Anti-Virus Software Comparison

Dsan

Active Member
JFF Member
JFF Supporter
Wow. I was browsing the internet for this exact thing not a few hours ago. My work laptop had AVG on it but there were always so many processes running. After reading a few sites I decided to try out Bitdefender. So far so good.

At home I use one called eSet NOD32. It has been good so far but others rank higher these days so a change may be in order next billing cycle.
 

MatadorPants

Member
JFF Member
I've used ESET SmartSecurity for versions 4-7 and I haven't found one I liked better. SmartSecurity includes a firewall which prompts you any time an application has an outbound or inbound internet connection, which I really enjoy having. If it's a program you can trust, you can tell it to remember to allow without prompts.

I'd highly recommend giving it a try, as it's lightweight and from my experience, does a hell of a job.
 

Trekkan

JFF Administrator
Staff member
Yeah, oddly enough the thing I want out of AV software more than catching a virus, is not to screw up my day to day activities. It's like having a virus at that point... So... I'll settle for lesser detention and better CPU usage, etc. I have to fully review this before I make any decisions, but... we'll see. I already own AVG and Bitdefender (Well, I did, who knows about subscriptions anymore).
 

Dekken

New Member
JFF Member
I've used Avast for a long time and like it though I'm not too happy about their decision recently to put the shopping thing into the browser.
 

Ronus

Member
JFF Member
I've used Avast for a long time and like it though I'm not too happy about their decision recently to put the shopping thing into the browser.
I use Chrome and disabled and removed the shopping extension. I also have used Avast for years and find it fine for what it's supposed to do.
 

Dekken

New Member
JFF Member
I use Chrome and disabled and removed the shopping extension. I also have used Avast for years and find it fine for what it's supposed to do.
Yah, I disabled it on Firefox but ended up having to google how to do it. They don't make it obvious;-)
 

Ree

New Member
JFF Member
I have avast and don't see that shopping thing, because my internetz are completely ad-free thanks to adblocker. Or because i have avast pro?
 

Trekkan

JFF Administrator
Staff member
I have avast and don't see that shopping thing, because my internetz are completely ad-free thanks to adblocker. Or because i have avast pro?
More than likely because you have the pro version. Pretty much any paid for version of software shouldn't have ads and if it did, no one would buy it. But... that being said, ad-blocker rocks. =)
 

Isoz

Member
JFF Member
I use Eset Smart Security . I used to use just Eset Nod32 and Outpost Pro Firewall , but having AV and firewall integrated makes more sense.
I used Bitdefender for a while . Although it DOES detect more things , and overall makes your computer more secure . They have made the interface VERY user unfriendly , they did this to lock down the product and discourage people from messing with the way the AV operates unless they are quite knowledgeable . That makes sense in a way , but I found that it made things very frustrating. It works right out of the box , however , let's say that you want to use Nirsoft Nirlauncher and the associated utilities . Bitdefender will block it from downloading . At the time I was using Bitdefender ( 2011 ) , in order to download it , it took 17 steps , almost completely disabling the AV altogether . Once downloaded and installed . You had to manually UNDO all 17 steps . Then you had to manually make EXCEPTIONS for all 83 programs in the Nirsoft package.
That kind of nonsense pissed me off so much that I finally gave up on Bitdefender and went back to Eset .
Now I use Eset and CCLeaner and Spybot Search and Destroy and Peerblock to block bad IP's ( prevents me from even connecting to a lot of know infected websites ) .
 

DeekuLime

New Member
JFF Member
I have to say ESET is the best I have ever used. I used to use Avast, but was the victim of a rare occurrence where it destroys your HD.
 

Isoz

Member
JFF Member
New idea for Antivirus then . Nuke it and forget it AV ! The best antivirus ever !
Just a large container of thermite that you set on top of the box , activate it by pulling a little tab that starts off the chemical reaction , and voila ! your PC is virus free ! Just make sure you called the fire department before starting disinfecting your PC.
 

Morigen

Member
JFF Member
I just used Nortons for years ( a decade or so). Then, about the time Darkfall came out I bought a new pc and it came with McAfee trial, so I have been using that for the last several years. I just really haven't had any issues to speak of. Twice, maybe 3 times since I started getting online in the early 90's have I gotten some malware on my pc that the AV didn't handle. And those times, I just did a quicj search (from another pc), found out how to fix the issue, and fixed it manually pretty quickly.

So, as far as I am concerned, what I have works well, I am happy with what I pay for the results I have. I can't recall ever having any issues with my AV affecting any software I was wanting to run or anything like that either.

As far as free AV software, well, I am am a firm believer in you get what you pay for. I am not silly enough of a person to go spend $100k on a vehicle when I can get a nice car for around $20k. I am more in the lines of the person that would buy a used car for around $3k to $5k but won't even think of buying a used car for under $1k (my future son-in-law is dead set on buying a car he found for $600. I tried to explain to him that it wasn't worth it. If it's that cheap, something HAS to be wrong with it.) And I know the free AV software is good, but I personally just can't get past the uneasy feeling it gives me. To me, it would be the same thing as someone wanting to give me a free alarm system for my house, or a security guard that wants to work for free. It just gives me an uneasy feeling. Im happy to be paying someone that does a good job, in my opinion, less than 15 cents a day to keep my PC safe.

But, I am a silly old fart, and set in my ways on some things. :D
 
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