Avast, AVG, and MSE

[Matt Manos]

Last thread I saw on this was from 2010 . . .

Which free antivirus do you feel does the best job with malware/virus protection, Avast, AVG, or MSE? Clean up is secondary to me as I feel the main priority should be to keep the boogers from getting in in the first place.

I ask because I got a wild hare and switched from MSE to Avast a few days ago. Had no problems with MSE, just wanted to try something different.

 

[Teehar]

All are pretty good,the biggest issue I had with AVG and Avast free is they tend to nag you about upgrading to the paid version.I have been using MSE for the last couple of years and it does the job,light on resources and no nags.

 

[chrisn]

I think they are all very good. There's another thread going about Norton... I don't know why anyone would pay for antivirus software these days but to each his own.

However, I think the best way to go for someone with even a basic understanding of their PC is to install a Linux distro alongside Windows and use that for surfing and e-mail. Or, install one onto a usb stick and use it that way.

 

[Voyager6]

PCWorld recently reviewed some of the best free antivirus programs. AVG and Avast were top-rated. Free Antivirus You Can Trust | PCWorld

 

[Teehar]

I think they are all very good. There's another thread going about Norton... I don't know why anyone would pay for antivirus software these days but to each his own.

However, I think the best way to go for someone with even a basic understanding of their PC is to install a Linux distro alongside Windows and use that for surfing and e-mail. Or, install one onto a usb stick and use it that way.

Yep I agree.Using Kubuntu on a laptop and it works great no av needed.

 

[Peter Parker]

Linux has never been a big target for viruses but it is not immune. AVast and AVG both have products for Linux. I guess it is one of those areas where you have to decide for yourself whether the risk is significant.

 

[Matt Manos]

You're preaching to the choir. I have Slackware on my desktop and have been using Linux for the last five years or so. However, I have Windows 7 on my laptop and have always considered dual boot systems to be a waste of time and effort.

 

[mdram]

i used avg, until it became a resource hog, mse is what i use now

 

[chrisn]

You're preaching to the choir. I have Slackware on my desktop and have been using Linux for the last five years or so. However, I have Windows 7 on my laptop and have always considered dual boot systems to be a waste of time and effort.

I've never found it takes much time or effort. A growing GRUB menu can be annoying, I guess. Preference, I guess.

 

[chrisn]

Linux has never been a big target for viruses but it is not immune. AVast and AVG both have products for Linux. I guess it is one of those areas where you have to decide for yourself whether the risk is significant.

Linux is very well protected on it's own. Antivirus software for Linux has much more to do with protecting Windows computers on the same network or where a Linux server is used.

The fact that a virus written for Linux has never been widespread or catastrophic is telling, especially considering the sheer volume of Linux and Unix servers in use.

Back to the thread topic, after looking a bit, AVast sure has a lot of great reviews.

 

[meStevo]

Used MSE for years once nags got more and more intrusive and frequent for the other free alternatives mentioned.

Recently swore off Ad-Aware as well.

 

[Poke]

Yeah MSE works great and with Win 8 they combined it with Defender.. I have moved all my users to MSE..

 

[avg1joe]

Still using Avast. In settings, I turn off the voice that says that it updated. I have mse on my daughter's computer and she gets infected more often.

 

[Matt Manos]

I turned off the annoying audio in Avast as well. I like the fact that it checks for definition updates every four hours in addition to getting "streaming" updates (not the right term) from its database. Of course, this doesn't mean much if the detection engine and virus definition updates aren't good to start with.

 

[berck]

Linux has never been a big target for viruses but it is not immune. AVast and AVG both have products for Linux. I guess it is one of those areas where you have to decide for yourself whether the risk is significant.

Linux also comes with its own AV software. Clam AV is free and can be downloaded to any Ubuntu distributions from its repositories. It's primarily designed to take care of Windows viruses that come through the email server and files saved on the hard drive.

 

[hdtvtechno]

"Microsoft security essentials". Hands down!

Sent from my iPhone using SatelliteGuys

 

[KE4EST]

Yep been using MSE for over a year now and love it. Does its job and don't bog down the computer.

 

[Stargazer]

AVG for many years. MSE is my second choice.