Reply to: Best Windows desktop antivirus

[vetran]

AVG - paid version is great. Easy to use, cheap, low maintenance & reliable. Not using their firewall yet though.

Worth trying two or three tools on your home PC.

i.e.

AVG

Housecall or something similar - once a month

http://housecall.trendmicro.com/
http://www.kaspersky.com/virusscanner
etc

after all its not worth the risk of infecting your clients. Also you can't always be sure.

I have used
Norton (like many other products purchased by Symantec their high points were before they were bought).
McAfee - OK but AVG found a load of virii when I switched, not a great fan.
Trend - seems OK, good reliable corporate distribution, but it doesn't have the highest detection rates in tests.

Spyware
Spybot & ADAware
Hijackthis run once a month.

Hardware firewall, probably backed up by software e.g. zonealarm.

[ratewhore]

Will the hardware firewall stop phishing attacks, or cross site scripting, or embedded malware deep down in a macro in a word doc embedded in another file all zipped up?

Will the hardware firewall stop a virus entering your pc from a USB key?

Need to cover all bases you see...

[DimPrawn]

Thanks for all the good advice chaps. Norton sucks donkey dick.

I have a hardware firewall so shouldn't really need a software one, no?

[ratewhore]

ZoneAlarm is a good free firewall that protects both directions.

It's just won an award for it too...

[cook]

I've used AVG Antivirus for years and it does a great job - automatic updates, new versions etc. You sometimes need to search quite hard for that link to the free version though, beneath all the marketing blurb!

You should also have a firewall - I believe Windows firewall only defends against incoming attacks - not ones that originate from on your machine - e.g. in some installed software. ZoneAlarm is a good free firewall that protects both directions. You could also use a hardware firewall (the ideal is hardware + software firewall).

[hyperD]

Glad you mentioned that ^G, I'm looking for a 10 licence copy and was recommended NOD32 by another business. I have Norton AV at the moment and have had a fair amount of problems with it on servers and looking to upgrade. Seems like I will d/l the trial next week and see.

[ControlG]

I use NOD32 (www.eset.com) .

It has a tiny footprint but is very effective. I've been using it for 3 years now and have had nothing get past it.

Whenever asked to fix someone's infected PC I always download the trial version, clean it and then recommend they buy it.

Can't speak highly enough of it.

[oloks]

I use Kaspersky Internet Security and it works very fine

[mictech]

switched from norton to avg when my trail was up. AVG found three trojan norton never found striaght away.

Ever now and then will refresh my laptop and always ripe the nortons off straight away now.

Sygate used to do a good firewall till norton bought them out.

[Swamp Thing]

I'm using Avast! antivirus at home for XP. Seems to have good detection (needs to, with all these porn sites that get visited), and doesn't tie the rest of your system up in knots like McAfee or Norton.

[The Lone Gunman]

Seconded, I wouldn't use anything else.

Been using it for years. Excellent package and easy to use.

[Cliphead]

AntiVir Personal Edition

http://www.free-av.com

It's free, it works and it's up to date.

Seconded, I wouldn't use anything else.

[Board Game Geek]

F-Prot

[DaveB]

Get Vista, you don't need AV! (billy g. told me it was true and I believe him)

[Back In Business]

Get Vista, you don't need AV! (billy g. told me it was true and I believe him)