OP, I’ll be honest with ya: if you’re looking for something akin to M$ Defender but on Desktop Linux (and free), you ain’t gonna find it.

A quick look at your Lemmy history suggests that you’re security-conscious. In that context, it’s worth noting that ‘Linux’ does provide you. However, depending on your situation and/or threat model, this might come at the cost of expertise.

If you never download random stuff from the internet, then your average distro might be sufficient as long as you commit to the most basic set of best practices.

However, if you do download random stuff from the internet OR if your situation and/or threat model warrants a more conscious approach, then things might change substantially.

But before subjecting you to Qubes OS, we’d have to know more about your situation. So, first of all, could you elaborate on your use case of ClamAV? Or, perhaps even what you intend to do in general?

Backup your data so that you can restore what matters to you. There is no need for an antivirus on Linux if you stick to the distribution channels of your distribution because package are verified. Unlike in the close source world because the source of those packages are open, verifying, even though imperfect, is much simpler. Popular distributions, e.g. Debian or Redhat, have a very strong incentive not to let anything slip. Maintainer of packages also are able not just to track what changed but also by whom, that means if there is a problem it can be identified and attributed rather quickly and thus other maintainers can be warned. It is not impossible and supply chain attacks do happen, e.g. xz backdoor, but it is rare, specific and has been studied and thus partly alleviated even though it remains a challenge.

If you do download executables or binaries, not media e.g. videos or music, from random places though then all bets are off.

If you are sailing the seas gamewise 🏴‍☠️, Bottles does decent job finding and warning you with it’s Analyse feature :)

Lenspect or just VirusTotal

ClamUI on flathub

It is not worthy that it mainly is for windows malware and if you stick to your distro repositories you should be save

For the average home desktop/laptop user, you probably don’t need it. It won’t hurt, but unless you’re really downloading and executing random files off the internet, it won’t do much.

If you run a server that is publicly available on the internet that allows folks to upload files to it, then you will almost certainly want it.

Not really worth it unless you’re downloading attachments from spam emails or sketchy websites. It’s pretty dated tech - old school AV definitions, but there’s nothing better that’s free afaik

I recommend Lenspect on Linux. It uses VirusTotal API to scan files you select. It is available on Flathub with minimal permissions (basically just network permission to talk to VirusTotal).

clam-av is like an anti-virus condom – there are significantly better ways to protect yourself but if you’re not aware them, or don’t want to put in the effort, or just don’t want to bother for whatever reason; then it’s there and it’s better than nothing. lol

I have yet to have many issues with it, so far. So many people say you don’t need an antivirus on linux, but I am of the belief that you should have it regardless. Better safe to have a scanner just in case, especially if you download anything off the internet. Doesn’t matter if it’s from a supposedly safe source, it’s better IMO to just scan it just in case.

You do not need an antivirus

Have a look at the following from the Easy Linux Tips Project.