Security Solutions for Windows XP?

[soundtrek]

Microsoft Security Essentials support died when XP's did.
https://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2429423,00.asp

Here http://www.tomsguide.com/answers/id-3506450/lightweight-free-working-antivirus-windows.html some XP user was running this for protection http://www.immunet.com/index#home but it apparently no longer supports XP
http://www.immunet.com/faq

As I would like to get another six months or so of use out of XP, is it too silly to ask if there are any credible security software? Would this be about the safest bet and without being too resource hungry? https://www.avg.com/en-us/windows-xp-antivirus

 

[canadianvice]

You had 13+ years. The only secure solution is a new OS. Keep in mind if you're compromised doing online banking and such things using such an outdated OS does allow them to pin full liability on you by contract.

If you want a stopgap, provided the hardware can run it, Win10 can legally be run without a key with minimal intrusiveness.

 

[jaslion]

Microsoft Security Essentials support died when XP's did.
https://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2429423,00.asp

Here http://www.tomsguide.com/answers/id-3506450/lightweight-free-working-antivirus-windows.html some XP user was running this for protection http://www.immunet.com/index#home but it apparently no longer supports XP
http://www.immunet.com/faq

As I would like to get another six months or so of use out of XP, is it too silly to ask if there are any credible security software? Would this be about the safest bet and without being too resource hungry? https://www.avg.com/en-us/windows-xp-antivirus

There is nothing that will protect you well on xp anymore. The security holes are know and the ways to get around stopgaps are also known. There is nothing you can do about it. Support has ended over 4 years ago and even before that you had years to find a solution to the problem.

Since you are on a unsuported os anything that happens to you or your personal info, bank account,... is not the problem of the institution anymore since you are actively compromising yourself by using a out of date piece of software.

The only way to get around this is to install a newer os like windos 10 or if the computer is really old something like xubuntu would be quite decent.

 

[soundtrek]

As I had major worries when MS tried to install 10 on my 2008 core 2duo laptop running 7' I'd hardly think 10 do much beyond killing this ancient pentium. I long ago thought of loading some kind of Linux but I can bearly write a line of code. Big waste of time I guess.

 

[jaslion]

As I had major worries when MS tried to install 10 on my 2008 core 2duo laptop running 7' I'd hardly think 10 do much beyond killing this ancient pentium. I long ago thought of loading some kind of Linux but I can bearly write a line of code. Big waste of time I guess.

Ubuntu, linux mint, xubuntu,... are quite userfriendly as long as you don't start doing special things like trying to install windows programs on linux and whatnot. If it's just to browse the internet you don't need more than the standard stuff that comes with xubuntu and it's extremely easy to install. You can even try it first before installing from the usb you create.

 

[soundtrek]

As I had major worries when MS tried to install 10 on my 2008 core 2duo laptop running 7' I'd hardly think 10 do much beyond killing this ancient pentium. I long ago thought of loading some kind of Linux but I can bearly write a line of code. Big waste of time I guess.

Ubuntu, linux mint, xubuntu,... are quite userfriendly as long as you don't start doing special things like trying to install windows programs on linux and whatnot. If it's just to browse the internet you don't need more than the standard stuff that comes with xubuntu and it's extremely easy to install. You can even try it first before installing from the usb you create.

 

[soundtrek]

Long ago I hit upon the brilliant idea of taking this guy’s advice and spent ~ $115. to have him install Fedora 17 or 18, a Linux variant on my other Win XP Pentium desktop nearly as ancient as the other one. https://www.thewebandi.com/

He partitioned the system drive to load it alongside XP. One keystroke let me toggle between them. It was my first ever Linux experience and though aware that my Windows apps would not be
compatible I remembered being thrilled knowing that I was probably a whole lot safer doing anything online that was in a world completely beyond Windows. Of course, it proved too good to be true. Soon afterwards when Fedora and its somewhat pokey GUI were not prompting me more and more often to choose among installing what looked like dozens of patches and other very important system updates from some “repository”-none of which I had any idea of how to install-functionality issues began happening, especially when I was online.

Then when I couldn’t properly follow his directions by phone and email, that IT guy then wanted more money I didn’t have and/or said he was on his way to Europe and would be gone for weeks. Needless to say, all of this drove me screaming back to Windows.

I am no kind of coder and have no time to learn any of it-and which you clearly have to know enough of to feel at all secure and to be the least bit self-reliant in Linux. Never again, thank you.

 

[190221]

Avast still supports XP. Arguably better than AVG IMO, even though they are the same company (avast)
Also a good security strategy is stay away from shady websites and scan ALL downloads with AV's before opening them.
https://www.avast.com/en-us/