Best anti-virus for Windows 7

[Veedaz]

Thats the good thing about a layered security Cat (5th post down) > https://www.w7forums.com/best-anti-virus-64-bit-windows-7-os-t4009.html

 

[catilley1092]

Thats the good thing about a layered security Cat (5th post down) > https://www.w7forums.com/best-anti-virus-64-bit-windows-7-os-t4009.html

That's what I'm going to do. I was doing that already, running MSE (full scan) daily, then running SuperAntiSpyware twice weekly to catch anything else. But this is what Malwarebytes picked up today, Vendor: Hijack, Display, Pro...., Category: Registry Data, Items: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWAR.....

 

[xman]

Norton AntiVirus and Webroot AntiVirus with its SpySweeper

 

[andsome]

Norton AntiVirus and Webroot AntiVirus with its SpySweeper

YOU HAVE TO BE JOKING. Once bitten twice shy, A Norton installation CD will never be allowed in the same room as my computer ever again.

 

[catilley1092]

I was just helping someone whose Norton AV, with all updates, allowed malware on his computer. Now, he's facing a reinstall. It came preinstalled on this computer, but was the first thing removed from it, as soon as it was setup to run. I can't say 100% for sure which is the very best AV for Windows 7, but I can say that Norton isn't.

 

[andsome]

I was just helping someone whose Norton AV, with all updates, allowed malware on his computer. Now, he's facing a reinstall. It came preinstalled on this computer, but was the first thing removed from it, as soon as it was setup to run. I can't say 100% for sure which is the very best AV for Windows 7, but I can say that Norton isn't.

I would NEVER buy a commercially produced computer. I have bought three altogether, and each one has been built by a small shop locally. They are to a specification agreed between us and have only the operating system installed when he delivers. No crap ware or bloat ware or trials for this and trials for that. In the event that any problem arises he is less than two miles away, So no premium rate help lines. Best of all NO NORTON or McAffee.

 

[davehc]

"YOU HAVE TO BE JOKING. Once bitten twice shy, A Norton installation CD will never be allowed in the same room as my computer ever again"

Peter Norton was my computer hero back in the dos early windows era. From about the time he sold out to Symantic, in the 90's, the prgram became, for me, an accident waiting to happen. It is sad that he allowed his name to go forward with the sale.

 

[andsome]

"YOU HAVE TO BE JOKING. Once bitten twice shy, A Norton installation CD will never be allowed in the same room as my computer ever again"

Peter Norton was my computer hero back in the dos early windows era. From about the time he sold out to Symantic, in the 90's, the prgram became, for me, an accident waiting to happen. It is sad that he allowed his name to go forward with the sale.

Those days of course are long since gone.

 

[Mychael]

AVG Free has worked well for me. It has resident shield and email scanning. If fixed a problem another bought program could not. I think AVG generally scores acceptably in tests run by various pc magazines. Not saying it's the best but for what you pay (nothing) it's pretty good.

Agree with andsome Norton used to be good till it went to Symantic.

 

[catilley1092]

AVG Free doesn't have "real time" protection, it may be a good idea to have Malwarebytes as a scanner if you're going to use it. I use MSE & Avast 5.0 together, with no problems. But I no longer recommend a specific AV to anyone. I do want realtime protection, though.

 

[andsome]

I still believe that especially for an expensive item like a computer 'yer gets owt fer nowt'. Compared with the cost of a computer, the cost of a good security suite like Eset Nod 32 is chicken feed.

 

[Mychael]

According to my AVG description. Resident Shield works in the back ground scanning files as they are being used. All emails and anti spyware.
It might seem strange to get 'something for nothing' but I tried a couple of programs that cost money and performed worse.
I do also use malwarebytes and windows defender.

In fact only once did I ever introduce a Trojan and that was when I was not paying attention and clicked on a link without checking it properly first. I think a lot of issues can be avoided just be being alert and taking a bit of care.

 

[HaveBlues2]

Yes, AVG is terrible. The "free" version is a resource hog and has no "realtime" protection. You find out you're infected after you do a manual scan. This, in my opinion, is useless. The way viruses are spread today, you need realtime protection. AVG doesn't even come to mind when I recommend one. On the other hand, Avast! & MSE are proven protection. Don't let that Windows Defender look fool you, MSE has proven itself to me and many others. Avast!, which I'm still running on Win 2K Pro, is also proven, as I used it on all of my systems until recently. You can set it to auto update and it updates daily, sometimes twice a day. With at at least these two choices, there's no reason to spend a fortune every year for protection.

Wow, I have used the free version of AVG for years and haven't had any problems with any Viruses. I guess it's all about knowing what you dnload and install on your system. I don't and won't dnload software from strangers for any given reasons. With that being said, I'm going to knock on some wood just incase! :ciao:

 

[catilley1092]

There's plenty of good choices available for free AV's. I've never paid for one myself. I do recommend Malwarebytes or a similar malware scanner, and run it weekly. Here's another free tip, click Start (in Win 7), type "mrt" w/o the quotes, and you have a malware scanner that's updated every month. You can run a short or long scan. And most importantly, your computing habits are the best prevention. Never open unsolicited (spam) emails and have a disposable email address for those you do short term business with. Why? Because they sell your email address to others. The same way that your regular house mail box gets junk mail, your address was sold to thousands of businesses. With a disposable email box, when it's getting spammed to death, simply either close it, or don't log onto it anymore. Emails are known to be a notorious source of infections. So are P2P sites, chat rooms and porn sites. If you must visit these sites, find a cheap second hand laptop for these purposes. That would be better than your main computer getting infected.

 

[celldweller1591]

I prefer Avast 5 for my windows 7 .It works well with my Zone alarm Pro firewall .

 

[catilley1092]

Avast 5 is a good one, too. I use it and MSE together for "layered" protection. Sometimes, Avast catches things that MSE misses, and vice versa. Having a separate malware scanner by a party that has no connection with your AV is important. Malwarebytes (free) is good for this purpose. SuperAntiSpyware is good, too. There are many, but the main thing is to find one you are comfortable with, and keep it updated and USE it.

 

[Veedaz]

I like the new interface of Avast 5, ALWIL Software made a great job of it without loosing any of Avasts muscle.

 

[Mychael]

I just installed a copy of Kaspersky Internet Security 2010. Was going to keep it for the new machine but wanted to try it out now. Works fine.

 

[celldweller1591]

The only problem with KIS 2010 is that it demands system resources.It gives incredible security but eats up your PC :|.Thats why i didnt bought it .I am a regular user of hypervisors and am a gamer too.So i need my system cycles when i need them

 

[Veedaz]

Hi celldweller1591

So what do you use as protection mate ?