What is a good "free" virus protection and anti-spyware?

Question

serious inquiries only please.

Answer 1

First off, anyone who recommends that you scan anything that you get from his site is offering you a dodgy site, and HE KNOWS IT!!



Get your security software *only* from its home site or from a *reputable* site like download.com or majorgeeks.com.



Don't trust blogspots, or hubpages, and for Pete's sake, don't trust sites that offer cracks to paid programs!



NOW...

For antivirus I use and recommend Avast.



Avira has its fans, and it does have slightly higher detection rates, but with that also comes more false-positives. Also, Avira doesn't scan email, and Avira is *notorious* for failed auto-updates (and if you can't trust your antivirus to update reliably, you are always in danger of being outdated.)



Avast's virus detection rates aren't too far behind Avira, it has a good antispyware, good anti-rootkit, it scans your email, and it updates without fail.



> Avast v4.8 Home Edition: http://www.avast.com/eng/avast_4_home.html



* Edit: Stay away from those BOGUS "topten(anything)" sites. Contrary to what that person stated, Webroot Spy Sweeper (not Webroot *spyware*) is NOT listed on that page.

The only programs listed there are ROGUE programs which the shill gets paid a $$ commission when bought from his link.

Answer 2

2

Answer 3

I have used Zone Alarm Firewall, I have also got superantispyware and Malwarebytes. They are all free for personal use and I have had no trouble with Viruses Trojans Hackers etc. I have just changed to Avast antivirus and all seems good so far. Zone Alarm allows a lot of personal configuration unlike the Windows Firewall. They can all be downloaded from http://www.download.com/ I also use Windows Defender from the Microsoft site. It is safe to use two anti-spy products but never use more than one A/V as it can cause conflicts. You should run A/V and anti spy weekly. Hope this helps

Answer 4

I would go for Avira or Avast for free anti-virus. AVG free version has no rootkit protection, so it is ranked lower. From all (free and paid) antiviruses I use NOD32 (I am big fan :) ).

For anti-spyware : super anti-spyware is probably the choice nr1, though you can download free version of spyware doctor from http://pack.google.com . People, pushing malwarebytes forget (or maybe not) that malwarebytes free version has no real-time protection, so it is virtually useless while your sysem is not infected. Spybot S&D is a choice too, though I do not like it as spyware remover.

Answer 5

One thing that everyone seems to forget is the pitfalls of free programs. ALL free programs have security holes. There all incomplete one way or the other.



AVG, No root kit protection running in real time.



Avast, No heuristic scanning. Lots of things get by it. That boot time scan that everyone seems to go all gaga about. Doesn't work that well.



I could go on and on about the pit falls of free AV's or any other free program. The only way to truly protect your computer investment is with the right paid program. Not half a dozen free programs, one. For me that's Kaspersky. With it you need nothing else but common sense.

Answer 6

Nothing is able to give you 100% protection. You should be looking into antivirus tests results available online if you are really interested in protection level of antivirus software. My experience is that Kaspersky and NOD32 give sufficient protection from most of the malware on the Internet, though they are commercial products.

Answer 7

Only single antivirus cannot help u out in tough situations ,

You need a combination of softwares to help protect ur PC .

Here is the combination that I use

Avast antivirus > Malwarebytes > Super Antispyware > Comodo Firewall .



u can use AVG or Avira FREE in place of Avast , thats ur choice

As Far as avast is concerned , u need to register for free , give them ur email address and they will send u a free licence key for avast (i.e. for 1 year ) and u are entitled to use the software for 1 year !



U can get the above on following addresses -

Avast - http://www.avast.com/eng/download-avast-home.html

AVG - http://www.free.avg.com/

Avira - http://www.free-av.com/



Malwarebytes - http://www.malwarebytes.org/



SuperAntispyware - http://www.superantispyware.com/download.html



Comodo Firewall - http://www.personalfirewall.comodo.com/



These apps work in combo to protect ur PC , and provide rock solid protection against viruses ,and all are free !



Good Luck

Answer 8

Avast! Home Edition or Avira AntiVir Personal. Only choose one - having two AVs installed (that run in real-time) will most probably cause conflicts and a decrease in system performance.

Avast: http://www.avast.com/

AntiVir: http://www.free-av.com/



While both Avast and AntiVir do include their own anti-spyware protection (any good AV should), it is highly suggested you have some 'back-up'. The free versions of SUPERAntiSpyware and Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware are both very good for this. However, neither include real-time protection (meaning they won't block/prevent infection) so it is highly recommended you perform regular scans to double-check that nothing has slipped past your AV shields. As neither include r-t protection, it is safe to install both.

http://www.superantispyware.com/

http://www.malwarebytes.org/



As for a firewall, Online Armor Free and Outpost Free are both very good. While OA is fairly user-friendly, Outpost is even more so and probably suited more for the beginner/novice. Only choose one firewall also.

OA: http://www.tallemu.com/

Outpost: http://free.agnitum.com/



A very important - and often overlooked - method of prevention is to ensure that all your programs are up-to-date with the latest versions and patches. Malware writers target old, insecure programs (or rather, unpatched 'holes' in programs) as a way to get their crap on to a computer; every time you patch a program, you are 'plugging a hole' so to speak. Secunia PSI is very good at helping you keep up-to-date and is quite user-friendly.

http://secunia.com/vulnerability_scanning/personal/



EDIT:



Giedrius M:

While SUPERAntiSpyware is very good (I can't argue with that - I use the pro version myself), the free version does *not* include real-time protection either. If you are disregarding MBAM Free for not including r-t protection, going by that logic, should you not disregard SAS Free also? After all, the asker was inquiring about "free" solutions.



When I "push" - if that's what one calls making a "suggestion" - MBAM (and SAS for that matter), I always mention the fact that the free versions do not include r-t protection - I *haven't* forgotten that.



And besides, where's the harm in having software solely dedicated to the purpose of double-checking that none of your other software has missed anything? In my opinion, not doing so is rather careless.

Answer 9

Comodo.com offers a free security suite and other products to secure your computer from the makers of comodo firewall pro...Avira.com has free antivirus/antispyware and they make a great product

Answer 10

Hi,



I was using the big company antivirus, but to no avail I stopped because of so many viruses which can't be cleaned by the antivirus.



I can recommend that you try avast antivirus, or kaspersky.



But be careful of unwanted sites that post such antivirus when in fact they are the "virus" ;p. Be sure to read the comments before downloading..



http://channelvan.blogspot.com/2009/08/health-set-up-daily-snack-times.html

Answer 11

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Answer 12

http://download.cnet.com You could study these.



http://free.avg.com



some swear by

http://www.malwarebytes.org/mbam.php tis can not work alone. I read some where.

A firewall type firewall in the above, the first one.



http://www.zonealarm.com put arrow on zonealarm products then click compare products to get to the free one.

Answer 13

and Avira ( arguably the best AV of all ) incorporates anti spy and adware into it.........



http://download.cnet.com/Avira-AntiVir-P…



a truly awesome program, and really all you need in an AV

Answer 14

There is no good FREE anti virus. They all suck. But the good news is there is a download site with FULL versions of Anti-Viruses.



Site: http://www.softarchive.net

(Warning: Before running any applications from this site, plz scan it. {only applicable for non antivirus software})

Answer 15

My opinion is avast antivirus....

Answer 16

use 2 free av like avira and avg and one firewall like outpost

then ur 80% safe.... if ur not infected... if u infected it too late

Answer 17

avast antivirus & spybot search & destroy antispyware