Anti-virus Software Recommendations

[IMATERP]

I have received a second message from Norton informing me that the renewal for their anti-virus software for my PC is going from $49.95 to $89.95. That is almost double.

Can anyone offer a recommendation for an inexpensive but robust antivirus software to install on my PC?

I guess the more appropriate question is what are you using and how much is it costing ?

Thanks,

Michael

 

[MichaelB]

If you want to continue with Norton you can always look for a discounted option at Amazon. No need to pay full price directly to them.

We use Avast free.

 

[USGrant1962]

Windows 10's built in protections (Windows Defender AV and firewall) are all you need as long as you apply a little caution. If you don't apply a little caution, chances are the other antivirus products won't help either.

I ran free third party software for years (first AVG, then Avast) with less than one or two hits a year and was finally convinced it was pointless - and most of them gum up your system.

 

[easysurfer]

I recently switched from Panda Free Antivirus to Immunet. Both are free and cloud based which I like as don't have to download and install signature files. Instead, signature updates are done in the cloud.

Immunet is community based (I think that's why the odd name?) so as soon as John Doe detects a virus and that gets updated, Jane Doe living far away will also get the update very soon.

I switched before Panda kept on nagging to upgrade to a pay version where Immunet does not.

I also hear good things about Bitdefender. If grow to not like Immunet, will probably switch to Bitdefender.

You can always use poll the audience as is Alternativeto website, but that wouldn't be as fun as our comments :

https://alternativeto.net/software/norton-antivirus/

 

[sheldon cornped]

I have used AVG - free for many years and never had any issues. It has caught a number of infections successfully. There are however annoying popups from time to time to buy other protections/services. I would recommend AVG.

 

[ivinsfan]

If you want to continue with Norton you can always look for a discounted option at Amazon. No need to pay full price directly to them.

We use Avast free.

I didn't find Avast free covered enough and went to the pay option....OP have you checked your Norton account for a discount. They might just be trying to upsell to a higher end product that you don't need.

 

[flintnational]

We have used Webroot for a couple of years. It got high ratings and seems fine. However, at renewal they do the same thing as Norton. As another poster mentioned, don't do the auto renewal. You can find a discount either through Amazon or elsewhere on the web. We ended up paying the first year price of around $40 or $50 for the renewal.

FN

 

[aja8888]

Windows Defender here. No issues.

Also run free Malwarebytes occasionally.

Clean as a whistle for years.

Don't make this too hard.

 

[ejman]

I use Windows Defender on my Win 10 laptop and haven't had any issues. I don't go to any websites that are likely to "test" the virus protection so I don't really know how Windows defender would fare there but so far so good. Most of my computer time however is spent on my Linux desktop system and I have no antivirus software loaded since none is really needed when using Linux.

 

[nwsteve]

You might check your cable provider--ours provided a free copy of Macafee I believe. Fido also use to provide free virus scan. I am in the Win Defender camp with Malawarebytes

 

[Montecfo]

I always put Malwarebytes as my "recovery" antimalware. If something slips through it is powerfully, effective and free. For my first line I use Avast. Also free. I get rid of the Norton etc which are preloaded on new computers. I research these every couple of years and consider replacements.

 

[bw5972]

Windows 10's built in protections (Windows Defender AV and firewall) are all you need as long as you apply a little caution. If you don't apply a little caution, chances are the other antivirus products won't help either.

I ran free third party software for years (first AVG, then Avast) with less than one or two hits a year and was finally convinced it was pointless - and most of them gum up your system.

+1

 

[razztazz]

Webroot

 

[Senator]

I use free windows defender.

If I have to get rid of anything else, Malware Bytes works. That is free too.

 

[tomc5179]

Malwarebytes paid version ($25-$30 per year) plus windows defender. I got infected once a couple years ago before I had Malwarebytes and it was literally hell to fix. Been very happy with Malwarebytes. It catches stuff that defender and chrome doesn't.

 

[nwsteve]

Malwarebytes paid version ($25-$30 per year) plus windows defender. I got infected once a couple years ago before I had Malwarebytes and it was literally hell to fix. Been very happy with Malwarebytes. It catches stuff that defender and chrome doesn't.

+1

 

[scrabbler1]

I use Windows Defender and the free version of Malwarebytes. Defender's Quick Scan runs every few days or so, and I run the Full Scan every so often, as I do with Malwarebytes.

 

[BigNick]

Windows 10's built in protections (Windows Defender AV and firewall) are all you need as long as you apply a little caution. If you don't apply a little caution, chances are the other antivirus products won't help either.

I ran free third party software for years (first AVG, then Avast) with less than one or two hits a year and was finally convinced it was pointless - and most of them gum up your system.

Hooray!

I ran a network of 2000 PCs for 10+ years with no anti-virus software. It's one of the purest examples of a problem that barely exists being fixed by a product that doesn't work. I saw an interview with John McAfee where he admitted that he didn't use any AV software.

Of course, malware in general *is* a huge problem. But almost all successful malware relies on exploiting bugs in the operating system, which is not what most AV products protect you against --- indeed, they can't, because the AV software companies don't know where the next critical bug is any more than the OS makers. (Or they do, but the OS makers refuse to patch it, as happened when WannaCry trashed a lot of Windows XP systems earlier this year. Do you remember any anti-virus software companies telling you how they saved you? The UK national health system's AV company, Sophos, had to remove the NHS as an example of a big organisation it was "protecting" from its web site, because it catastrophically failed to protect them. Yet for some reason, people forgive AV software even when it fails them time and again.)

The problem is that the model of the "evil virus that will infect your files and destroy your PC", which kicked off the whole AV industry 25 years ago, is so persistent, even though such viruses are basically extinct; where it's at now is worms, which are basically orthogonal to viruses and are immune to typical AV software security scans. Malware is now a billion-dollar (underground) business, based on sitting there and quietly using a percentage of your PC's resources. It has no interest in doing much damage to your computer; rather, it's basically a parasite whose interest is to take what it needs from the host without killing it (and, ideally, without the host --- which means you and your PC together --- knowing the parasite is there).

Your money is far better spent on a premium subscription (if you have lots of data; if not, the free deal can be fine) for Google Drive or Dropbox or OneDrive, or perhaps giving $20 to a friend to configure a nightly backup of your main data. By far the biggest cause of data loss is physical theft of the computer (especially laptops), followed by hard drive failure. Backups protect you against those as well as the (mostly mythical) Evil Virus That Trashes Everything.

 

[Car-Guy]

Windows 10's built in protections (Windows Defender AV and firewall) are all you need as long as you apply a little caution.

Windows Defender here. No issues.

+1

None are 100% but W10 free stuff seems to work very well.

 

[W2R]

I want really good security, so I go ahead and pay for Norton because for me it is a known quantity, I have used it for 20+ years, and my perception is that it does a good job. I could probably get equally good software for much less or for free, but it's the "probably" that keeps me paying for Norton.

I also scan using the free version of Malwarebytes several times a week, as well as scanning with Norton and using Norton's firewall and other features.

For me Norton is worth the money. But you're right, it is expensive and that cost is probably not necessary. Some other people might want to save that cost for a few years and spend the money on a trip to Europe or something.

 

[Midpack]

I don't know who your ISP is, but we've had Norton for free from Comcast for as long as we've been with them (many years). I also run the basic free Malwarebytes app every once in a while.

 

[Blueskies123]

Hooray!

I ran a network of 2000 PCs for 10+ years with no anti-virus software. It's one of the purest examples of a problem that barely exists being fixed by a product that doesn't work. I saw an interview with John McAfee where he admitted that he didn't use any AV software.

Of course, malware in general *is* a huge problem. But almost all successful malware relies on exploiting bugs in the operating system, which is not what most AV products protect you against --- indeed, they can't, because the AV software companies don't know where the next critical bug is any more than the OS makers. (Or they do, but the OS makers refuse to patch it, as happened when WannaCry trashed a lot of Windows XP systems earlier this year. Do you remember any anti-virus software companies telling you how they saved you? The UK national health system's AV company, Sophos, had to remove the NHS as an example of a big organisation it was "protecting" from its web site, because it catastrophically failed to protect them. Yet for some reason, people forgive AV software even when it fails them time and again.)

The problem is that the model of the "evil virus that will infect your files and destroy your PC", which kicked off the whole AV industry 25 years ago, is so persistent, even though such viruses are basically extinct; where it's at now is worms, which are basically orthogonal to viruses and are immune to typical AV software security scans. Malware is now a billion-dollar (underground) business, based on sitting there and quietly using a percentage of your PC's resources. It has no interest in doing much damage to your computer; rather, it's basically a parasite whose interest is to take what it needs from the host without killing it (and, ideally, without the host --- which means you and your PC together --- knowing the parasite is there).

Your money is far better spent on a premium subscription (if you have lots of data; if not, the free deal can be fine) for Google Drive or Dropbox or OneDrive, or perhaps giving $20 to a friend to configure a nightly backup of your main data. By far the biggest cause of data loss is physical theft of the computer (especially laptops), followed by hard drive failure. Backups protect you against those as well as the (mostly mythical) Evil Virus That Trashes Everything.

I believe you but I suspect you were very lucky, or you were infected, and never knew it. I worked in and out of IT and Finance and every place I worked got infected with viruses even though thousands of intrusions were blocked. Did you leave IT before thumb drives were invented?

 

[Bflotomny]

+1 US Grant1962
According to the tech guy (Leo LaPort) none of the antivirus services are worth the time or trouble to install.
1. Most issues with Win machines will be mal-ware not virus.
2. Most anti-virus didn't catch the last invader "wanna cry" and those that did might not catch the next invasion.

Best bet:
Use Caution and common sense surfing the net.
DON'T open attachments from people you don't know, and if suspicious call the party and confirm email.
DON'T open junk mail (jokes, cartoons ect.) from mass mailings even from trusted friends. The other addressees could be infected. STOP mailing mass mailing if you do it.
AND Windows defender and Malware bytes.

Regards
Bflotom
Sent from my Mac

 

[Cobra9777]

AVG free for many years. Recently switched to Avast free. It's about the same. Both provide adequate protection but constantly harass you to upgrade in varying ways... and yes, they "gum up" the system. I thought about Windows Defender recently, but the technical reviews are not good at all. Never had an infection that wasn't disposed of quickly and effectively by these programs. So despite the system efficiency impact, I'll stick with the free stuff and deal with the harassment.

 

[Sunset]

Windows Defender here. No issues.

Also run free Malwarebytes occasionally.

Clean as a whistle for years.

Don't make this too hard.

+1
Exactly seems to be enough.
And it's FREE.