About

Protegent Antivirus refers to a series of YouTube remixes based on the commercials for the Indian antivirus software Protegent. The advertisements have been criticized for their animation, characters and song choice, which features a belabored rap about the software. Many online have claimed that the antivirus is malware because the character of Proto looks very similar to Whyatt from the animated children's television series Super Why!.

Origin

On August 18th, 2013, the YouTube account for Unistal,^[1] Protegent's parent company, uploaded a three minute commercial for their Protegent software. In the video, four cartoon men discuss their issues before being approached by Proto, Protegent's superhero mascot. As of August 2017, the video (shown below, left) has been viewed 5,500 times.

The following year, on February 25th, Unistal^[2] uploaded another Proto-based commercial in which the character raps. This video inspired a large number of the remixes involving Protegent (shown below, right).

Spread

On September 9th, 2016, Protegent uploaded another commercial under the name Unistal Systems Pvt Ltd. The commercial,^[3] which features two Protos, one with a mustache, talking about the product, (shown below) received more than 30,000 views in less than a year.

On July 22nd, Vinesauce Joel came upon the Protegentor commercials during a Windows Destruction livestream on twitch.^[4] In the video, Vinesauce Joel downloads numerous malware and malicious software onto his computer. The livestream seems to be the first of the wider exposure to Proto and Protegentor commercials.

The following day, YouTuber^[5] DarkGabbz uploaded one of the first remixes of the commercial, complete with harsher noises and visual effects. The video (shown below, left) received more than 4,500 views in two weeks. Additionally ahat day, YouTuber PajamaFrix uploaded a midi remix of the commercial.^[6] The video (shown below, right) received more than 16,000 views in two weeks.

Notable Examples

Search Interest

External References