NordVPN’s Threat Protection Pro has emerged as a formidable player in the cybersecurity landscape, successfully blocking an impressive 92% of phishing websites in a recent independent lab test. Conducted by the Austrian firm AV-Comparatives, the evaluation involved a rigorous examination of 15 different products against 250 verified phishing URLs between January 7 and January 19. The testing environment utilized Google Chrome for both antivirus and VPN assessments, ensuring a comprehensive analysis of each product’s capabilities.
Phishing: A Growing Threat
Phishing remains a prevalent form of cyberattack, where malicious actors lure individuals into revealing sensitive information through deceptive URLs. These attempts can manifest in various forms, including emails, texts, and even voicemails. For instance, a common tactic involves sending an email that falsely claims a bank account has been compromised, urging the recipient to click on a link to resolve the issue. Such scams tend to spike during tax season, with artificial intelligence increasingly utilized to enhance their reach and sophistication.
The U.S. State Department warns that cybercriminals often create a false sense of urgency and trust, which can cloud critical thinking and lead to the unwitting disclosure of personal information, such as passwords and credit card details. This tactic can be broad, targeting numerous individuals, or more focused, known as spear phishing, aimed at specific victims.
Test Results and Rankings
In the recent AV-Comparatives test, NordVPN’s Threat Protection Pro secured a commendable fourth place among the evaluated security products, effectively blocking 92% of the phishing URLs tested. The top performers included:
- Avast Free Antivirus – 95%
- Norton Antivirus Plus – 95%
- Webroot SecureAnywhere Internet Security Plus – 93%
NordVPN highlights on its website that Threat Protection Pro offers protection even when devices are not connected to a VPN. The software employs various strategies to thwart phishing attempts and prevent malware infections, including alerts for malicious websites, blocking tracking cookies, and stopping intrusive ads and pop-ups.
The Rise of AI in Phishing Attacks
According to cybersecurity firm Hoxhunt, the volume of phishing attacks has surged by a staggering 4,151% since the introduction of ChatGPT in 2022, costing companies an average of .88 million per breach. While some AI-generated phishing scams have managed to bypass email filters, Hoxhunt’s findings indicate that only a small fraction—between 0.7% and 4.7%—of phishing emails were crafted by AI. Nevertheless, cybercriminals are leveraging AI to enhance their phishing tools, creating deepfake videos and voice impersonations to manipulate victims into redirecting payments or divulging sensitive data.
As AI-driven scams become increasingly sophisticated, the challenge of combating them intensifies. A recent report from CNET revealed that 62% of executives have fallen victim to phishing attempts, including voice and text-based scams, with 37% experiencing invoice or payment fraud linked to generative AI.
While NordVPN’s Threat Protection Pro shows promise in preventing new malware infections, it is important to note that it cannot remove malware that may already reside on a device. For those seeking to address existing issues, CNET has compiled a list of the best antivirus software for 2026, along with recommendations for effective free antivirus applications, which can help scan and eliminate any lingering threats.
