What anti-virus does everyone use?

[Sugar Free Nos]

Hi, I recently got a computer for the first time, and I know that anti-virus is a very big part of owning one and browsing the Internet. I saw the portion of the post in the directory covering anti-virus, but that was a while ago and I was wondering if anything had changed, and what people are using now.

 

Thanks!

[Andreaz1]

Me and my family use AVG (free version) on every computer we have and have never had any issues, I think it's a really good program. When I feel like it is necessary I compliment it with Malwarebytes Anti-Malware.

Edited December 16, 2014 by Andreaz1

[Argonaut]

Hi, I recently got a computer for the first time, and I know that anti-virus is a very big part of owning one and browsing the Internet. I saw the portion of the post in the directory covering anti-virus, but that was a while ago and I was wondering if anything had changed, and what people are using now.

 

Thanks!

 

Malware Antibytes- free and deepest scanner of Malware out there, discovered things AVG never did..

AVG Anti-Virus 2014 free- the Anti-virus standard for years now, never go with anything else like Mcafee or Norton which attach you to stupid money-grabbing trials and adware, stick to these two and you should be clean as can be.

[Vanto]

None. You don't really need one, just be sure that you download programs from the official websites.

[Dottie]

Norton Antivirus came with our xfinity package so I use that

 

it sucks total ass in the fact that it will bring up a lot of false positives (says that something is dangerous but it really isnt) and quarantine them (meaning you must remove them from quarantine). I have had this happen to game dlls, and random harmless files (I virus scan just to be sure though)

 

It does block auto attacks from the internet too, which is a plus

 

Their firewall overrides the default windows firewall too but allows you to allow specific apps through the firewall easily

 

but Id did help get rid of some nasty viruses I had on my computer though

[Sugar Free Nos]

None. You don't really need one, just be sure that you download programs from the official websites.

That sounds like a dangerous plan.

 

That won't fly. My mother is so paranoid that the entire Internet is nothing but viruses, that it was a chore to convince her to buy from Newegg.

Edited December 16, 2014 by Sugar Free Nos

[sivispacem]

Malware Antibytes- free and deepest scanner of Malware out there, discovered things AVG never did..

MBAM is great against adware, ransomware and generic stuff but it isn't a viable AV and should not be treated as one. It's more a clean-up tool.

 

I used to use AVG Free but it's become far too resource intensive in recent years. I moved on to Avast! which I can't fault. On the rare occasions I've used paid AV it's been Trend Micro as they have the best detection ratios for advanced stuff, but the added protection isn't really worth the price given that I do most of my browsing inside a sandbox.

 

Anyone who says you can do without AV is dangerously ignorant of current trends in crimeware in particular. A well engineered browser or plugin exploit delivered via watering hole or exploit kit and you can get malware running in memory on the target machine without the user even being aware anything was different.

[OzzySM12]

My PC security consists of;

 

AVAST! Free Antivirus

COMODO Free Firewall

Firefox with the AdBlocker Plus and DoNotTrackMe addons.

A VPN service for using torrent sites and the like.

 

I am however looking for a replacement for DoNotTrackMe as it has changed toi some Blur sh*t and is quite rubbish now.

 

All that along with some common sense has kept me virus free for... well the last virus I remember having was when I was using AVG. Must be a good 5 or 6 years ago since I had a system infected that was not easily sorted by running a boot time scan.

 

My advice to anyone would be dont pay for security. It is the biggest rip off in the world. Get the best free stuff and use a bit of common sense. That along with reading all install things so they aint adding toolbars and sh*t, will keep you safe.

 

And if in doubt, COMODO Free Firewall comes with a sandbox feature which lets you isolate any questionable applications.

[GG14876]

I use Avast (Free version) for general AV.

I also use Firefox with AdBlock Plus and NoScript. Bit of a pain when I allow someone else to use the web as I need to explain how to (temporarily) allow individual sites, but it really cleans up sites.

 

Only computer I have that doesn't have any AV/security is an old desktop (early Win XP) that hasn't been online in almost a decade and doesn't see any transferable storage (USB/External drives). I think that's the only way to get away with not having any AV/security on a computer...

[utack]

I use exactly none.

I have an OS on disc1 for gaming only (steam and skype password are the only interesting "targets" on it) and one on disc2 for the rest.

[Ryan]

I use Windows Defender. Unlike some other MS programs, it does a pretty good job of staying in the background and being an annoying or intrusive program, and it does a decent job of picking up threats. Plus it's built into Windows.

[Shmoopy]

Get Avast and Combofix

[TheMcSame]

AVG paired with Malwarebytes.

 

Technically speaking Malwarebytes isn't an anti virus (it's anti malware) but it's definitely an important piece of software to have IMHO.

[RedDagger]

Malwarebytes is fairly essential when it comes to this sort of thing, although like others have said it's not active anti-virus, so you can't have it on its own.

 

Personally I use Avast!, I haven't had it for too long but it's worked fine so far without being intrusive - it also comes with a gaming mode so that it doesn't boot you back to the desktop in the middle of a game or throw windows at you, which is nice. My machine is also over a decade old and I've had no performance problems with it. Saying that, my only comparison is McAfee, which is probably worse than any virus I've downloaded on my PC...feckin' BT, wish I'd realised how awful it was sooner.

[LiniArc]

Norton Antivirus came with our xfinity package so I use that

 

it sucks total ass in the fact that it will bring up a lot of false positives (says that something is dangerous but it really isnt) and quarantine them (meaning you must remove them from quarantine). I have had this happen to game dlls, and random harmless files (I virus scan just to be sure though)

 

It does block auto attacks from the internet too, which is a plus

 

Their firewall overrides the default windows firewall too but allows you to allow specific apps through the firewall easily

 

but Id did help get rid of some nasty viruses I had on my computer though

 

 

Same thing happens with me too in games on using N360.

[PhillBellic]

I use the following;

 

Avast AntiVirus.

Malwarebytes AntiMalware.

Spybot Search and Destroy.

Common Sense/Defensive Computing.

 

[Red Hat]

I used to have AVG Free until I made the jump from Windows 7 to 8.1. AVG Free was the very first antivirus I had installed in this PC of mine. I just removed it like 3-4 months ago when I made the jump.

Currently I'm using Windows Defender and Malwarebytes.

Once I get the rig which is in my sig, I'll probably buy Kaspersky Internet Security but if I become lazy by the time, I'll just download AVG Free and Malwarebytes again.

Edited December 21, 2014 by Kevin3014

[Pavle]

I use Comodo. Before it I had AVG 2014.

[PalmIsland!]

This system use Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate 64 bit operating system. Therefore I'm using Microsoft Security Essentials, which is made by Microsoft and it is designed for Windows.

[Jinx.]

I am using Avira. It is pretty good.

Edited December 22, 2014 by darthvader20011

[aranatecharete]

I always have used Microsoft security essentials, its biggest advantage is that it puts no "additional burden" on the resources and booting time is minimal as compared to any of the 3rd party softwares. Plus you need to verify links and files before downloading and installing. This would be enough, but still if you need extra protection then go for comodo products.

[Flachbau]

I honestly just run Windows Defender.. I don't need anything special.. On my older desktop (that I no longer have), I had McAfee. It was terrible.

 

I hear Avast and AVG are great programs, and they're free!

[Man-Django]

Me and my family use AVG (free version) on every computer we have and have never had any issues, I think it's a really good program. When I feel like it is necessary I compliment it with Malwarebytes Anti-Malware.

This and yes AVG is the best free one! Put it on many a customers computers!

[Man-Django]

CCleaner from Piri-form is not anti-virus but it cleans out a lot of crap(that's what the C stands for) that slows you down. I run it everyday(the free version)

 

Also AdBlockPlus is the one stop shop extension to get for your browser to stop all pop-ups & youtube ads(yes even the ones at the start of videos) and is availible for all the main browsers Chrome, Firefox, Opera.

[Fantomax]

I use BitDefnder 2015 Antivirus Plus and MalwareBytes Free Edition.

 

It totally rocks

[Lowi]

Only Windows Defender

[the lost nipple]

Anti-Virus software is overrated and annoying. I just use common sense when browsing and occasionally clean out my system with CCleaner

[PhillBellic]

Anti-Virus software is overrated and annoying. I just use common sense when browsing and occasionally clean out my system with CCleaner

I too use Common Sense/Defensive Computing when online, however I still use AntiVirus as a safety net.

[UshaB]

Malwarebytes Anti-Malware, that's the sh*t!!!

[Junnenz]

Common sense and downloading from offical website is not always enough. Nothing wrong is going to happen if you use an anti-virus.