Do you use : No Antivirus , FREE Antivirus , or PAID Antivirus and why?

[ccualumni]

Microsoft Security Essentials...it is free and it works. Uses limited resources and does not slow my computer down.

 

[julionavarro]

I've always used Avast, it's free, works efficiently, and actually is really light so it won't impact on gaming. I have never had problems with any virus so far.

 

[hapkiman]

Norton used to be one of the most resource heavy, and ineffective products on the market. But not anymore. Norton Internet Security runs silent in the background using almost no resources, its extremely fast on scans, and is better than ANY freeware antivirus product.

Plus its pretty cheap.

I've used just about every product there is out there, AVG, AVAST, McAfee, Kasperskys, TrendMicro, Malwarebyters, and even MSE. Norton is the way to go. NOT Norton 360!!! I'm talking about Norton Internet Security.

Its pretty awesome and does the job.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2089470/norton-internet-security-2014-review-polished-security-suite-with-excellent-protection.html

http://www.amazon.com/Norton-Internet-Security-2014-Licenses/dp/B00FGDEPDY/ref=sr_1_1?s=software&ie=UTF8&qid=1412304224&sr=1-1&keywords=norton+internet+security

 

[Paul NZ]

Dont believe anything till you try it yourself

 

[EasyLover]

I'm using Kaspersky 2013, bought the license from retailer. So far so good. I'm satisfied with the performance of this AV. That is why I've been using this AV for like 4 years.

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

I use Bitdefender , but I agree Kaspersky is one of the best.

 

[Nabeel Farooqui]

I've used AVG for a few years, got a 1 year subscription of McAfee with a laptop, never used that.
Finally switched to MSE, never looked back

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

MSE still seems to be in use quite a bit.

 

[Unolocogringo]

I use MSE / Avast combo. With a weekly scan by Malwarebytes.
They have worked well together for years.
Some times Avast blocks a virus and other times MSE blocks a virus.
I am also behind 2 hardware firewalls and windows firewall.
Have Flash disabled. pop up blocker on and run Abine DO Not Track Me software.
Abine says there are 16 companies trying to track me from this page. Although I do not run Ad blockers. The sites I visit need the ad revenue, such as Tom's.
So I do not get pop ups. Annoying flash ads don't work. I don't get tracking cookies and sites receive their ad revenue.
Seems like a win/win solution.

 

[k1114]

MSE on my desktops (w7 on one and 8 comes with it so "nothing" on that one) and gave avast a try on my laptop (w7). I used to use avira but the daily update popup bothered me. Avast slowed it down noticeably that I had to turn down/off some stuff and I keep getting software update thingy popup (paid feature) which is annoying even though I can't/am not even using it. But I've never seen a virus or malware on my home pcs for a couple years. Not a single detection which makes me wonder...

 

[Eagleshadow]

I use Windows Defender. It has never failed me. I do not like all the junk ware they try to pawn off on me. Often it seems the antivirus suites are viruses in themselves.

 

[Paul NZ]

Not a good idea running / using 2 AV programs they can conflict with each other

 

[brianjay0914]

I just use WINDOWS DEFENDER . for me virus is just a gimmick. they make u suffer and pay . just be careful on what ur downloading . windows defender can almost detect evrything and free of charge.




have a good day

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

How often do you run a full scan?

 

[bazpaul]

No - AVG free for me.

I cant justify spending more. The free versions have pretty much all teh security you need. The paid versions have silly bells and whistles to attract less tech savvy people!

 

[vinedrai]

I am using Avast AV free and satisfied. I don't really see any reason to use a paid AV unless you are paranoid. Most of them have similar performances detection wise and it usually comes down to their system load when comparing them for the generic user.

 

[real ace]

I use the free Avast antivirus because
-It uses less RAM
-Has smaller packs of virus definition updates(good for slow speed internet connections)
-Over many years i haven't had a single problem using it
-On a side note its not annoying like Norton

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

I used the Norton paid last year and it was real light on resources and ran in the background nicely.

 

[spooky2th]

IMO, Kaspersky Internet Security is the best. Have tried a bunch of others including Norton and have been sticking with Kaspersky.

 

[Dxanders]

Since I switched to W8 I have no antivirus... In Windows 7 I used Microsoft Security Essentials... I think its a matter of awareness of the user at the moment to visit pages, download stuff , use external devices, etc

 

[MarkW]

Do you use : No Antivirus , FREE Antivirus , or PAID Antivirus and why.

I use paid anti-virus because I have used the free ones in the past and was not happy with the protection some of them provided. $23 a year for peace of mind is very cheap vs. losing all my data.

 

[Rapajez]

For those happy with Windows Defender or MSE, just because of the low maintenance and small footprint, a lot of independent security sites rank both extremely low in detection tests. Again, just because you're a knowledgeable user, doesn't make you immune.

http://www.av-test.org/en/news/news-single-view/25-internet-security-suites-are-put-to-the-test-using-windows-81/

Also, speaking of Do-Not-Track plug-ins, check out the Free, Open Source "Privacy Badger". It does a great job and is a pretty cool FOSS project in general.

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

I like Adblock and Ghostery for browser plugins.

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

http://www.av-comparatives.org/

Great site to compare ^

 

[Skylyne]

http://www.av-comparatives.org/

Great site to compare ^

I really wish Comodo was in that comparison chart. Would be nice to see how many false positives they would have found, since I had a fair amount with Comodo. Bitdefender looks like the best for protection/false positive ratio.

I recently started using Bitdefender's free version, just to see how much resources it uses, and how reliable I find it to be (does it trigger false positives/etc. during my particular uses). No real complaints, but it does bog my slower computer down a noticeable amount. It's okay, but by no means would I personally use it for anything more than peace of mind. I won't ever trust an AV software for security, but that's for my own personal use.

It looks like TrendMicro has the best overall protection. Bitdefender would come in second; Kaspersky would be in third; Avira and Emisoft would come tied in fourth. The only reason I would place Avira so low is because of their false positives. Depending on how TrendMicro works, I might consider recommending that one in the future. I might just happen to take a look at their free software and check it out soon. I know some people who are in the need for something free and effective. Gotta love incompetent husbands who trust everything the internet says, and then blame it all on the wives! hahaha