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[Shogmaster]

Old article but still very pertinent since many people still use most 9of those on the list:

http://www.software-antivirus.com/index.html

I've been using Norton 2003, and apprently it misses a lot of virii. @_o

I ended up ordering an OEM Panda platinum 2004 disc (#2 in that list) for $15. The only one in the list that constantly scans your web surfing activity.

 

[The Shadow]

What a trip. I use AVG and a few things they say about it are wrong. You can update the definitions frequently (mine seems to do it about twice a week) and there is a system tray icon. I never noticed any of the instability they talk about. I'm thinking the review is old or they reviewed an old version. The AVG I'm running doesn't look quite like the one they have in the review.

I switched to it after I got infected bad and Nortion didn't even notice even though I always had it running. AVG detected the virus but Norton didn't, even after selecting the exact folder I knew the infect file was in.

 

[LakeEarth]

Yeah, I'll probably get the next version of Norton when my LiveUpdate runs out.

What's AVG?

 

[Shogmaster]

What a trip. I use AVG and a few things they say about it are wrong. You can update the definitions frequently (mine seems to do it about twice a week) and there is a system tray icon.

I switched to it after I got infected bad and Nortion didn't even notice even though I always had it running. AVG detected the virus but Norton didn't, even after selecting the exact folder I knew the infect file was in.

Well, keep in mind that these were tested back in 2002, so improvements may have been made in the subsequent versions.

Their new test results for the current versions are due next month.

 

[SickBoy]

Virus protection software is so annoying. I think Panda is the program I used for about three days after my Norton definition subscription ran out, I tried a new antivirus program that detected false positives on MS Office 95 templates that had been on my system forever...

Most system-protecting software -- from antivirus to firewalls -- is annoying... too bad its all necessary. Don't use Norton any more, though..

 

[RedDwarf]

You can find AVG here.

I used that for a while before I switched to Anti Vir, which I like a bit more.

 

[LizardKing]

i use anitvir and it rocks. as soon as a dl a virus from the internet or something it pops right up and tells me it has found the file. since i started using it early this year, i have had zero problems with my computer virus wise. and it's free on top of all that... Antivir

 

[dilbert627]

What a trip. I use AVG and a few things they say about it are wrong. You can update the definitions frequently (mine seems to do it about twice a week) and there is a system tray icon. I never noticed any of the instability they talk about. I'm thinking the review is old or they reviewed an old version. The AVG I'm running doesn't look quite like the one they have in the review.

I switched to it after I got infected bad and Nortion didn't even notice even though I always had it running. AVG detected the virus but Norton didn't, even after selecting the exact folder I knew the infect file was in.

Yeah, AVG recently upgraded their free version to v7, which is a lot better. We've had great success with AVG, and Norton has been pretty crappy lately.

 

[sonicfan]

Bah, it doesn't even review avast!, which I use. That damn thing seems to update the def file several times a day almost. Works great and is free.

Avast free home download

 

[LakeEarth]

What do I do if AVG says the virus is an "embedded object"? It found 3 viruses but only fixed one.

It's fricken bullshit though. The only way you can enjoy your computer is to have 2 antivirus scanners, a firewall, and tons of spyware checkers. And for what? Just to ruin it for other people?

 

[Fatalah]

I use EZ Antivirus cause its so light on the resources. God knows if it protects me though :lol

 

[pestul]

Yeah, AVG has VASTLY improved since that review. In fact, I just got a priority definitions update after reading this thread (seems to be about 'every other day' now). Pretty much everything they say is false.. from the old review anyway. However, Panda's realtime web scanning is ace, but sadly I'm cheap... and I also don't really care if I ever have to format. I always back up the really important stuff to cdrw. For those just discovering AVG, it uses very little resources at all.. and I have barely ever seen it use more than 1% cpu time (I have the useless features disabled though).

Trendmicro's (based on PCCillin) online scanner is still the best at detection I have ever seen though.. too bad it's not always accessible if the virus is truely horrible.

 

[LakeEarth]

Scanning using AntiVir now, and it's found ... 8 so far (none viruses yet, all Trojans)... and I claim to keep my computer clean.... tisk tisk...

 

[Lemurnator]

Computer Associates makes good anti-vi.

 

[Vgamer]

Wow ive never tried any of these free Antivirus programs. My Mcafee ran out about 3 months ago so I have been living dangereously. I will have to try one of these free programs out.

 

[Red Dolphin]

I use a program called NOD32 which doesn't seem to be too commonly used from the ppl I know anyway. It's really good though. It takes up little memory and when you need to do a virus scan of the entire computer it is incredibly fast. Under 5 minutes!

All you need for your comptuer is:

* NOD32 (Anti virus)
* Spybot - Search and Destroy (Spyware)
* Spyblaster (prevents Spyware)
* Hardware Firewall is sufficient

Anyone use the hosts file to block ads and crap? Very effective. You simply copy and paste the test in this page into your hosts file on your computer.

Located at C:\Windows\system32\drivers\etc\

Use notepad to open it and copy and paste it into there.

 

[Vgamer]

I installed AVG last night and I am really liking it. I scanned my comp last night and it took awhile about 40 minutes but found no viruses It already updated itself today when I started my computer which is cool. It seems to update frequently becuase it updated last night to after I downloaded it.

 

[capslock]

the reviews sound like they were written by a 14 year old.

 

[DaCocoBrova]

Norton sucks. So bloated and overbearing.

McAfee Visrus Scan 8.i enterprise here...

 

[Shogmaster]

Norton sucks. So bloated and overbearing.

McAfee Visrus Scan 8.i enterprise here...

I kept using my norton cause it's an OEM version and kept loading without problems. Probably the same reason why you keep using your enterprise version of McAfee? Anyways, I use to use McAfee, but there was a period while back when it's auto update kept fucking up my computers, so I said fuck you and went to Norton.

Obcourse they are both rated shit in that reviews, so..... It will be interesting to see how the updated review rates everything next month.

 

[dem]

Anti virus software on my home machine makes me cry :'(

Soooo bloated...

Dont need it if youre not a dummy anyway =P

 

[Shogmaster]

Anti virus software on my home machine makes me cry :'(

Soooo bloated...

Dont need it if youre not a dummy anyway =P

Actually, the only real protection I need is from web surfing. I'm never stupid enough to accept unknown attachments from strangers etc., so I probably would never get a virus that way. It's all about the risks of surfing the web for me.

Panda got my attention because it was the only one on the list that does full realtime protection from web surfing, but that was back in 2002, so I'm sure others have done that as well. Come to think of it, my updated Norton 2003 has stopped a trojan download from clicking on a pr0n link before.....

 

[DaCocoBrova]

What about the jpeg virus?

 

[Shogmaster]

What about the jpeg virus?

Like I said, from surfing.

 

[dem]

that jpeg thing has been patched in windows for quite a while already hasnt it?

 

[dem]

I've been running my home machine without antivirus software for years now.. and I never get viruses. I goto some pretty shady places on the internet to boot... =P

 

[Shogmaster]

that jpeg thing has been patched in windows for quite a while already hasnt it?

If your computer does not have MS proggies that suffer from the vulnerability (picture it, Office etc.), Windows update skips the patch IIRC.

I've been running my home machine without antivirus software for years now.. and I never get viruses. I goto some pretty shady places on the internet to boot... =P

Then how do you know that you don't have a virus?

 

[dem]

Eh
I'd be able to tell. I'm at one with my computer!


And I went to one of those online virus scanner places the other day. It dont detect shit =P

 

[Shogmaster]

Eh
I'd be able to tell. I'm at one with my computer!


And I went to one of those online virus scanner places the other day. It dont detect shit =P

Some virus don't crash your machine, but just use your machine to spred itself, or just mine your data or other seemingly inocuous things that can hurt you later,

 

[dem]

Man.. I know about all this stuff...

But I dont get viruses. I dont even know where I would get a virus. Its not like Im downloading "HOT LINKIN PARK VIDEO.vbs" off of Kazaa and running it.

 

[dem]

Its like people who say they get spyware infestations just randomly. Fuck no it doesnt happen randomly. Ive never had spyware on my home machine unless you count stupid things like cookies.

 

[Shogmaster]

Man.. I know about all this stuff...

But I dont get viruses. I dont even know where I would get a virus. Its not like Im downloading "HOT LINKIN PARK VIDEO.vbs" off of Kazaa and running it.

Maybe I should build a crap machine off the network and do an experiement.... Just Windows updates, but no Anti V for 6 months. Surf as usual. See what happens. No crucial data on the machine obcourse... Not even checking web based email.

 

[SickBoy]

I'd consider running antivir, but from what I can see, no uninstaller? It doesn't help that as a general rule I've grown more and more paranoid about free software over the years. ...soon I won't have any software on my computer

...I also think it (or maybe AVG) may have been the program that gave me false positives from template files

 

[Oh! My Car!]

Using Symantec Corporate 9.0 myself. It's very lightweight and speedy, fantastic management features when you're running it on a network, centralized management of all your clients and servers.

 

[human5892]

My Norton LiveUpdate was out over two years ago, and I never bothered to pay to get it going again. Now it just pops up every so often and irritates me. My computer seems clean, though, and I run Adaware to take care of any spyware (of which I have very little since switching to Firefox).

I suppose my computer could be a zombie, though. Maybe I'll download one of these free programs when I get home, provided they're not too bloated.

 

[Shogmaster]

My Norton LiveUpdate was out over two years ago, and I never bothered to pay to get it going again. Now it just pops up every so often and irritates me. My computer seems clean, though, and I run Adaware to take care of any spyware (of which I have very little since switching to Firefox).

I suppose my computer could be a zombie, though. Maybe I'll download one of these free programs when I get home, provided they're not too bloated.

Wai wai wait..... You haven't reinstalled your PC in over 2 years? @_o

 

[Lhadatt]

Another vote for NOD32, albiet preliminary. Installed it last night. Not recommended for novices, simply due to the number of features and amount of customization possible. It didn't take up much in the way of resources, and only slowed things down a teeny bit with the real-time checking.

Pros: Multi-level huristics checking (user-definable), real-time scanning, auto-updates, low resource usage. Most of the independant anti-virus testing people say it passes all of their tests (even when stuff like Norton and Panda fail one or two objectives).

Cons: Not for novices (mid-level users recommended), updates for only 1 year, each additional year costs ~$30.

 

[andthebeatgoeson]

Man.. I know about all this stuff...

But I dont get viruses. I dont even know where I would get a virus. Its not like Im downloading "HOT LINKIN PARK VIDEO.vbs" off of Kazaa and running it.

'Man, it's MY body. I don't have no virus. I know which bitches I've been sleeping with..'
-Magic Johnson, early 1991

 

[dem]

:lol

 

[Matlock]

Updated to 7...TeaTimer musta caught one of the registry changes halfway though and hung, because it made the computer not be able to launch.

:lol