And Avast is "vastly" superior. ![]()
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The folks over in the MS forums (answers.microsoft.com) seem to think it is. That's all I'm using on my Windows 8 test computer and so far so good (knock, knock).
...as an example, if you use Microsoft Outlook for your email, Defender and Security Essentials have troubles offering full protection. If you are installing programs from downloads off the Internet, you would be surprised how many have background software or sometimes can present threats and contain intentional or unintentional malicious malware, adware or virus packets..
Often you can find good advice that you should not use two different AV/Firewall programs in unison and I would back that up as a truth.
I have faithfully used AVG Security Suite for years and have the current 2012 version and have stayed clean even though I delve around with hip waders on, in areas where threats like to spawn. AVG offers full ranges of protection from online searches, Outlook protection on all emails, protection search ability for downloaded software, a link scanner that works very good to alert you NOT to go into a URL unless you absolutely want to prior to opening the internet page, an Anti-rootkit utility included along with family protocols to lock out unwanted sites from young children, and of course a very functional and effective firewall. It may sound as if I am preaching AVG software but that is just my personal preference. There are many reliable utilities out there as others have mentioned.
You can often find free cut down versions of many AV/Firewall applications along with free Adware/Malware and they often work very well. Yet for a feeling of security I would advise getting the full versions/professional and having the emotional comfort of a tougher program to handle tougher environs out there in Cyber World.
But friends just do not let friends do AVG. I can't count the times my clients have had HARDWARE failure after using AVG - the news is full of bug reports where updates to it hosed many operating systems. This also is not new news.
You could call that coincidence if you want, but it has happened 100% of the time for my clients! ![]()
randy_rogers38. You should never have more than one anti-virus running. Running multiples creates conflicts in the os not to mention slowing down the computer especially at start up when the conflicting a/v's are battling it out thinking each other is a virus and more. Choose an a/v and use it. You can use other a/v's but you must disable the other first.....Digger
Windows 8 is a virus as far as I am concerned. I tried it and got rid of it. I usaually use AVG Antivirus security software. What is more important is not to go to websites that do illegal activities.
I will grudgingly admit, that if you are logged in as a standard(limited) user on Win8, then Windows Defender has performed rather well in the latest ******** tests of the groups I go with. However AVG - Nah! ![]()
Don't read some junk on some stupid little website. No one cares
And many other reputable anti-virus/malware test site agree with that assessment - from the latest tests I've read.
I've been using and recommending MSE for several years until 2 months ago. I administrate a basic WordPress website that was hacked twice, forcing me to rebuild it, although not knowing exactly how the attacks had been implemented.
I regulalry downloaded full backups of the website and scanned them with MSE and Malwarebytes anti-malware, neither ever finding problems with backups.
While trying to find an answer to the hack attacks, I came across several posts that implied MSE may be somewhat resources hungry and not as good in identifying Trojans as some claim, so I added AVAST (free edition) to the system, to my suprise it found several known Trojans in the compressed website backup files dating back several months. The imbedded Trojans proved to be the cause of the website failure.
AVAST can be configured to run with MSE and is how it found the Trojans. Had I been alerted to these earlier, I could have prevented those attacks or at least minimized their effects.
That exercise reduced my confidence in MSE and I now use AVAST (paid) without MSE, the removal of the latter was simply to reduce the resources hit on my dated E8400 Win7x64 based system.
As I use my computer for eBay and PayPal, I believe the money well spent for the extra security gained. It also made me realise the importance of secure passwords and not to store them unencripted on my computer!!!
For what it's worth....
Trend Micro security software comes with my broadband service, and so I have recently started running it with Windows Defender and Windows Firewall enabled on a Win7 HP laptop.
Is this a recommended solution? Is it hurting system performance?
Any comments on Trend?
I'm not technical, so please keep any help to the level of 'dumb' if you can!
Thanks.
You can bet they may be trying to go back to the top - AV comparatives would be a good one to watch. However no one solution is the answer if you really need as much as you can to put a blended defense on the PC. In my experience, standalone solutions have worked the best if you are on a budget, but NOD32 is still a winner if you are not. It still tests out well in our honeypots as well. It used to use a suite product that used separate modules. I'm not familiar enough with it anymore to comment on that, but I felt like that was one reason it worked so well. Trend got so bloated years ago I haven't given it much thought lately.
If I were to recommend the least installations for the best results, I'd still say NOD32 and MBAP would be the killer combo. The Win7 firewall is probably good enough, but you do need a hardware firewall to back that up. Unfortunately MBAP is now charging 24 dollars a year, but they say the old lifetime license may go on sale occasionally. You may be able to find OEM or retail box licenses for the old lifetime versions at Fry's or Best Buy if you hurry.
If you do banking or shopping online, though, it is wise to include Rapport, a good HIPs, and a good encrypted password manager. Some folks like Keyscrambler, but Rapport already pretty much has that covered better. This is only a limited blended defense, but you should get stellar performance with these solutions. My PC boots pretty slowly as it is legacy 2007, but I usually put it to sleep, and since I use Comdo Dragon, I have perfect browsing performance. I just don't notice any performance hits, but then I use blended defenses that have different technologies, and passive defenses, so the RAM, and CPU don't take a hit.
I installed Defender on several of my computers and have not encountered any problems.
The reason for getting rid of McAfee and installing Defender was to slim my system down. Everything I had read, led me to believe that Defender was slimmer. My 2 computers that have it, seem to be faster to load.
The only reason your WD appears to be working is that you haven't been attacked yet!! You're lucky, but you better think about this.
MICROSOFT says, and I quote: "Microsoft Essentials at the moment is the best protection that we have"...
Now, you should know that I have been attacked by a TROJAN horse of effenseive power that I have ever encountered. It attacked WD first, and desabled it. The attack was not able to penetrate MICROSOFT ESSENTIALS which by far is a more powerful and FULL scan and protective software out there. Thanks to ME, I was able to eventually get rid of this TROJAN HORSE without destroying one of my files. It did take a little work, and I was scared I would lose it all, but in the end, it worked out fine. I think, all in all, it took over 2 hours to get rid of.
So be forewarned. In conclusion, I would hope that Microsoft would put out some software that BEFORE you went to any website would be able to go in AHEAD OF YOU, and check it out., therefor protecting your ASSets.
good luck to all.
alg, los angeles
WOT (Web Of Trust) that will warn you when your going onto a bad site so check that out . The only other protection you really have is YOU! If you go into shady sites no anti-virus can stop you or stop you from downloading infected things...Digger
I've tested McAfee Siteadvisor, Web-Of-Trust, Web Rep, and Comodo's new advisor built into the Dragon(Chrome) browser, and I can attest that WOT is the best - Comodo second - the rest of them are too far behind to even count as a serious contender!
you only knew you were attacked because you saw a result of interaction by MSE/Defender. IF they missed, you'd never know. As I said elsewhere in this thread - I am working on a XP machine that had MSE on it as the anti-virus, and I had to spend considerable time resolving my clients issues. The malware/viruses actually did physical damage to both his optical drives, and they are both junk now. He had over 56 different malicious files invading his PC.
MSE is known all over IT tech forums as a barely good enough solution. If you only go to work sites and never surf the web, you may just get away with it for a while - but don't dare do any online banking or shopping - I guarantee that!!
If you go to MICROSOFT ESSENTIALS you will find that it is the FINAL WORD on protection. As a matter of fact while MICROSOFT ESSENTIALS IS doing it's job, the software will turn off WINDOWS DEFENDER.
Windows 8's Defender IS Microsoft Security Essentials. Guessing they decided to brave the wrath of the DOJ and upgraded Defender to include the MSE components.
If you try installing MSE on Windows 8 it will tell you as much.
That is true, many anti virus programs disable windows defender, because, in their own words, "it reduces performance and reliability of the software" while increasing the memory and processing consumptoin of your system, thus slowing you down
I only disable the AV component. I always use the malware component of the older Defender. As has been pointed out Win8 is another ball of wax.
I own several computers, with several operating systems and while a number of them have windows defender, it, on its own, is NOT enough to protect your computer, This has been proved time and again, when windows defender did NOT recognize anything untoward, yet the anti viral software on the respective machines; AVG, avast, kaspersky, "malwarebytes antimalware" and others pick up on viri that windows defender outright ignores. With that in mind, I would NEVER trust windows defender on its own, the risk of losing valuable data, having personal information compromised, or worse! simply is NOT worth it!
Gaisa
Isn't it a fact that Microsoft warns you that if you use two anti-virus softwares at the same time they will conflict and you will get reduced results?
I have read that; have you?
OTOH, I'm not convinced that GaisaSanktejo did advise using multiple AV's simultaneously. (But it did sound like it...)
Anyway, feduchin is correct: not only Microsoft, but all AV companies warn against parallel usage. This is not to promote sales (of a free product???) but simply because they interfere with each other -- and because every action must be examined by all the running AV's, which then compete for access...
One is (usually) good, plural is (always) bad.
Gordon.
Yeah, that is true Feduchin, and thankyou for clarifying that Gordon.
In reference to your question, I have one AV program turned on at any time, the computer I'm currently using, for example, has WD in there as a default, which I leave disabled, after it failed miserably (in my eyes) and use Avanquest systemsuite as my main anti virus/maintanence software, but I turn it off on a weekly basis to scan the system with malwarebytes antimalware to see if anything gets through.
This seems much more effective (if a little time and labor consuming) than relying on something I've learned to NOT trust the hard way.
Gaisa
The real time component of MBAP will not interfere with a good AV solution. Notice I said a "good" AV solution - if there is a conflict simply go into the configuration of each utility and allow for all engines in their protection scheme, and all will be OK.
I've never seen a conflict in the event viewer for MBAM or the new version MBAP with any other properly configured AV solution.