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Anti-Virus Software
March 23, 2009 - 9:27am
My year-long free edition of AVG is about to expire. Should I buy the regular version ($60)? A friend recommended Nod32, saying it couldn't be simpler to use. With AVG, when a virus is present, it alerts me and then I have to go to the virus vault, highlight it and delete it. Apparently Nod32 just kills it automatically. I really hated Norton when I tried it so that's out. I'm wondering what other babblers use.
Didn't know AVG expired at all. The downloadable one is indefinite, as far as I know. Have you tried uninstalling the old one and manually upgrading to 8.5?
NOD32's been going on sale at NCIX for ~$25 which is a steal considering stupid Norton is still $45ish.
AVG has made finding its free version a little tougher recently, but they still have a free version.
Here
I ended up buying Kapersky. Fairly cheap, works welland always updates and scans every day. I used to use it in conjunction with Super AntiSpyware, which has a free version, but my operating system (XP 64-bit) was having a hard time with the 32-bit Super Anti-Spyware.
I agree re: Norton.
PC tools Anti Virus, free edition
http://www.pctools.com/free-antivirus/
i've been using it for about a year, got tired of paying for Norton & Kaspersky.
there's other things to consider security wise besides AV software.
http://www.mechBgon.com/
this guy has a good security section on his website.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
http://LASIK-Flap.com ~ Health Warning about LASIK Eye Surgery
I just got a new 'puter (two of them actually) which came with a month of McAfee, soon to expire.
The IT guy at work gave me Spybot some time ago which I had used on the old computer to good effect when I had a nasty problem that Norton missed. My kid gets free Norton through the U of T, so we were figuring on just going with that. I admit to not knowing a lot about that sort of thing, so I wouldn't mind some advice.
Why is Norton not good?
I use Norton and I tried AVG and Avast. It never let me down yet. The complaint I hear most about Norton is that it uses too much memory and slows down the computer. But if you have enough memory you dont even notice it working.
Its a good idea to do a scan with the free House Call or Kaspersky once a week. McKafee and Norton are similar.
I get Norton free with Rogers. (they say its free but im sure its built in the price we pay. )
So if your new computer has memory up the wazoo is Norton an ok product?
I might take it off the old computers which are pretty slow and quirky, and use something else.
I use Avast! av - free, with constant upgrading to catch new viruses. I've used it for three years so far, no problems whatsoever.
I also use CCleaner (Crap Cleaner) to get rid of spyware and other stuff. Works like a charm. And it's free.
1. CrapCleaner
2. Spybot - Search and Destroy
3. AdAware
4. and ... an anti-virus program like Avast or AVG. Shaw Cable provides a very good anti-virus program for its customers and we've been able to get rid of McAfee (which I consider to be malware anyway) with a noticeable improvement in speed. However, for certain kinds of malware, worms, etc., I have had to go into the Windows registry and change a few things. Of course it mostly comes down to what you do on the www.
With 2 PC's in my household, there's some variation. I am also currently setting up Ubuntu Linux as an Operating System on one PC and, as far as I know, no anti-virus, defrag, etc., is needed. Very nice.
"Windows is a virus and Windows 95 is the mother of all viruses."
Awesome, thank you.
I just found that Norton didn't play very well with others and interfered with other software.
Also, I love free stuff.
Any suggestions?
Zone Alarm.....choose the free one.
http://www.zonealarm.com/security/en-ca/compare-anti-virus-spyware-software.htm
Spybot - Search and Destroy is bar none the best protection out there...if you know what you are doing.
All anti-virus software relies on comparing computer code with KNOWN viruses within the respective anti-virus vendor's database. Since dozens of new viruses are released daily into the wild, it is simply impossible for any anti-virus software to keep up, leaving your Windows computer open to attack. The number of Windows computers infected is beyond count and trojans in the form of netbots are wrecking havok with the Internet. Anyone perusing a typical web server log will see the numerous attacks launched by users' Windows machines that have been compromised. Spam, which accounts for over 95% of total email traffic originates from compromised Wndows boxes. Things are getting worse, with the possibility of the main domain servers of the Internet being attacked.
In short, Windows computers are full of security holes that Microsoft has been unable to keep plugged, because of the underlining structure of that operating system.
Progressives concerned about:
1) keeping the Internet safe and functioning, and
2) not being party to the proprietary world of Microsoft, so well known for its corporate abuses
need to look at running one of the Linux alternatives to Windows. Linux by its very nature is a million times more secure than Windows can ever be. It doesn't require the loading of condoms on top of condoms in the false hope of being a safe computing platform, hence is markably faster with its tcp/ip stack than a Windows box. The most popular Linux distributions are non-proprietary and open source. The philosophy behind this movement is one where the developers of the software provide the software free of charge for the common good of computer users, rather than the commercial world of software we find from the likes of Microsoft and Apple, where the relationship between developers and users is one of vendor and customer. So from a political perspective, all progressives should be looking into moving from the latter to the former.
Linux has reached the point of being user-friendly and not just for "computer geeks", as it was in its earlier stages of development. Any Windows user can easily install a present day Linux system on his/her PC, easier than installing Windows.
Please consider joining the growing community of Open Source and dumping the virus/trojan/malware sponge called Windows. You'll be not only doing yourself a favour, but also the world.
Cheers.
What do you base that fact on? And its not a virus scanner or a firewall. It claims to eleminate trojans. Is it better than Ad Aware?
90-day report card: Windows Vista fared better than competitors
http://blogs.zdnet.com/security/?p=135Linux was a huge headache for me - both my computers came with Windoze already installed, and I tried the dual-boot - didn't work, and I had to re-install Win XP (on my old desktop). I tried Ubuntu, Mepis, and PCLinux - none of them would install. Then I ordered the most basic, simple Linux disk I could find - from an outfit in Vancouver - and the freaking thing had a scratch on it and it also wouldn't install. So, the hell with it. I'm not going to f*ck with Linux on my new and gorgeous Dell WinVista laptop unless I can find a knowledgeable person who can safely uninstall WinVista completely, and do an expert installation of Linux. There ain't no such computer experts here in this isolated territory.
For all its faults, Windows is easy for me to use. Turn on the computer, and that's it. Upgrades are automatic. Antivirus is free and so are the upgrades. Same for spybot detectors.
I'll use Linux when computers come equipped with it instead of Windoze. I'm not a computer nerd and playing around with Linux installations has been a big royal pain in the ass for me.
Sorry, but that's my experience.
you can get computers equipped with Linux....but....you will find many of your programs wont work. I also tried it and it was a pain in the ass.
Windows has it flaws but at least we get updates......Apple also claimed it had no viruses but when more people started to use it the nerds wrote malicious programs and they will do the same with Linux if enough people use it....Its not worth their while right now.
I have a 3 year old computer with xp. After the free antivirus ran out, I turned off networking on the windows end, installed linux (Knoppix, I think) . a year later, an upgrade didnt like my monitor so I put ubuntu on another partition and it has worked ever since. It upgrades automatically if you want and you generally do not have to restart your computer in upgrades. (I have an upgrade icon and I just do the upgrades when I am not using the net.)
I also have an acer 1 that I use at my GF's place. It goes on the net 2 to 3 minutes quicker by wireless than her notebook does by direct connection because it does not need to do all the virus checks first. Dual boot IS a pain on my desktop but I do not have nag screens or the fear that nag screens instill in people.
My movie software is on windows so I have to schedule when I use it. A bonus is that the internet is not there to distract when i use windows software. Linux is improving all the time but i agree that it is stressy putting it on a computer. Installing programs is easy now too. IF and only if, it is on the ubuntu list of programs. I recently installed art of illusion in linux. (it is a java program) You download a zip file. Unzip it. (With the unzipper that comes with ubuntu) but then what? I do not know how I guessed! If you click on the logical install file nothing happens! Absolutely nothing. (supposedly you have to use a terminal and the "God help us" command line!) and that did not work either.
But if you hold the cursor over the file, and "open with" one of the options right down at the bottom "java runtime environment" it works fine. who would have thought! I sure didnt know that the runtime environment installs programs too!
Just a freaky guess and it worked and installed like a dream. But you should not have to read HAL's mind to install a program. Installing should have a standard simple method.
Not a bad idea.
But you now already know that AVG is still available for free.
And..
Avg moves it to the vault. ? Not a problem. Once it is in the vault it is no longer infecting your system. In fact, go ahead and leave it in the vault if you like. It provides an interesting history of the viruses you have incapacitated.
I also switched recently to Avast from AVG. There is a very good comparison site and I am sorry but I can't find the link to it. It was what prompted me to give Avast a try. I have been using for over a month now and I am happy with it too.
I did hear that Norton has finally put out a usable product after years of producing garbage bloatware but I am still so put off from years of seeing crap that I am hesitant to give them another chance.
Avg is still not bad and yes, as someone else said it is difficult to find their free version but it still exists. One of the reasons I dumped AVG was because they have started putting a web checker in as default. It interacts with firefox and I suppose IE also to prescreen web pages found in google search etc. It is very difficult to get rid of without using "add-remove progs" and re-installing it in custom mode. Also it has unfortunately become a "resource hog". Even with fast processors and large (over 2 gigs) amounts of memory it is always a good idea not to install these hogs.
For the uninitiated .. Spybot is not an antivirus program.
That said; it is probably the second most important security program to have on your PC.
Anyone who is not using it should download it today. As Mojoroad said you need to be a little careful using it but Spybot has two modes of usage and if you stick to the basic and not the advanced you should probably not get into trouble with it. It has other functionalities as well which I use regularly. Instead of Msconfig to get rid of start up programs that you are not happy with, Spybot offers a simpler interface which allows you to temporarily remove them.
The program has been available free for five or six years now and it is a stunning example of what freeware can be.
Oddly, it was a worm called conficker; which AVG did not find which prompted me to switch to Avast. Panda viruschecker calls it downadup .
This is a trojan which is a DOS (Denial of Service) attacker and it is set to wreak havoc on April 1st. Well known security sites are now downplaying it's efficacy but it is a very nasty worm nonetheless.
Another useful online scanner is from Pandasoft.com. I agree with nussy that it is a good idea to use the online scanners occasionally as your existing antivirus programs can sometimes miss things. Nothing is more of a pain in the ass than a virus that has had time to bury itself in your system.
This is so necessary for those of you with direct connections to the internet. Constant packet sniffing and probes make you more vulnerable than even viruses can.
Do you have your computer hooked up to your high speed modem without a router in between ?
If you only have one computer in your household then you probably do.. I recommend buying a router even if you only have one. Routers are cheap (on the order of $50 if you don't need wireless Z or whatever the latest is) and they provide a useful barrier to all attacks in that your IP address is hidden.
I use a router and I still use Zone Alarm as an additional layer of protection.
So.. to summarize. ?
You need.
A good antivus.
Any will do but why not go with a free one.
Spybot Search and Destroy ( be careful .. you need the real one)
And if you are using a router without NAD you need Zone Alarm free.
Its pretty simple once you have those three defenses in place.
Just don't be a newb and ignore the updates.
So many people install these usefull programs and then don't bother to update them. Updates are there for a reason particularly in free programs where they are not just trying to gouge money from you.