and the Internet Watch Foundation.
Visit: www.avast.com.
Keep in touch with Avast:
- For security and privacy insights, visit the Avast
blog: https://blog.avast.com/
- For handy guides, advice and tips, visit Avast
Academy: https://www.avast.com/c-academy
- For more information about Avast visit:
https://www.avast.com/en-gb/about
- Visit our Facebook group: www.facebook.com/avast
Media contact:
pr@avast.com
Logo -
https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1627507/Avast_New_Logo.jpg