Win7 best antivirus

zcosmin

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Jul 12, 2012
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can someone tell me what the best antivirus is for windows 7 pls? I have used avg, kaspersky, norton and eset, i want to try something new, is comodo good?
 
For free? i don't know about which is best but i will list a few i have used that i thought were good and i would use again in future.1 Avira Free Antivirus 2012 This free antivirus gets good ratings from the independent labs. It's a nice free solution that's worth your consideration. 2. avast! Free version 6.0 Avast! Free has some dandy new features, and it's a great-looking program.3.Ad-Aware FREE Internet Security 9.0 Most free antivirus utilities are good at either malware removal or malware blocking, but not both. Ad-Aware Free proved very effective in both areas, almost as effective as Ad-Aware Pro. This is a great free antivirus solution for non-commercial hope this helps!
 

dhvd79a

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May 9, 2006
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I always purchased Trend PC-Cillin until recently. Tried many of the free ones but now just use Microsoft Essentials and run an occasional malware bytes scan.
 
MSE paired with Malwarebytes is effective and stays out of the way, and what I use

All of the others listed so far are pretty good as well, but tend to either be larger programs, or run annoyingly in your face, or always try and get you to pay for the full version.

MSE and MBAM play nice together, take a minimum of system resources, stay out of the way until needed, and they each fill in the gaps that the other is missing (MSE is weak on anti-malware, and MBAM is antimalware that only scans for a few viruses).
 

Daniel NA

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Jul 25, 2012
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I've had my own issues with AVG and Norton and I love ESET but I've never tried Kaspersky. This may not be the place to ask really but what was it that you didn't like about the ones you've already used?
 
I can't answer for everybody of course and honestly i been using a pay for program not as popular as the big names PC Tools™ Internet Security hands down best i have used i even try it on my old rig i test things on try to get viruses and all kinds of stuff on purpose couldn't though try it off and on for two weeks lol bad thing is the software they provide for free sucks other then their threat fire program i found the free antivirus they provided sucked.
 

cliffro

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Aug 30, 2007
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I prefer avast free for a free A/V. It's on any computer I work on, it's quick and easy to register each year. I liked it enough I bought the paid version. The free version is just as good.

I tried AVG when I got annoyed by Kaspersky's Internet Security( free copy from a Windows 7 "Launch Party") but found my self not liking it, having issues with a game causing the Resident shield to freak out and crash repeatedly. Some serious false positives, like game executables, from some major games.
 
Hi :)

I fix viruses EVERY day in my shops..today I removed viruses from two machines...one with Mcafee (paid) and one with AVG (free)

Norton is the best PAID by far, the best FREE is MSE... (ABOUT 50% as good as Norton)

All the best Brett :)
 
lol, norton is the best for-pay one because it completely takes over your system and acts like the internet nanny. Annoying as hell, but it is effective for those who don't know better and think that they really are the lucky 1000th visitor to their favorite gambling or free video site.
 



Hi :)

Thats in YOUR opinion...how many viruses precisely do YOU fix per day ??


He can take or leave my opinion, but at least I do this for a living...


All the best Brett :)
 

benji720

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Norton is great if you don't mind your computer slowing down by 75%, but if you are going to buy something get Symantec Endpoint. Same protection engine but much faster. You can find licenses for single users for around $25 on pricegrabber. Also, you don't need to buy it every year (as stated in their license agreement) if you are using it without a server.

For free, get MSE, it's the best free one I've found.
 

Smeg45

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Surprised no one has mentioned you can pick up Norton single annual licence for a grand total of $15 or so from your local computer shop. Yes, its OEM, but its functionally identical to the full fat version. Personally I use Avast free, but the best antivirus/antimalware is common sense. Overall, Norton is the best though. Spybot is obsolete though.
 



Hi :)

That Resource problem was cured in 2008... these days it uses UNDER 1%....

I agree MSE is the best of the free ones though...

All the best Brett :)
 
:lol: they have toned it down the last two years it runs very good to no slow downs i would half to agree with you two years ago i thought my goodness i am better off using something else because i remember three or four years ago i couldn't stand norton made any rigs i fixed or had run like crap i mean it always was a top of the line antivirus just couldn't stand how slow it use to make my pc run.
 

I am actually agreeing with you Brett, it IS the best in the consumer for-pay environment, hands down. On the rare occasion that I find someone who needs extra protection I always send them to Norton. It is big, a little expensive, and it takes over their computer, but some people need that extra guidance in their digital life. They need nanny-ware to sit and watch over their shoulder and say 'stop that you dunce' every time they find the next 'killer deal' or 'african prince' who needs to launder money.

But for the average user it is far cheaper in the long run to get a decent router, slap Tomato OS on it, use MSE or any other free antivirus, pair that with Malwarebytes, and then simply avoid scam sites. It has worked for me for several years, and I actually went without any form of AV for quite a few years without incident. But then again I (relatively) know what I am doing, and (unless doing research on a topic) I tend to stick with well known sties and don't tempt fate unless I need to.

But I cannot suggest a decent router (old linksys or newer ASUS) well enough. The best anti-virus/anti-malware is the stuff the prevents things from even getting to your computer in the first place.
 

not saying that it slows the system down, because it hasn't done that in a long time. But it still takes over the machine and manages the user... I don't like to be managed, but some people need it.
 
Yeah i know what you mean. ;)
 

benji720

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May 24, 2012
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I see it all the time and it's still a resource hog compared to Endpoint or even MSE. I do know they market it as using under 1% but when our clients complain about slow computers, 30% of the time taking Norton off fixes the issue.
 



Hi :)

It depends on your definition of "managed" really...

We had a customer in today with a "slow machine" ... it was actually caused by a grand total of 256 mb of ram in an XP machine with a P4 2600 in it... so I added another Gb of ram and it flew...

But when I asked the customer which AV they were using (before I looked at the machine) they looked at me blankly...they actually didnt know what AV was...

Now they needed "managing" by an AV and as Norton is TOTALLY automatic, thats what I put on the machine...

Sooooo MANAGING or AUTOMATIC ...it depends on your point of view I suppose...

All the best Brett :)