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Topic: Choice of virus protection |
Harold Dye
From:
Cullman, Alabama, USA
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Posted 2 Aug 2016 4:31 am |
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| I only have free versions of Avast and Malwarebytes on my computer. I am thinking of going to a paid program and which of the two would be best or what other program would be good. Each of these will give me special prices if I will buy it but I have not at this point. Any ideas? |
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Dave Potter
From:
Texas
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Posted 2 Aug 2016 5:50 am
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Anti-virus again.
My .02 - I made the rounds of the various pay-to-play AV programs years ago, and they generally did the job. But I finally decided to just use what Microsoft offers for free, and I've been virus-free since then, as well. I do keep all my wireless and wired connected devices behind a NAT router, which makes them invisible on the internet - all hackers can see is my router's IP address, so that's an additional protection.
The above scheme, along with an awareness of things not to click on, have served me satisfactorily, defined as no viruses to deal with. I'm back to Windows 7 on my daily driver PC, so it's Microsoft Security Essentials there. Everything else is Win10, running Defender. YMMV |
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Wiz Feinberg
From:
Mid-Michigan, USA
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Posted 2 Aug 2016 6:12 am
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Harold;
You have not specified what operating system you are running. That would be a big help.
My general advice to questions like yours is that if your computer is running Windows 7 or newer and is current with all service packs and Windows Updates, and all browser plug-ins are up to date, especially Flash and Silverlight, and you are not running Java in any browser, and you operate as a Windows Standard User - not an Administrator, then the free Windows Defender, in conjunction with the paid version of Malwarebytes Anti-Malware - with all realtime protections and auto-updates enabled - will go a long way to protecting you from malware.
There are other things you can and should do to stay protected online. They include NOT using Internet Explorer to browse the web. I use Firefox, with the NoScript add-on enabled. This protects me against JavaScript attacks that are often embedded inside compromised web pages and are inserted in malicious ads that only run a short time on major ad networks.
Be especially wary of any email attachments that you are not expecting. Not a day goes by that my spam filtering program, MailWasher Pro, doesn't highlight a malware-laden attachment scam. Some use MS Office documents with macros that download Trojans. Others use Microsoft's own scripting engine to run JScript or JavaScript as soon as you open the attachment.
You can mitigate .JS scripted email attachment attacks by changing the association of .js files from Windows Script Host to Notepad.exe.
Even with all the anti this and that, your best protection remains operating as a less privileged user.
Personally, I am using Trend Micro Titanium Internet Security, on three PCs. It blocks links to infected or hostile web pages, gets constant updates from "cloud" servers that share info about new or modified threats and is light on resources.
_________________
"Wiz" Feinberg, Moderator SGF Computers Forum
Security Consultant
Twitter: @Wizcrafts
Main web pages: Wiztunes Steel Guitar website | Wiz's Security Blog | My Webmaster Services | Wiz's Security Blog |
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Jack Stoner
From:
Kansas City, MO
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Posted 2 Aug 2016 6:17 am
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Like Dave I use the free Microsoft Windows Defender, along with Malwarebytes.
Some AV programs tend to be system hogs and also interfere with my recording studio software. The Defender is not a hog and does not interfere.
Everyone has their favorite or what they sell. The free Defender is used by all but one of the PC clients I support.
_________________
GFI Ultra Keyless S-10 with pad (Black of course) TB202 amp, Hilton VP, Steelers Choice sidekick seat, SIT Strings
Cakewalk by Bandlab and Studio One V4.6 pro DAWs, MOTU Ultralite MK5 recording interface unit |
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Harold Dye
From:
Cullman, Alabama, USA
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Posted 2 Aug 2016 6:40 am
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| Thanks for the info. I use Win 7 and I update Win defender every time it is available for update. I also use Firefox instead of Explorer. I have SUPERantispyware free also and I clean the computer with it and Firefox before shutting down to get rid of tracking cookies. Sometimes when I scan the computer for malware, the program I am scanning with always comes back with things that need to be removed from the computer, but since I am using the free versions, it will not remove them. When I scan for malware none have been detected. That's why I was wondering if I should pay for one just to clean off the computer and maybe speed it up. Will a free version remove viruses if found? |
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Dave Potter
From:
Texas
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Posted 2 Aug 2016 8:17 am
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| Harold Dye wrote: |
| I use Win 7 and I update Win defender every time it is available for update....I have SUPERantispyware free also and I clean the computer with it and Firefox before shutting down to get rid of tracking cookies |
Be aware that Defender offers no anti-virus protection for Windows 7 and earlier. It only protects against spyware. For Windows 8 and later, an anti-virus scanner is included.
I'm running Windows 7 on my primary PC, and the above is why I'm using Microsoft Security Essentials, and not Defender.
Since you mention manually deleting tracking cookies, the free Firefox app Blur can block them automatically, eliminating any need to do it at all. This happens totally transparent to the user, except for the Blur icon on the menu bar which shows the number of trackers being blocked.
I don't usually manually manipulate cookies, since some of them are useful - logging into secure websites, etc. Click the icon on the menu bar, and the following drop-down gives the user options to control the app's functionality, which not only blocks trackers, it can remember usernames and passwords for accounts, unlimited disposable email addresses which forward to one's primary email, HUGELY useful, as well as other things:
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Charlie McDonald
From:
out of the blue
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Posted 2 Aug 2016 9:52 am Re: Choice of virus protection
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| Harold Dye wrote: |
| I only have free versions of Avast and Malwarebytes on my computer. |
I run that also, and added Malwarebytes Anti-Exploit Free, recommended by the Wiz; seems a necessary addition. |
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Wiz Feinberg
From:
Mid-Michigan, USA
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Posted 2 Aug 2016 3:35 pm Re: Choice of virus protection
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| Charlie McDonald wrote: |
| Harold Dye wrote: |
| I only have free versions of Avast and Malwarebytes on my computer. |
I run that also, and added Malwarebytes Anti-Exploit Free, recommended by the Wiz; seems a necessary addition. |
I was a beta tester of anti-Exploit. I stopped using it because of false positives that quarantined innocent files first and told me about them after the fact. I also run Trend Micro Internet Security (TMIS), which is updated a gazillion times a day, and checks file signatures instantly in the cloud. Anti-Exploit isn't so much signature based as it is behavior based (heuristics). Some setup programs triggered the exploit detection and it quarantined the files without asking for my opinion. However, TMIS found nothing wrong with those files.
_________________
"Wiz" Feinberg, Moderator SGF Computers Forum
Security Consultant
Twitter: @Wizcrafts
Main web pages: Wiztunes Steel Guitar website | Wiz's Security Blog | My Webmaster Services | Wiz's Security Blog |
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Jack Stoner
From:
Kansas City, MO
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Posted 3 Aug 2016 2:20 am
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Yesterday, I got 7 updates for Windows Defender, on Windows 10. Everytime I checked for updates (looking for the Win 10 Anniversary update) it would find a new Defender update.
_________________
GFI Ultra Keyless S-10 with pad (Black of course) TB202 amp, Hilton VP, Steelers Choice sidekick seat, SIT Strings
Cakewalk by Bandlab and Studio One V4.6 pro DAWs, MOTU Ultralite MK5 recording interface unit |
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Charlie McDonald
From:
out of the blue
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Posted 3 Aug 2016 3:46 am
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That's the rest of the story on Anti-Exploit, Harold.
Meanwhile, it seems your question is:
| Harold Dye wrote: |
| Will a free version remove viruses if found? |
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Wiz Feinberg
From:
Mid-Michigan, USA
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Posted 3 Aug 2016 5:58 am
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To be fair to Malwarebytes Anti-Exploit, the program was still in beta testing phase when I last tried it. That means it was not finalized and may have been lacking some features that may allow the user to ignore or add an exception, or request a review of a detection. I encountered a similar problem with another heuristics driven exploit blocker, a year earlier (I believe it was Hitman Pro).
I think I will download a fresh copy and try it out again. I will report back here if I learn anything new about the program.
In the meantime, I recommend taking whatever precautions you can to make it harder for a scripted attack to succeed.
Most free anti-virus programs will remove threats they find. I have used the following in the past: AVG, AVAST and NORTON - and all of them removed/quarantined any malicious files or falsely identified files.
The main issue I found with free AV was the infrequency of definitions updates. Back in the year 2000, you could stay protected with a once a day update. Not so today, where tens of thousands of new and altered malicious installers are launched every day. Malware is being repackaged and rewritten so often that you pretty much need a service that checks files in the cloud, in addition to definitions stored on your computer. If stored entirely on your computer, the onboard Virus/Trojan/Spyware/Bot database would be so large that your system would grind to a halt. Moving the bulk of the detections to the cloud lightens the load on your computer.
_________________
"Wiz" Feinberg, Moderator SGF Computers Forum
Security Consultant
Twitter: @Wizcrafts
Main web pages: Wiztunes Steel Guitar website | Wiz's Security Blog | My Webmaster Services | Wiz's Security Blog |
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Dave Potter
From:
Texas
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Posted 3 Aug 2016 6:58 am
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| Wiz Feinberg wrote: |
| Most free anti-virus programs will remove threats they find. I have used the following in the past: AVG, AVAST and NORTON - and all of them removed/quarantined any malicious files or falsely identified files. |
It's been a while since I jumped off the 3rd-party AV merry-go-round, but your comment brings back vivid recollections of how invasive they all were. Maybe they've cleaned up their acts by now, but it was a goatrope just getting rid of them.
Each time I decided to switch from one to another, I quickly discovered my PC full of obsolete registry entries and other remnants of the previous installation that should have been removed, but weren't. The headaches involved with manually removing all the garbage was a factor in my decision to scrap all of them and just use what MS offers. |
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Wiz Feinberg
From:
Mid-Michigan, USA
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Posted 3 Aug 2016 7:13 am
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| Dave Potter wrote: |
| Wiz Feinberg wrote: |
| Most free anti-virus programs will remove threats they find. I have used the following in the past: AVG, AVAST and NORTON - and all of them removed/quarantined any malicious files or falsely identified files. |
It's been a while since I jumped off the 3rd-party AV merry-go-round, but your comment brings back vivid recollections of how invasive they all were. Maybe they've cleaned up their acts by now, but it was a goatrope just getting rid of them.
Each time I decided to switch from one to another, I quickly discovered my PC full of obsolete registry entries and other remnants of the previous installation that should have been removed, but weren't. The headaches involved with manually removing all the garbage was a factor in my decision to scrap all of them and just use what MS offers. |
Here, here! The right honourable member is spot on!
I haven't experimented with alternate AV programs in several years now. I pay a reduced renewal rate when my year runs out on my Trend Micro subscription. Seeing as how my self built PC is 32 bit and thus has only 4gb of RAM (3.2 usable), I try to not overload it with security programs running in the background. My current version of Trend Micro Internet Security allows me to adjust the priority of the detection/protection engine to start low and switch to high if a threat is detected. In the cloud detections happen over the Internet, at 10 megabits per second or faster. What few evil setup files I have downloaded are detected before I can launch them. The same goes for setups containing PUP bundled programs.
_________________
"Wiz" Feinberg, Moderator SGF Computers Forum
Security Consultant
Twitter: @Wizcrafts
Main web pages: Wiztunes Steel Guitar website | Wiz's Security Blog | My Webmaster Services | Wiz's Security Blog |
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Steven Cummings
From:
Texas
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Posted 11 Aug 2016 4:18 pm
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I've had good luck with Webroot. Apparently it uses a different type of detection than the others and has a small footprint on the drive.
_________________
Lookin' on the sunny side.... |
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