Free AntiVirus

I don't recommend AVG as it performs so dismally at detecting viruses in tests. Avast! has a considerably higher detection rate than AVG and is also free (not too far off some of the commercial applications). The downside is that I wouldn't recommend running it on an oldish PC due to the extra disk activity and memory it consumes. It would make it even slower than it probably already is. I personally don't install it on anything lower than 800MHz, 256MB RAM & Win 2000 upwards. I think anything lower makes the whole PC too slow to cope with as a human waiting for something to load up.

I kept get getting messages from grisoft stating that my free version would be expiring in a few days and that I should "purchase" their 7.5 version. I could not find anything about a free version at their website. Thanks again for the link. I use this anti-virus program on my laptop which does not have the exposure to the internet that my desktop has.

Thanks again for the link

I've been using AVG Free for over two years. I haven't had a single instance of a virus in that time - before that I used several anti-virus products from Symantec (Norton), McAfee, Trend Micro's PC-Cillin, Panda, Kapersky and Avast!

Of all the anti-virus programs I've used since I started to use anti-virus programs since 1995 - around the time that the first "outbreak" of viruses on the PC - so far, the friendliest and most complete has been AVG. I am NOT saying that this can't change, it can! And if it does, we need to be ready to find the next "best" antivirus, but I believe vehemently that such products should NOT be "pay only" programs. There are too many VERY poor people around the world and they and we should not have to pay a single dime for the "privilege" of keeping our computers virus free!

Do a search on google for AVG Free - OR to the links I give below. I can't imagine that you've had "update" problems unless you accidently clicked something once and then it's been bugging you to buy ever since. Downloading the latest version of AVG Free should do away with that niggling problem - I had it happen once on ONE customer's computer and as soon as I replaced it with the MOST RECENT AVG Free, that hasn't happened since.

Everyone has a favorite app (application) or more - don't trust just "reviews" and advice. Test. Test. And test again. If the program doesn't do what you believe it should or says it will, DUMP IT and find another one. There are SO many programs out here, every single person should be able to find a combination of anti-virus, firewall, and anti-sypware that will keep you safe from the bug-a-boos and evil meanies who would take away our freedom - even from the internet.

My choices are as follows:

Anti-Virus --- AVG Free
http://free.grisoft.com/doc/2/lng/us/tpl/v5

Firewall --- Zone Alarm Free

http://www.zonelabs.com/store/content/company/products/znalm/freeDownload.jsp

Anti-Spyware --- AdAware Free
http://www.lavasoftusa.com/products/ad-aware_se_personal.php

Each is free, each works.
Beware of going to other download sites to get these products - downloads.com is safe, but the above are more direct avenues to
each program.

Cheers,
~atheria

I'll second atheria - have been using AVG for over 3 years with never an infection (but also don't "tempt" the virus gods by opening "stupid stuff"). Have also had experience with the other products atheria mentioned, but none recently. I successfully updated to AVG 7.5 (Free edition) when it first became available, and added AVG Anti-spyware at the same time.

AVG Anti-spyware provides a free trial of their "pay" version, then reverts to the "no-cost" version (which does not auto-update or perform real-time scans - you then have to perform both manually).

I also run ZoneAlarm Firewall. Upgraded to the "Pro" version (at a cost of about $20/year) - now includes anti-spyware, also.

Just for added safety, I periodically run AdAware and Spybot S&D - each occasionally picks up something one of the others doesn't. Probably overkill, but...

Oh, and Windows Defender, just to give it a test and see how it performs. It provides real-time scanning, updates itself (and, so far, is free), but has never given me an indication it's ever detected anything. Maybe I'm overly careful or the other products are doing their job before WD gets a shot!

Go to http://daol.aol.com/safetycenter/

Program is free if you open an AOL email account. It is called "AOL Safety and Security Center".

Supplement this with AdAware SE (free) and SpyWare Blaster, also free, to catch all that other bad stuff.

thank for the link when you go to www.dfxsound.com you read how you get a better sound its for free.

To Bob, Glenn, and Brandy

They (GRISOFT)don't make it simple to track down the free version. The site makes it sound like a "maybe" and though I did find it thanks to Glenn, I'm going to look at Bit Defender too.

Thanks to everyone - Tosca

BitDefender is great, but the free version doesn't have an e-mail scanner or resident monitor. Also, it comes on a one-year, non-renewable license.

Your other choices are here: http://forums.cnet.com/5208-6620_102-0.html?forumID=32&threadID=226126&messageID=2363240#2363240

Thanks, Santuccie - I'm going with AVG 7.5 but filing your suggestion for future options.

While I still, hopefully, have all your attention - now that I've installed 7.5, I'd like to get rid of excess 7.1 files but am a little hesitant about just deleting anything that "looks like" it's not needed. I've deleted (sent to Recycle) the Setup and .exe for 7.1 but nothing else. I wouldn't, of course, touch anything modified the day of installation but can I safely dump anything before that?

Tosca

Hello Tosca,

What you did is just fine. The installer is not needed. And you shouldn't have to delete anything else; 7.5 automatically knows to overwrite the old version.

Thanks again, santuccie!

BOB YOU CAN DOWNLOAD THE AVG FREE AT FREEWAREFILES.COM AND ALSO AT AT SNAPFILES.COM I HAVE BEN USEING IT SINCE LAST YEAR IT IS GREAT IT SCANS YOUR FILES EVERY DAY IT TAKES ABOUT 1HR IF YOU NEED INFO MY E-ADRESS DELRAYBEACHBUM@ADELPHIA.NET

from the author's site when possible. Taking a risk of getting malware from 3rd party sites. Get it here:

http://www.free.grisoft.com/freeweb.php/doc/5390/lng/us/tpl/v5#avg-anti-virus-free

Hope this helps.

Glenn

according to the independent test lab results:
http://www.virus.gr/english/fullxml/default.asp?id=82

AVG is one of the worst performers for commercial antivirus programs, catching only 82% of the virii in the wild (25.aug.2006).
that means around 18% of the virii out there could have infected your computer and you won't know it, even after updates and a full disk scan.

there are many much better alternatives and it's never worth risking your files to getting something for nothing -- you should use the best antivirus software you can find, free or not (surely your personal files are worth more than $30-40/yr?).

also, programs that DON'T offer a resident scan for files are completely USELESS; unless you are happy to spend hours scanning your hard drive every day. make sure the program you use has a resident monitor (ie. that scans each file you save/open/run).

The site you link to is new to me. I consult the AV-Comparatives, which is one of the foremost authorities on this matter. Check them out here: http://www.av-comparatives.org/

While I'd have to agree that AVG is indeed the poorest performer when it comes to heuristics, and among the poorest performers in on-demand detection, remember that they do make the VB100 consistently.

At any rate, be wary of executable file attachments in e-mails (if something says "document.doc.exe," it is not an MS Word document. It is an executable!

Otherwise, stay away from sites you're unsure of (SiteAdvisor is a good reference for you to have), and remember that today's biggest threat is trojans (60% of all malware). I suggest you scan your system at least once per week with AVG Anti-Spyware and a-squared. They were the top two performers in on-demand detection and removal of trojans, and they both offer free scanners.

I've used a-squared for several years and like it a lot. It finds many items that none of my other security products find. It's great for Trojans and other malware.

amelia

a-squared is great. I love it. Also, it's the only one that works on older versions of Windows. AVG Anti-Spyware only works on W2K and XP.

I also use a-squared, it's been around for awhile now, I've been using it 3 years. It found some nasty malware on my machine that nothing else did. It is regularly updated and is a great defense for viruses,trojans, worms etc. Should be in everyone's internet arsenal.

according to that link, Avast isn't THAT much better than AVG, which would've been my freeware alternative. I'll have to research into Bit Defender if rumors of AVG going shareware only are true

To access scan settings (left-click unless specified otherwise):

- right-click AVG tray icon, and left-click "Launch AVG Test Center"

- hit "Ctrl + F4" for "Complete Test Settings," or "Ctrl + F5" for "Selected Areas Test Settings"

I believe the default setting is for AVG to move the virus to the virus vault. By default, the virus vault has a given capacity, and is not set to automatically delete the viruses.

You know, as long as you only use one antivirus for resident protection, you can have multiple on-demand scanners. AntiVir and BitDefender both offer free scanners. BitDefender's free scanner is on-demand only, and AntiVir's resident protection can be turned off. Both of these are superior to Avast! and AVG in both detection and heuristics.

mention of it here.

So -- I would suggest folks take a look at AntiVir. Start at home page www.avira.com. Or, direct to Download site: www.free-av.com.

Look around (check into their rating), subscribe to their (free) newsletter and check out their excellent forums. Support is good, if there are any problems at all. (Yes, there can be some -- but worth fixing, using support help.)


I have no connection with Avira, other than a satisfied user. I used their older version for well over a year. Then started using their newer version year or so ago. I also have several friends (and clients) using it. None of us have ever been infected.

Yes, they do try to get (free) users to upgrade to a more powerful package (which includes anti-malware and other goodies). That's only natural. In fact, I'm so pleased I'm seriously considering upgrading (approx 20 -30 Euros -- only problem is how to pay them <G>, but that's another story).

That's another minor problem; the developers are in Germany (or someplace close). However, most of their documentation has German and English versions (including the forums). So that isn't really a problem. Updates can be scheduled, or manual (for the free version).

Hope this helps some of you all.

M.S.