I know there aren't a lot of good 'free' things out there nowadays, because not much of anything is free. It's understandable, but I'm out of work right now, and don't want to shell out a ton of money that I can't spare at the time.
My computer comes with a Norton Internet Security trial, but it's only for a month or two. I've found that Norton products are huge resource hogs.
I'm running on Vista Home Premium, and hopefully most of the free Antivirus software has been updated to run with Vista. I have come across these Antivirus programs that some people recommend:
AVG Anti-Virus and Avast! Antivirus. People seem to go back and forth with these companies. Some say one is bad and the other is good, and some say the other is bad and the other is good. I'm sure there are some other free AntiVirus programs out there, and I'm open to suggestions on those. I've also read about "Avira"…but haven't really heard of that one.
Can someone who actually knows what they are talking about, clear this one up for me?
I know everyone has their own 'opinions'…but I'm looking for techy people who can actually back that up with more solid evidence, instead of just speculation and opinion. Opinions based on silly stuff like user interface aren't my top priority - I need something that has good heuristics and actually does what it is supposed to do - find viruses.
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8 responses so far ↓
1 Darren M // Apr 3, 2008
Have used AVGfree for years and never had a problem, I would highly recommend it.
Friends of mine who sell new computers do not load the Norton trial but go straight to AVG
2 Earl S // Apr 3, 2008
i've used avg antivirus for many years now and never had a problem. also used zonealarm firewall and very happy with that as well. i know many people that have used these two progs for a long time and been very happy. it's the only ones i recommend.
3 Azrael // Apr 3, 2008
http://www.avast.com/ see it for yourself http://www.av-comparatives.org/
Avira Free does not offer real time protection - it acts only after the infection has occured.
4 heebus_jeebus // Apr 3, 2008
Avira most certainly does offer real time protection. The answerer who said it doesn't is misinformed. And it has the highest detection rate of the three free AVs that you mentioned. But… it also has a somewhat higher incidence of false-positives. Avast has a slightly lower detection rate than Avira, but also less FPs. Avast also scans your email and can be scheduled to do a boot-time scan, neither of which Avira can do. AVG has the lowest detection rate of the three.
Myself, I've always had auto-update problems whenever I've used Avira. It doesn't happen to a lot of people, but it happens enough that it certainly isn't rare. So, I personally use and recommend Avast.
5 mcdae // Apr 3, 2008
this is from experience and not my opinion because i dont use a free antivirus software anymore but you can get trials that last quiet a while microsoft.com used to ahve a list of recommened antivirus software which all ahd trials but im not sure if its still there, you could try getting windows defender but you dont want to just use one so search around for some free top brand trials like norton or mcafee
6 Yogz // Apr 3, 2008
I will recommend AVG free edition because its free and also provides free updates. Its bit slow but does it work actually. Now a days, virus is not that of much problem. Any antivirus can clear them as they are widely known. The major problem now is Spyware, Adware & Malwares. for this you need a free firewall even. That why go for AVG, it comes with a firewall too.
I personally use Panda Antivirus+Firewall 2008 free edition.
It also provides free updates. Its limited period though. It also provides an online scan if you have an expired version. Basically your work is done in minutes.
Try
http://www.download.com/Panda-Antivirus-Firewall-2008/3000-2239_4-10062122.html
Others things i recommend is not too visit adult sites, casino sites, private blogs etc. as you are more likely to get affected.
Try it and see it.
best answer? Happy?
7 Nick... // Apr 3, 2008
This isn't necessarily a blocker, but it cleans out your computer and gets rid of any garbage. It's called CCleaner. Download it here: http://filehippo.com/download_ccleaner/
Download it, then go to your first page where all of your icons are and click the link. Run it through every once in a while, and your computer should be good.
8 stylebeatknot // Apr 3, 2008
Avg Free available @ my blog alongside anti-spyware etc.
http://internetsecurityandmaintenance.blogspot.com
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