How to use Total Security for elderly, non-tech-savvy parents

Merriam

Total Security free trial is working well for me on my Mac/iOs devices and I plan to keep.

However, I need to protect my elderly parents' Windows computers. One parent used to be tech savvy but now has dementia and gets very easily confused, prone to online mistakes. (Unfortunately, keeping this parent off computers is not an option.) Other parent very sharp but not tech savvy.

I'm wondering whether I can add their computers to my Total Security account, install BitDefender on computers, and then monitor their computers myself—remotely. Is this possible? If so, does it seem like the best approach?

Please note that if BD prompts them to enter a password or take any action, they will be completely confused and aggravated and possibly reject BD. They have rejected every single safeguard I've tried to put in place so far. So BD must require no action on their part, and I must be able to control it remotely for this to be a viable solution.

Thanks for your help!

Alexandru_BD

Hello @Merriam and welcome to the Community!

You can protect your parent's computers using a Total Security license or any multi-device license from Bitdefender for that matter. Installation is fairly simple and you can monitor the protected devices using your Central account afterwards.

Bitdefender Central is an online platform for managing all your Bitdefender products and subscriptions. From Central, you can control security for yourself and your entire family. You can activate and manage your subscriptions, install protection, track your lost devices, and run remote scans and optimizations – all in one place.

You can find more information about it here:

https://www.bitdefender.com/consumer/support/answer/2255/

Once the antivirus is installed, it's standalone most of the time. If no personalized advanced setup is needed for specific purposes, it will do its job in the background using the default settings, keeping all devices safe.

As you have a trial in your account, I will include here a link that shows how to protect other devices, so you can download and install protection on your parent's computers, and test how things work before purchasing a subscription:

https://www.bitdefender.com/consumer/support/answer/1443/#scroll-to-heading-2

Bitdefender will require a password only if it was previously set, to protect its settings. But this is optional. Once you have set a password, anyone trying to change the Bitdefender settings will first have to provide the password. Otherwise, no passwords are needed to use the product.

https://www.bitdefender.com/consumer/support/answer/2076/

In the event your require more time to decide if Bitdefender is the right choice and which subscription is best suited for your needs, just let me know and I can extend the trial for you.

Let us know if you have any questions.

Regards

Scott

Just to add to Alexandru's informative post above. On install, I would be sure to disable these two options as to not be a distraction with any notification for them in "what do I do now"? I would also uninstall the VPN, as that could be confusing with some of its notifications as well (or they can be disabled in the App itself).

The article posted above will show you what can be done remotely with Total Security installed on a Windows PC. Their PCs have to be on and running for the remote actions to work. You get a pop-up notifying you of that (example below). The command will be sent when the PC is online. I just sent a Quick scan to a PC that was offline, and once I booted it up, the Security Widget showed the scan in progress.

Kind regards,

Scott

Merriam

This is great info and very encouraging. Much thanks to you both!

Alexandru, if you could please extend the trial a bit for me, I'd really appreciate it.

Alexandru_BD

Hi @Merriam,

Kindly be advised I have now extended your Total Security trial until May, as per your request.

Should you require any advice when purchasing Bitdefender, please don't hesitate to follow up here.

Have a good day!

Regards

Merriam

Fantastic! Thank you so much!

Installation successful but very time-consuming due to slow connection. Will revisit computer soon to make sure everything is just so. Excellent instructions, advice and customer service. Impressed and grateful.

Merriam

Alexandru_BD I just got an email telling me that my trial is about to end soon. Seems the extension didn't take. Could you please confirm that my trial has been extended? Thank you!

Scott

Hi Merriam :)

I'm not sure on Mac, but on your Dashboard, your App UI, is there the ability to Switch Account, a little person icon at the top? If there is, go ahead and click on that, enter your email address and password you used to set up your account, your Central account, and see if that refreshes your trial status.

Let us know if that worked or not.

Merriam

All good! Thanks so much!

Scott

You're welcome :) You've been an absolute pleasure to work with :)