Another Anti Virus Thread

[quakeworld]

hey guys. i know there's quite a few threads about which AV is better. what i want to know is, is there an AV that's similar to MSE in terms of function? that is, an AV and nothing else. right now i'm using avast (been using it since 4.8) but it's gotten a bit bloated. what im looking for is just a basic, no frills anti virus that's similar to MSE (only better in terms of detection). is there such an AV? thanks

 

[Puffnstuff]

I think the general trend is to combine features and bloat into an all in one suite. I use avast free and it's quite large. You might look at the current pc magazine ratings for av software and see which one peaks your interest. I also run zonealarm free firewall and they offer an av suite with it and I'm thinking about giving it a try.

 

[MadScientist]

Latest, Oct 2015, Windows 10 test results from AV-Test:
https://www.av-test.org/en/antivirus/home-windows/windows-10/

I'm currently using Bitdefender Free.
http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/review/anti-virus-software/bitdefender-antivirus-free-edition-2016-review-3626897/

 

[Ketchup]

They all seem more bloated than they used to be. I use MSE on a regular basis, but I like to try others out just to see how they are changing.

I used to like Avira, and while the latest one is much more bloated than it used to be, it runs fine on a modern system. For a free solution, you may want to try this one out.

A lot of people like the latest Bitdefender. I tried it a few months ago, and it was getting in the way of things too much for my taste (nagging during games, etc).

I don't really care for AVG. I am running it right now on one machine, but it is really slowing things down. I was unpleasantly surprised.

One I really liked is the current Kaspersky. It is not free, but is a very good product. Doesn't slow things down too much, and is consistently one of the top performers in virus detection.

 

[John Connor]

Bitdefender Free. Been using it for three years there abouts. Had no trouble. Light weight, cloud based and pretty good detection. Just have to create a free account once and that's it.

I don't recommend using it if you you're like me and use hacks and stuff in games. Bitdefender Free some how messes up debugging and so game mods and such may not work. In fact, I don't use anti-virus on my gaming computer at all. Just had too much trouble. I depend on Sandboxie, an old version of Comodo Firewall and the Firefox addon NoScript + commonsense.

 

[balloonshark]

When you install Avast you can choose a custom install and only install the components you need. Or you might be able to go into the settings and disable anything you don't need. To be honest everyone that has a little bit of computer knowledge should be doing both with all your software.

 

[quakeworld]

Thanks for all the replies. I installed bitdefender and so far this seems to fit the bill! Scored well on the av-test.org too.

 

[MadScientist]

When you install Avast you can choose a custom install and only install the components you need. Or you might be able to go into the settings and disable anything you don't need. To be honest everyone that has a little bit of computer knowledge should be doing both with all your software.

I was running Avast Free with a custom install but you can not disable those annoying ad pop-ups. No pop-ups with Bitdefender Free.

 

[SergeyGor]

With a quick, easy installer and an attractive user interface, Baidu Antivirus makes a good first impression.
​

 

[JamesV]

I just use MSE/Defender and Malwarebytes. Pre Win-7 I used Bitdefender and Malwarebytes, but MSE/Defender with Malwarebytes and a good understanding of how not to get infected in the first place is preferable (free).

 

[SergeyGor]

Recently, Russian anti-virus company Doctor Web has released its next-generation product — the Dr.Web Katana, that is designed to provide advanced protection.

Dr.Web Katana consists of a set of next-generation Dr.Web anti-virus technologies that is designed to provide advanced protection. It will shield your computer from threats that your anti-virus cannot yet recognize.

Dr.Web Katana is not a replacement for a signature-based anti-virus; it operates efficiently in conjunction with antivirus software of other vendors. It is an excellent addition to the MSE/Defender.

 

[cartridgeonline]

You can use bitdefender. That's a awesome security software. It blocks all kinds of virus, malware, bug from the internet and any other hard drive sources.

 

[bononos]

AVG's plugin exposes your browsing history and potentially personal data to malicious websites.
http://arstechnica.com/security/201...posing-chrome-user-data-with-security-plugin/
And they have changed their privacy policy after they started selling users' browsing and search history.
http://www.davidleonard.london/2015/12/05/avg-to-sell-browsing-history/

Bitdefender Free. Been using it for three years there abouts. Had no trouble. Light weight, cloud based and pretty good detection. Just have to create a free account once and that's it.

I don't recommend using it if you you're like me and use hacks and stuff in games. Bitdefender Free some how messes up debugging and so game mods and such may not work. In fact, I don't use anti-virus on my gaming computer at all. Just had too much trouble. I depend on Sandboxie, an old version of Comodo Firewall and the Firefox addon NoScript + commonsense.

I think Bitdefender doesn't have alot of settings to customize, exclude false positives which is good for basic users. I'm running Avira free and I can exclude trainers from being quarantined and it doesn't have as many popups compared to Avast.

 

[Iron Woode]

I like using Panda free AV and I might try out Comodo free AV.

 

[Captante]

I still like Avast for free AV although Bitdefender free is also very effective and might run better on an older/slower system since its lighter weight.

Fwiw I have Norton on all my personal PC's including my gaming box and have never had a single problem with any game, modified or not.

 

[hightree]

Would Bitdefender slow down my computer less than Avast (both free)? Or, can I exclude something from Avast?

Most of my computer work is textual...

I have an Asus with i3 processor and 4 Gb RAM and I'm not keen about upgrading it.

 

[John Connor]

Bitdefender Free hasn't slowed down my Dual Core 2.4 GHz laptop running Windows 7.

 

[Captante]

Either program should work fine and provide some protection, however as I said Bit-defender is the less bloated of the two. It is possible to turn off many of Avast's features which will in turn use less cpu, however you also reduce protection at the same time.

 

[xgsound]

Would Bitdefender slow down my computer less than Avast (both free)? Or, can I exclude something from Avast?

Most of my computer work is textual...

I have an Asus with i3 processor and 4 Gb RAM and I'm not keen about upgrading it.

Short answer ..yes. I turn on virus shield and turn off auto scan. This is assuming you start with a clean machine.
After I signed up with email and password 2 years ago they never bothered me again. I have since installed on about 30 relatives machines (4 max per email) and still have never been nagged! All annual updates or changes of any kind required occur automatically.

Jim

 

[hightree]

Short answer ..yes. I turn on virus shield and turn off auto scan. This is assuming you start with a clean machine.
After I signed up with email and password 2 years ago they never bothered me again. I have since installed on about 30 relatives machines (4 max per email) and still have never been nagged! All annual updates or changes of any kind required occur automatically.

Jim

In my Avast settings I have:
- file system protection
- e-mail protection
- web protection

I'm about to switch off file system protection and e-mail protection. Is this wise?

 

[Ketchup]

In my Avast settings I have:
- file system protection
- e-mail protection
- web protection

I'm about to switch off file system protection and e-mail protection. Is this wise?

File system protect would be the last one I turn off. At that point, why even have an AV installed? Because most of the big name will have a virus scan from a web interface without actually having an AV installed.

 

[hightree]

I was thinking that as well. I've heard if you have Windows 10 you don't need additional antivirus program at all.