Avast facts for kids
Avst, see Avestan alphabet.
Logo used since 2023
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Enterprise Office Center building, Gen Digital co-headquarters in Prague
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Formerly
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Alwil Software |
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| Subsidiary | |
| Industry | Computer software |
| Founded | 1988 |
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| Headquarters | , |
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Area served
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Worldwide |
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Key people
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| Products | Cybersecurity software |
| Services | Computer security |
| Revenue |  US$892.9 million (2020) |
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Operating income
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 US$335.4 million (2020) |
| US$169.6 million (2020) |
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| Total assets | US$2.707 billion (2020) |
| Total equity | US$1.195 billion (2020) |
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Number of employees
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~1,700 (2021) |
| Parent | Gen Digital |
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Avast Software is a company from the Czech Republic. They make software to protect computers and phones from viruses and other online threats. This is called cybersecurity software.
Avast uses smart technology like machine learning and artificial intelligence to keep devices safe. Over 435 million people around the world use Avast every month. This makes them one of the biggest companies for antivirus software.
The company was started by Pavel Baudiš and Eduard Kučera in 1988. They began as a small group working together. Later, in 2022, another cybersecurity company called NortonLifeLock bought Avast.
Avast's main product is Avast Antivirus. They also offer other tools like the Avast Secure Browser for safe internet use and Avast SecureLine VPN for private online connections. They also have browser add-ons like Avast Online Security.
Contents
How Avast Started
Avast was founded by Eduard Kučera and Pavel Baudiš in 1988. They met while studying math and computer science in Czechoslovakia. Pavel Baudiš found a computer virus on a floppy disk and created the first program to remove it.
After this, he asked Eduard Kučera to help him start a company. At first, their company was called Alwil, and only their software was named Avast.
In 1991, the company changed from a small group to a partnership. This happened after a big change in Czechoslovakia, which became a market economy. In 1995, an Avast employee named Ondřej Vlček made the first antivirus program for the new Windows 95 computer system.
Avast software became very popular in the 1990s. Experts who tested IT security software gave Avast awards in every category. Even with this success, the company faced money problems in the late 1990s.
Growing Bigger
By 2001, Alwil was still having financial troubles. They decided to try a new way of selling their software: a freemium model. This meant they offered a basic version of Avast for free.
This idea worked very well! By 2004, one million people were using Avast. By 2006, that number grew to 20 million users. In 2009, Vince Steckler became the CEO of Avast.
In 2010, Alwil officially changed its name to Avast, using the name of its popular software. They also received a lot of money from investors to help them grow. By 2013, Avast had 200 million users in 38 countries and its software was available in 43 languages.
New Purchases and Challenges
In 2014, a company called CVC Capital bought a part of Avast. This deal valued Avast at $1 billion. That same year, Avast bought a company called Inmite to help them make better mobile apps.
In 2016, Avast bought a big competitor called AVG Technologies for $1.3 billion. AVG also made IT security software for computers and phones. In 2017, Avast bought Piriform, the company that made CCleaner.
In May 2018, Avast became a public company. This means its shares could be bought and sold on the London Stock Exchange. This made Avast worth about £2.4 billion.
In July 2019, Ondřej Vlček became the CEO of Avast. He decided to take a very small salary and give his board director's pay to charity. In 2021, NortonLifeLock announced they would merge with Avast. This deal was worth about US$8 billion and was completed in September 2022.
What Avast Offers
Avast creates and sells computer security products for businesses and regular users. They have software for servers, desktop computers, and mobile devices. They sell both Avast products and the AVG products they bought.
Avast and AVG security software for regular users are sold using a freemium model. This means that basic security features are free to use. However, if you want more advanced features, you need to buy a premium version.
The free version of the software also shows ads. All Avast users share some data about their computer or phone with Avast. This helps the company find new security threats faster.
Free features include scanning for viruses, cleaning up your browser, a secure browser, and network security. Features like a firewall, anti-spam, and online banking protection usually need to be purchased.
Avast also has products for businesses. These include tools for protecting all computers in a company, Wi-Fi security, and managing passwords. For example, their desktop product can check for weak spots in a Wi-Fi network.
User Data and Privacy Concerns
In late 2019, it was found that some Avast browser extensions were collecting user data. This included information about what websites people visited. This data was sent to a remote server.
Because of this, the Avast and AVG extensions were temporarily removed from popular browser stores like Google Chrome and Firefox. They were later put back.
In January 2020, an investigation found that the free versions of Avast Antivirus and AVG AntiVirus were collecting user data. This data was then sold to a company called Jumpshot, which was a part of Avast. Jumpshot used this data to help companies create personalized ads.
The investigation showed that Jumpshot offered to provide details like "Every search. Every click. On every site." from over 100 million devices. After this news came out, Avast announced on January 30, 2020, that it would immediately close Jumpshot. They stopped all its operations because of the strong negative reaction from users about their data privacy.
In February 2024, the Federal Trade Commission in the US fined Avast $16.5 million. This was because they collected user data and sold it. This collection happened even though Avast had a program to make sure such data collection was not happening.
See also
- Comparison of antivirus software
- Comparison of firewalls
