Microsoft is announcing that the first public preview of its Microsoft Defender Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) antivirus and malware protection is now available for Linux.
The antivirus is available for six different distros, including Ubuntu 16 LTS, or higher LTS, Debian 9+, RHEL 7+, CentOS Linux 7+, SLES 12+, and Oracle EL 7, but it’s not meant for home users. Instead, the antivirus is meant for system administrators to manage a threats found in Linux suing the Microsoft Defender Security Center.
Alongside the security solution for Linux, Microsoft is also bringing its antivirus to iOS and Android devices, and a preview is expected to be available in the coming days. However, it’s not yet clear if the solution will be available for consumers or just enterprise users, and how the it’s going to work considering the limitations found in mobile operating systems.
Originally, the antivirus was known as a “Windows Defender” ATP, but the company changed its name to “Microsoft Defender” ATP to signal that the threat detection capabilities will go beyond it desktop operating system, as we can now see that it’s available on macOS and Linux, and soon on Android and iOS. Although you can still see the “Windows Defender” reference on Windows 10, this it’s going to change with the release of version 2004.
Mauro Huculak is a Windows How-To Expert who started Pureinfotech in 2010 as an independent online publication. He has also been a Windows Central contributor for nearly a decade. Mauro has over 15 years of experience writing comprehensive guides and creating professional videos about Windows and software, including Android and Linux. Before becoming a technology writer, he was an IT administrator for seven years. In total, Mauro has over 21 years of combined experience in technology. Throughout his career, he achieved different professional certifications from Microsoft (MSCA), Cisco (CCNP), VMware (VCP), and CompTIA (A+ and Network+), and he has been recognized as a Microsoft MVP for many years. You can follow him on X (Twitter), YouTube, LinkedIn and About.me. Email him at [email protected].