virus software recommendation??

pmanton

pmanton

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I just wound up wiping my wife's computer that was hosed with multiple virus from who knows where. She is into quilting and downloads zillions of stuff from anything and anywhere. Microsoft Security Essentials didn't help at all.

I'll admit to screwing up and letting NOD32 go to save a buck. I've had no problems, but I'm am pretty careful where I browse.

Is there anything better then NOD 32?

Thanks

Paul
Salome, AZ
 
pmanton said:
I just wound up wiping my wife's computer that was hosed with multiple virus from who knows where. She is into quilting and downloads zillions of stuff from anything and anywhere. Microsoft Security Essentials didn't help at all.

I'll admit to screwing up and letting NOD32 go to save a buck. I've had no problems, but I'm am pretty careful where I browse.

Is there anything better then NOD 32?

Thanks

Paul
Salome, AZ
Click to expand...

Not that I'm aware of at this particular moment in time. I've been using NOD32 for the past three or four years because I haven't come across anything that I think is as good, not because of any particular loyalty to ESET.

Rich
 
AVG free and configure your user permissions.
 
I have been using AVG Free for decades, I never get anything.
 
There is no anti-virus software that will protect you against yourself. If you click indiscriminately you will eventually give some malware permission to install itself.

Set your computer user up with a "normal" or "restricted" account rather than running as administrator.
 
NOD32?

I've used Norton for years, yes it has a large presence in the computer. Currently using Norton360. Only once did I have to resort to MalwareBytes for one item that got past Norton.

Currently running Win7 on the desktop, with Norton. Win8.1 on the notebook with MS security. Linux Mint17 with no protection on the NetBook and an iPad Gen1 with nothing.
 
Panda and bitdefender got top ratings for recognition, removal and performance in independent tests. Both are a bit less annoying than avg, which seemed to want to update its core app more and more often. Panda did not play well with Vnc, and bit defender not so well with window media center.
 
I've watched skinny-armed geeks get into fistfights over this question. Some are fiercely loyal to some brand or another. Me, not so much. I used Norton way back when Peter was still writing the code, McAfee, AVG, Comodo, Trend Micro, and probably others I'm forgetting about. They all seem to have their golden ages.

What I can say from my own recent experience is that ESET NOD32 has stopped me in my tracks a few times when I clicked on sites that had been hijacked, or when I downloaded some infected attachment in a spoofed email. But otherwise it doesn't make a fuss or take up a large footprint. I've been using it for three or four years and plan to renew it again next month.

So right now, I think it's NOD32's golden age. That's just a personal opinion. YMMV.

Rich
 
James331 said:
AVG free and configure your user permissions.
Click to expand...

+1. Using AVG since it was first released, it does not consume a lot of system resources unlike McAfee or Norton
 
Best antivirus software I've found is Mac OS X
 
my daughter goes to a Big Ten school; they recommend AVG...must be decent
 
I think Rich has the right answer. You need to look what is good right now. This changes over time.
 
masloki said:
Panda and bitdefender got top ratings for recognition, removal and performance in independent tests..
Click to expand...

I do a scan with Panda every month or so, have done so for years, good program!

Right now I am using Avira, seems to be working ok so far and doesnt slow things down too much
 
RJM62 said:
I've watched skinny-armed geeks get into fistfights over this question. Some are fiercely loyal to some brand or another. Me, not so much. I used Norton way back when Peter was still writing the code, McAfee, AVG, Comodo, Trend Micro, and probably others I'm forgetting about. They all seem to have their golden ages.

What I can say from my own recent experience is that ESET NOD32 has stopped me in my tracks a few times when I clicked on sites that had been hijacked, or when I downloaded some infected attachment in a spoofed email. But otherwise it doesn't make a fuss or take up a large footprint. I've been using it for three or four years and plan to renew it again next month.

So right now, I think it's NOD32's golden age. That's just a personal opinion. YMMV.

Rich
Click to expand...

I've made a career in IT and favor ESET as well. Fantastic protection and minimal hit to performance. It is a favorite to gamers and flight simmers that I know.
 
I use Malwarebytes, Microsoft Security Essentials, and Symantec Endpoint Protection (my alma mater's IT department requires me to install Symantec for all dorm students).

I use Malwarebytes as my go-to antivirus software, but while Malwarebytes are usually effective (I think), the scan for the latest version of this takes a very long time, even for threat (quick) scans. On a slow day a threat (quick) scan takes as long as 30 minutes! The earlier version of Malwarebytes takes about 5 to 6 minutes to do a quick scan on a normal day.
 
Take this for what it's worth... I worked for several years for an integrator that was an industry partner with ALL the major players in Antivirus. What i have seen in my professional experience is as follows.

1. ESET makes a very lightweight product with excellent support. They excel at having the most 0 day catches out there.

2. McAfee, they are a pretty close second, but I wouldn't use them because of the burden it places on the system resources.

3. Symantec - Even heavier.

4. Kaspersky, I can't say anything good about them. Their push install mechanism is terrible, and their software brought my developers' machines to their knees.
 
nddons said:
Does having two security systems running at the same time cause conflicts, or do they play well together?
Click to expand...

It's generally advised against, but Malwarebytes is somewhat of an exception. The on-demand version causes no conflicts, and even the real-time version plays well with others if you mutually exclude the definition files from the two programs.

As for Symantec and MSSE... I haven't used either one in so long that I haven't the foggiest.

Rich
 
Ah, you are looking for ANTI-virus SW, gotcha. From the title, I was guessing you couldn't find any viri which is simple to fix, just visit Fagbook or some Russian mail-order bride websites and you're set. :)

I haven't seen Avast mentioned here, it is one of the best in the world, free for personal use (on as many computers as you wish), has support for dozens of languages (if you are so inclined) and it sure is faster than the slow McAffee, Symantec or AVG.

FWIW, I blocked Fagbook on wife's laptop (in addition to mine years ago) and she has not caught a virus since.
 
nddons said:
Does having two security systems running at the same time cause conflicts, or do they play well together?
Click to expand...
AVG is Anti-Virus while Malwarebytes is Anti-Spayware. Besides Malwarebytes does not run in the background like AVG does.
 
Badger said:
my daughter goes to a Big Ten school; they recommend AVG...must be decent
Click to expand...


There is no correlation between their endorsement and their academic standing. They just want you to install *something* and AVG is free.

That's far more a factor in their choice than its performance.
 
denverpilot said:
There is no correlation between their endorsement and their academic standing. They just want you to install *something* and AVG is free.

That's far more a factor in their choice than its performance.
Click to expand...

I agree. A college's endorsement doesn't mean much to me. The most thoroughly incompetent, clueless, useless techs I ever hired were recent I.T. grads. They never failed to astonish me. I couldn't understand how someone could know so little about something they'd just spent four years studying. It was mind-boggling.

That being said, my experience with AVG was that it was consistently good, but I never felt that it was the absolute best. I'd say the same thing about Avast. If a casual residential client were using either program, I generally wouldn't suggest that they switch to something else. I'd even install the free version of AVG or Avast on residential computers from time to time if I knew a client was short on coin.

But for myself, my business clients, and my residential clients who weren't hurting for money, I would recommend whatever solution I thought was the best at that time. ESET has had a longer run than most, but there have been others whose golden ages came and went during my time doing that work.

Rich
 
No anti virus/malware product does a very good job of protecting you these days. If you've been lucky enough to avoid infections it had very little to do with your antivirus program. Symantec indicated they would probably be getting out of the antivirus business because the products were so ineffective. I see computers every day that are infected despite having ESET, AVG, MSSE, McAfee, malwarebytes, etc. if you can be tricked into clicking something, NOTHING can protect you. And they are REALLY GOOD at tricking you.

That being said, I find the most saves coming from ESET and malwarebytes Pro. Sorry guys, but the free versions of AVG and Avaste, etc. suck because they purposely make that version inconvenient to force you to upgrade to the real thing. You're always getting nagged or the scans pop up at the most inconvenient times.

Backup. Backup. Backup. And not just to mapped network locations or USB drives. The current rage... crypto this or that, will encrypt all of those and you'll be screwed.
 
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Please please please... Get CRYPTOPREVENT or something that protects against this nasty infection. If you want to be scared, check out bleepingcomputer.com or the malwarebytes blog.

And be sure to setup CRYPTOPREVENT to update itself automatically. Video http://youtu.be/jkNAEJhxeac
 
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