EDR vs Antivirus: What’s the Difference?

Antivirus and EDR both help protect computers from malicious activity, but they provide different levels of visibility and response.

Antivirus

Modern antivirus products use signatures, reputation, behavioral analysis, and other techniques to detect and block threats. They are an important baseline security control.

EDR

EDR provides deeper endpoint telemetry, threat investigation, behavioral detection, and response capabilities. It is designed to help security teams understand what happened and contain suspicious activity.

Do Businesses Need Both?

Many organizations use endpoint protection that combines prevention with detection and response capabilities. The right approach depends on company size, risk, compliance requirements, and available security expertise.

For organizations without a dedicated security team, an MSP or MSSP can help deploy, monitor, and manage endpoint security technologies.