anti-virus

is a client side scanning tool

therefore it can be -and is- used by governments to scan client devices

together with “unauthorized” root certificates : microsoft and other install a “microsof root certificate”
https only works IF you trust the the certificate authority , you can

see scandals with symantec /
see what John McAffee had to say

what does AV protect you against :
- kid cracker tools
- medium smart threads

the most impacting threads, and by far the most number of attacks, are the consequence ot dumm users actions
- unverified downloads/ installers => verify MD5 hash & file origins
- open mail attchments => don’t do yhat
IF your have good security habbits
on Linux file downloads are in itself not a problem , you need to gran cmod -X first , and if you do that without reflection , you are an idiot

AV does not protect against smarter more advances techiques :
man in the middle attack
attack fro m memory based programs ( non file based)