Mickalino Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 Which is the better overall FREE antivirus protection ? I think it's between Avast and AVG. Although from my experience, Avast seems to better. Just thought I'd ask everyone else's opinion. And just in case I'm missing one or more, I left "other" as a choice in the poll. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The 12th Commandment Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 I started using Microsoft Security Essential. Free without all the BS that the other freebies try to throw in and no constant urging to upgrade. That plus windows firewall is really all you need if you're not an idiot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Bay Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 Avast does me well. I have no real idea how great anything works, but my computer keeps running and it updates itself regularly and I'm happy with it. More so than when I had AVG. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sticksboi05 Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 Comodo Internet Security. The less programs, the better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conn Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 Sweet! I was gonna start a thread about free anti-virus software today, because the Kaspersky that came with my laptop is expiring in like 5 days haha. I'll be watching this discussion closely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matty dread Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 I've used both, never noticed any significant differences. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickalino Posted March 10, 2011 Author Share Posted March 10, 2011 I've used both, never noticed any significant differences. As in, both being equally ineffective, or both being equally effective ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattFancy Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 I started using Microsoft Security Essential. Free without all the BS that the other freebies try to throw in and no constant urging to upgrade. That plus windows firewall is really all you need if you're not an idiot. That's what I use too. I've never had any problems with it. I used AVG too and didn't have problems either. But ever since I starting use MSE, I've never gone back to AVG. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PokerPacker Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 Linux Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devastate Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 Well AVG's full version is absolute garbage, I can't imagine their free version doing any better.. My staff and I just did an extensive study on this to choose what End Point Security solution we would provide Granted we only tested full versions of Kaspersky, Avast, ESET, AVG, Norton and McAfee We created a virtual machine and attempted to infected it.. With AVG installed, we had zero trouble infecting it, with stock virii and web infections.. It's like we had no protection at all. Avast placed third behind Eset and Kaspersky. So I think it would be a safe assumption that Avast free would be better than AVG. ESET placed 1st by a mile for anyone interested. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Da'uud Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 MS Security Essentials Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoulSkin Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 I agree that Avast>AVG. Seems to block a lot more threats before they actually get on the PC. I get PCs with viruses on them all the time with AVG Free installed. Like Devestate, my boss and I set up isolated networks and see how how some AV products work. I've seen Avast actually pop up warnings and block the same exact thing that got right past AVG. I'm sure ESET is great. I use their online scanner when I have to fix already infected PCs and it usually locates stuff that Malwarebyte's can't find. Also, we've started moving our small business clients to Vipre Enterprise Premium, which is easy on system resources, highly configurable, works great, and also cheap (especially if you become a reseller). Goodbye forever to that steaming pile of garbage known as Symantec Endpoint Protection! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sportjunkie07 Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 I started using Microsoft Security Essential. Free without all the BS that the other freebies try to throw in and no constant urging to upgrade. That plus windows firewall is really all you need if you're not an idiot. i was using avast and norton at the same time. i didnt realize how much it slowed down your computer running two antiviruses at the same time. avast is good in my opinion though. i just reinstalled windows and am sticking to microsoft security essential and the windows firewall. it seems to be working great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ixcuincle Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 Avast AINEC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devastate Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 I agree that Avast>AVG. Seems to block a lot more threats before they actually get on the PC. I get PCs with viruses on them all the time with AVG Free installed. Like Devestate, my boss and I set up isolated networks and see how how some AV products work. I've seen Avast actually pop up warnings and block the same exact thing that got right past AVG. I'm sure ESET is great. I use their online scanner when I have to fix already infected PCs and it usually locates stuff that Malwarebyte's can't find. Also, we've started moving our small business clients to Vipre Enterprise Premium, which is easy on system resources, highly configurable, works great, and also cheap (especially if you become a reseller). Goodbye forever to that steaming pile of garbage known as Symantec Endpoint Protection! I had a large client a year ago use Vipre, that's my only exposure to it, but they were always getting infected.. But it's maintainence and deployment tools were awesome.. Norton anything is just aweful.. Looking up a quick comparison, seems to be a toss up between NOD32 (Eset) and Vipre, looks like they've improved Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slacky McSlackAss Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 Linux Yep, I got Ubuntu on my PC and my laptop is a MacBook. I'll stick to my Unix OS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mufumonk Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 ESET placed 1st by a mile for anyone interested. This. Many people are scared off by its interface but it's the best in the business. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
styx491 Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 Comodo is what I use Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickalino Posted March 10, 2011 Author Share Posted March 10, 2011 Granted we only tested full versions of Kaspersky, Avast, ESET, AVG, Norton and McAfeeAvast placed third behind Eset and Kaspersky. So I think it would be a safe assumption that Avast free would be better than AVG. ESET placed 1st by a mile for anyone interested. I'm sure ESET is great. I use their online scanner when I have to fix already infected PCs and it usually locates stuff that Malwarebyte's can't find. This. Many people are scared off by its interface but it's the best in the business. Unless there's been a recent change, ESET is not free. They only give a free 30-day trial. And why is there a huge preference in the poll for AVG over Avast, but in the thread it's the complete opposite - in fact, no AVG supporters at all Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coolio47 Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 I've always used Malwarebyte's Anti-Malware and it has always worked well for me. If I suspected I had a virus, it always picked them up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickalino Posted March 10, 2011 Author Share Posted March 10, 2011 I've always used Malwarebyte's Anti-Malware and it has always worked well for me. If I suspected I had a virus, it always picked them up. Malwarebytes has not picked up one single thing in the few years I've used it, while other programs have, when used at the same time. Also, I don't think Malwarebytes is real-time. But then again, if it was, I wouldn't know it, since it's never even warned me about anything live. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoulSkin Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 I had a large client a few years ago use Vipre, that's my only exposure to it, but they were always getting infected.. But it's maintainence and deployment tools were awesome.. Guess you were ahead of the curve on that! I didn't even know it existed a few years ago. All I can say is we started using it on our own network just over a year ago, and I've seen it steadily improving with new releases of the software. We have had 2 machines with Vipre installed that the end user's managed to get infected over the past 6 months. In the same period of time, I think we've had over over a dozen people with Symantec get their machines jacked up. Honestly, I don't know if there's any one AV that can stop everything. There's only so much you can do to help people who like to surf for free 3D screensavers and midget porn. It really comes down to how much you can restrict what users can do. In our case, our clients want their employees to pretty much have free access to whatever websites they want. For free home use, I say Avast is better than AVG and I'm not sold on MSE. I see it report stuff it finds, prompt you to clean it, and the PC still gets infected. This is true of a lot of AV programs. They all have their own version of a quarantine, which sometimes works and sometimes doesn't. Once something has it's hooks in, you have to go beyond what your AV does to get rid of it. I thought It was cool to see Avast block something before it could get on the system that AVG missed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devastate Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 Unless there's been a recent change, ESET is not free. They only give a free 30-day trial.And why is there a huge preference in the poll for AVG over Avast, but in the thread it's the complete opposite - in fact, no AVG supporters at all lrn2reed ---------- Post added March-10th-2011 at 06:22 PM ---------- Malwarebytes has not picked up one single thing in the few years I've used it, while other programs have, when used at the same time.Also, I don't think Malwarebytes is real-time. But then again, if it was, I wouldn't know it, since it's never even warned me about anything live. Then you're doing it wrong.. I could put Mwb on a new machine and find something... The paid version does active scanning. ---------- Post added March-10th-2011 at 06:22 PM ---------- Guess you were ahead of the curve on that! I didn't even know it existed a few years ago. All I can say is we started using it on our own network just over a year ago, and I've seen it steadily improving with new releases of the software. We have had 2 machines with Vipre installed that the end user's managed to get infected over the past 6 months. In the same period of time, I think we've had over over a dozen people with Symantec get their machines jacked up.Honestly, I don't know if there's any one AV that can stop everything. There's only so much you can do to help people who like to surf for free 3D screensavers and midget porn. It really comes down to how much you can restrict what users can do. In our case, our clients want their employees to pretty much have free access to whatever websites they want. For free home use, I say Avast is better than AVG and I'm not sold on MSE. I see it report stuff it finds, prompt you to clean it, and the PC still gets infected. This is true of a lot of AV programs. They all have their own version of a quarantine, which sometimes works and sometimes doesn't. Once something has it's hooks in, you have to go beyond what your AV does to get rid of it. I thought It was cool to see Avast block something before it could get on the system that AVG missed. Yeah it was just a year ago now that I think about it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TorresA Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 From someone that has access to other non-free ones like symantec... I recommend Microsoft Security Essential Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heyholetsgogrant Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 I use MSE, malware btyes free edition (not real time), and the built in firewall. MSE is lite weight and in real time, and it's free. If you have the fios router and some knowledge of rule setting, you can use its built in firewall for even more protection. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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