Comparison · Link & file scanning
Dr.Web vs Virus Total (unofficial)
For most people who want a verdict they can trust, Dr.Web (@DrWebBot) is the better pick: it is the antivirus company's own bot, linked from free.drweb.com, it checks files and links in a private chat or a group, and over 17,000 people use it monthly. Virus Total (unofficial) (@VirusTotal52bot) is one developer's wrapper around VirusTotal's public API, with no company behind it, but it shows results from 70+ antivirus engines at once instead of one. Use it as a second opinion when Dr.Web's single engine leaves you unsure about a file, and remember that anything you upload joins VirusTotal's shared corpus.
@DrWebBot
FreeOfficial
83/ 100
#1 in Link & file scanningThe genuine official bot of Doctor Web, a long-established Russian antivirus vendor — send it a file or link in a private chat or a group and it scans for malware and phishing using Dr.Web's own cloud engine.
@VirusTotal52bot
Free
63/ 100
An independent developer's bot that wraps VirusTotal's public multi-engine scanning for links and files. Not run by Google/VirusTotal itself — a convenient unofficial front-end, similar in spirit to third-party wrappers around other public APIs.
By the numbers
Dr.Web is ahead: 83 against 63 out of 100 for Virus Total (unofficial). Dr.Web wins on functionality, reliability & speed, popularity & trust, safety & privacy, freshness, localization, no intrusive ads. Both are free to use.
At a glance
| Dr.Web | Virus Total (unofficial) | |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly users | 17.4K | — |
| Pricing and limits | Free | Free |
| Languages | EN · RU · DE | MULTI |
| Inline mode | no | no |
| Mini App | no | no |
| Works in groups | yes | no |
| Works in channels | no | no |
| Accepts voice | no | no |
| Accepts files | yes | yes |
| Requires phone number | no | no |
| Requires registration | no | no |
| Shows ads | no | no |
| Official | yes | no |
| Developer | Doctor Web (Dr.Web) | Borya_Abramovich_B |
| Last check | October 22, 2026 | October 22, 2026 |
Score by criterion
| Criterion | Weight | Dr.Web | Virus Total (unofficial) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Functionality | 25 | 8 | 7 |
| Reliability & speed | 15 | 9 | 5 |
| Popularity & trust | 15 | 7 | 4 |
| Price & free tier | 10 | 10 | 10 |
| Usability | 10 | 7 | 7 |
| Safety & privacy | 10 | 9 | 5 |
| Freshness | 5 | 7 | 5 |
| Localization | 5 | 10 | 8 |
| No intrusive ads | 5 | 10 | 8 |
| Total | 100 | 83 | 63 |
Pros and cons
Dr.Web
- Genuinely official, run by a real antivirus company
- Works both one-on-one and inside group chats
- Quiet mode avoids notification spam in busy groups
- Sizeable, sustained monthly usage (17,000+)
- Files are uploaded to Dr.Web's cloud for scanning, not checked locally
- Group mode requires admin rights to add the bot
- File-size limits not published on the bot's own profile
Virus Total (unofficial)
- Consensus across 70+ antivirus engines, not just one
- Owner identity disclosed rather than fully anonymous
- Free to use
- Unofficial — not affiliated with Google or VirusTotal itself
- Single-developer project, less institutional accountability
- Uploaded files become part of VirusTotal's shared scanning corpus
Frequently asked questions
Dr.Web or Virus Total (unofficial): which is better?
Dr.Web is ahead: 83 against 63 out of 100 for Virus Total (unofficial). Dr.Web wins on functionality, reliability & speed, popularity & trust, safety & privacy, freshness, localization, no intrusive ads. Both are free to use.
Are Dr.Web and Virus Total (unofficial) free?
Dr.Web: Free. Virus Total (unofficial): Free.
Do Dr.Web and Virus Total (unofficial) work in groups?
Dr.Web: yes. Virus Total (unofficial): no.