1 in 6 Windows PCs Have Zero Antivirus Protection

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It's unfortunate that so many people buy into the false assertion that "safe browsing" habits will protect them from all threats out there on the web. While I don't doubt McAfee is trying to sell more products, antivirus protection is like car insurance - you can do everything right and think you don't need it, but someone else's ignorance/slip-up/stupidity will expose you to danger and then you'll wish you had it.
 
DRosencraft

I couldn't disagree more. I've been Anti-Virus free now for 7 years. NONE of my 5 PC's have anti-virus software and they all run smoothly and efficiently. Knowledge is by far the most effective anti-virus tool.
 
[citation][nom]DRosencraft[/nom]It's unfortunate that so many people buy into the false assertion that "safe browsing" habits will protect them from all threats out there on the web. While I don't doubt McAfee is trying to sell more products, antivirus protection is like car insurance - you can do everything right and think you don't need it, but someone else's ignorance/slip-up/stupidity will expose you to danger and then you'll wish you had it.[/citation]

The biggest threat is Java. I have found plenty of customers PCs filled with Java exploits. The easy way to fix that is disable Java from being able to keep temporary files on your PC via control panel.

Still I don't find this information hard to trust. I have seen plenty of people with no AV at all. We try to get them on MSE but some don't want it at all.
 
Internet pedantry ahoy:

The tagline: "The United States ranks in the bottom 5 least protected countries, says McAfee."

Surely that should read one of the following:

"The United States ranks in the top 5 least protected countries, says McAfee."
or
"The United States ranks in the bottom 5 most protected countries, says McAfee."

A minor quibble, I know, but the original version just looks wrong.

Also: I use MSE. It's free, it gets updated, and with the usual rules about not being an idiot with regard to emails and so on, it keeps me clear of infection. Of course, obeying simple security standards immediately rules out 99.99% of viruses anyway, but what the hell, it was free.
 
I don't use that stuff, but I also work in IT. I know not everyone knows what to & not to click on/use etc..
 
3 out of 8 computers in this company I'm working have AV. No virus in those, nor in those without AV. It's the people, not the software.
 
Yes I know it's not the smartest thing to do but one of our pc's doesn't have ANY virus protection, yet we still havn't had any problems for the last six months...we have less problems now than before I formatted the pc (we had antivirus then)...and yes it has windows 7 on and is used to browse the internet most of the day
 
[citation][nom]RADIO_ACTIVE[/nom]I guess I am one of the 1's. You don't need AV lol just don't be an idiot, gotta stay away from the free hermiporn sites lol[/citation]
I'm with ya on that one. If I plan to do anything "risky", I fire up a VM.
 
Well I don't have to worry, I have Linux and don't fall into the percentages that browse and allow stuff to download .exe files. Just like I don't open email attachments from people I don't know. If people knew what they were doing on the web a lot of this junk would effect them.
 
Sounds like a sales pitch from McAfee if you ask me....
Anyways, I would often go for 6 months or more without AV software... Then I will get a wild hair up my but and install a couple to see if there was anything that they could find. Low and behold, nothing... except for one or two questionable tracking cookies...
Why?
Firefox with ad-blocker, no script, and common sense.... Not falling for dumb emails with phishing .exe's and links to obviously malicious websites....

The weakest link in any network security environment is the human user element.....
Networking 101.
 
I am one of those "1 of 10", having computer science degree I find having antivirus useless and only resource consuming (both money and performance wise).
 
[citation][nom]stinkyfax[/nom]I am one of those "1 of 10", having computer science degree I find having antivirus useless and only resource consuming (both money and performance wise).[/citation]

exactly. although, i wouldn't pay for an antivirus if I did use one (just use MSE). many people do need them though. they don't always help, but sometimes they do surprise you and do their job.
 
I have the best Anti-Virus protection of all. Me. If you know what you're doing, and avoid risky sites, and don't do stupid stuff, you rarely get viruses. AV software is hard to distinguish from viruses, they're both intrusive, annoying, and do things I don't want. Since I've never had a virus, I'm pretty sure I'm better than McAfee, which sucks.

I'm not suggesting this for everyone, as I have friends who seem to regularly attract viruses (I don't know how, exactly), but for a lot of people here, AV software isn't as important as it is for the general public.
 
Does this statistic include Servers computers? None of my servers run AV, which means that 8 out of 10 computers in my house run without AV. I haven't gotten a virus in over in over 6 years though. Be smart about your internet habits and you won't need an AV. Although I still use AVG on my 2 "home" computers, just in case.
 
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