Anti Virus 2009

[MysticCat]

What DS said!!! Never even click on one of those things, much less buy from it!!!

You do need an anti-virus program (if for no other reason than to remove and fix what ever you put on your computer by clicking on the pop-up), but NOT one that you buy through a pop-up. Look at Norton or McAfee. You pay for those, but they are worth it. There are also some freeware programs that can be helpful, such as Spybot - Search and Destroy or Ad-Aware (which has a free version as well as version you pay for).

Anyone else know of other good anti-virus/anti-malware programs?

[KSigkid]

Originally Posted by MysticCat

What DS said!!! Never even click on one of those things, much less buy from it!!!

You do need an anti-virus program (if for no other reason than to remove and fix what ever you put on your computer by clicking on the pop-up), but NOT one that you buy through a pop-up. Look at Norton or McAfee. You pay for those, but they are worth it. There are also some freeware programs that can be helpful, such as Spybot - Search and Destroy or Ad-Aware (which has a free version as well as version you pay for).

Anyone else know of other good anti-virus/anti-malware programs?

For what it's worth, I've had better luck with Norton than McAfee.

I have had horrible luck with Panda, though.

[DaemonSeid]

Originally Posted by MysticCat

What DS said!!! Never even click on one of those things, much less buy from it!!!

You do need an anti-virus program (if for no other reason than to remove and fix what ever you put on your computer by clicking on the pop-up), but NOT one that you buy through a pop-up. Look at Norton or McAfee. You pay for those, but they are worth it. There are also some freeware programs that can be helpful, such as Spybot - Search and Destroy or Ad-Aware (which has a free version as well as version you pay for).

Anyone else know of other good anti-virus/anti-malware programs?

Really nervous now that we havent heard from her in over an hr....

I was just discussing some AV options a few days ago since she just got a new PC.

and guys sorry to sound like a naysayer, but I strong discourage using macfee or norton...while they are very well known names, there is also a little known fact to the average person that they are also resource hogs and sometimes, when your PC slows down, they may actually be the culprit and in a few rare cases are actually are the culrpits behind some crashes and BSODs I have seen within the past 3 years but that depends on your machine and the OS


My recommendations

Fix It Utilities (I have been using that for the past 3 years on my XP machines)

AVG freeware - not as intrusive or resource intensive

Someone said spybot....it's a great secondary resource

and also I think I saw someone mention Adware.


To reiterate: it depends sometimes on your machine's configuration and your OS.

...come on CG...let us know that you didnt click that button!

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by DaemonSeid

and guys sorry to sound like a naysayer, but I strong discourage using macfee or norton...while they are very well known names, there is also a little known fact to the average person that they are also resource hogs and sometimes, when your PC slows down, they may actually be the culprit and in a few rare cases are actually are the culrpits behind some crashes and BSODs I have seen within the past 3 years but that depends on your machine and the OS

I have noticed that with McAfee, especially after start-up when it's updating and scanning in the background. Maybe I'll try Fix-It Utilities.

And yeah, I've always used Spybot or Ad-Aware as a second line of defense.

Maybe CG is in class?

[DaemonSeid]

Originally Posted by MysticCat

I have noticed that with McAfee, especially after start-up when it's updating and scanning in the background. Maybe I'll try Fix-It Utilities.

And yeah, I've always used Spybot or Ad-Aware as a second line of defense.

Maybe CG is in class?

yeah...i forgot...some of us are still in school now...heh!

and where does norton's and macafee get off charging a yearly fee to use their software now????

Or has that changed?

[lovespink88]

Originally Posted by DaemonSeid

and where does norton's and macafee get off charging a yearly fee to use their software now????

Actually, you can sometimes find full anti-virus software for free. Well at least you can with McAfee, which is what I have. I don't have any complaints with McAfee, but I will second MysticCat said about your computer slowing down a bit when a scan is running. But for me, it's only when the scan is running, and I'm usually not using it when I do a virus scan anyways.

Anywho, I know if your Internet service provider is Comcast, you can get the free, full version of McAfee anti-virus.

When you're logged into your account, you can click on the top right corner, the link that says "Security", and it takes you to a page where you can download McAfee, as long as you have an account with Comcast.

My school also offers free virus protection (I'm pretty sure it's either McAfee or Norton) for students, faculity, or anyone with a school computer login. You might want to look in to see if yours does too. It can probably be found on your schools technology page.

And I agree with getting a spyware program as well. Ad-Aware has worked great for me!

[epchick]

Originally Posted by DaemonSeid

and guys sorry to sound like a naysayer, but I strong discourage using macfee or norton...while they are very well known names, there is also a little known fact to the average person that they are also resource hogs and sometimes, when your PC slows down, they may actually be the culprit and in a few rare cases are actually are the culrpits behind some crashes and BSODs I have seen within the past 3 years but that depends on your machine and the OS

That happened with this computer when I had Norton. Sometimes Norton wouldn't load, which meant nothing else would work (like Internet Explorer would never open, etc). So I got McAfee. At first everything was cool, but for the past few months my computer has been sooooooooooooo slow. I thought it was adware/spyware (although McAfee doesn't find anything), but maybe it is McAfee. Thanks for the info DS.