Windows Defender is an anti-malware program built into Windows 10, designed to help protect your device and data from malicious software. It runs automatically in the background and regularly scans your device and files.
On average, the default scan settings for Windows Defender will run a scan every day and check for any potential threats. Windows 10 also has a feature called “Windows Defender Scheduled Scan” which allows you to customize when and how often scans should be done. The default setting is once a week on Sunday at 2am, but you can also choose to have scans done daily or every other day, and even specify a time for the scan to start.
If your computer is not in use for an extended period of time, such as overnight, you may consider setting up Windows Defender to scan more often, such as twice a day. This way, if any new threats appear on your system after a long period of inactivity, the scan will catch them before they can do any harm. For example, scheduled scans can be set up to run at 8am and 8pm, or 6am and 6pm, depending on your preferred schedule.
You can also use Windows Defender Offline to perform a scan without booting into Windows. This type of scan is particularly useful if you suspect that your system may be infected with malware that is preventing it from starting up normally. It is recommended to run this type of scan at least once a month, or whenever you notice any suspicious activity on your computer.
Overall, Windows Defender is an effective security tool, and using it properly can help protect your PC against malicious software. For the best protection, it’s important to make sure that regular scans are performed, and that the frequency of these scans is adjusted as needed.