Anti-virus/malware/spyware.

[ManBeast]

Just wanted to post up with the best combination I've found so far for windows computers. There is a truly nasty virus going around calling itself "Windows 7 AntiSpyware 2012" (or something similar) and just wanted to point people to a solid combination for prevention/cleanup.

Microsoft Security Essentials:
Microsoft Security Essentials - Free Antivirus for Windows

SuperAntiSpyware (free edition):
SUPERAntiSpyware.com | Remove Malware | Remove Spyware - AntiMalware, AntiSpyware, AntiAdware!

Spybot Search and Destroy:
The home of Spybot-S&D!

I use these three primarily and have the following for tough situations:

Bazooka:
Bazooka™ Adware and Spyware Scanner - Free spyware scanner

Trying out their latest and greatest - FreeFixer:
FreeFixer - a general purpose spyware removal tool

Both of these are much more involved and can give "false positives" so they are NOT (I repeat, NOT) for someone who doesn't understand things like registry editing.

The final tool that I have only had a couple days but already love is Sandboxie:
Sandboxie - Sandbox software for application isolation and secure Web browsing

I plan on actually paying for and registering this since it is a life-long license for any computer that I own.

ManBeast

 

[TMCCLUNG]

I have been using Microsoft Security Essentials for at least a year with no issues so far. Free and works well. If for some reason you want to uninstall it you can. I tried to remove AVG from my mom's computer the other day. No luck. It seems to be rooted very deep.

 

[ManBeast]

This should help with getting it completely off your mom's computer:
http://www.mytechguide.org/7871/how-to-completely-remove-avg-antivirus/

ManBeast

 

[Delta Force]

The best solution is to switch to a mac and all your virus problems are gone... I could never understand why ppl download so much junk?

I've not used any of those apps in years and I've never got any virus.. they cause your pc to run hell of slow!

Anyhow, some ppl never learn about downloading crap!

 

[ManBeast]

None of these apps slow my computer down by any amount I can notice, even when gaming. Sandboxie adds a little time when I want to "dump" the sandbox, but otherwise no isses whatsoever.

I don't run a Mac because I don't like them. I don't like the interface, and I don't like how all this "i" crap really works. I wonder when Apple will get hit with the same kind of lawsuit that MS got hit with for "being too big"...

And remember, as the mac user base grows, the "lucrativity" of writing a virus to exploit macs goes up and up and up. It isn't impossible to do, it just isn't nearly as "profitable"... for now.

As a final note, this thread wasn't meant to become a fanboy fight between mac/pc/linux/etc. so lets not let it degrade into such.

ManBeast

 

[punjabimunde]

Get bit defender from torrentz...it's free

 

[ManBeast]

I'm not a fan of pirating protection software, keeping an up-to-date detection database takes time and effort.

ManBeast

 

[punjabimunde]

It's legit...I have it for last 5yrs...no problem and no viruses at all...

 

[ManBeast]

Their website says its a subscription or one-time fee. All the products I listed are free to use forever (although sandboxie will nag after 30 days to register, it is a lifetime registration).

ManBeast

 

[Delta Force]

Fair enough.. my other point was why ppl bother to download crap that they dont need? I would add that the apps you mention fall into that category... I dont use any of them nor do I need them.. your point to start this thread is well taken but yes they do slow down your pc while booting or simply running those disk scans in the background

I do think you see less virus on mac bc their users are smarter.. j/k

 

[ManBeast]

Eh, i've ran a benchmark on my system pre-installing, and post-installing, and yes, there is a difference, but it isn't noticable to me at all in reality. I don't let them do any full scans without me initiating them.

I'm *not* disagreeing with the fact that they do slow my system down, but again, the amount is not noticeable to me at all while I'm using it.

To address your point about downloading things, many of the more "modern" viruses come through advertisements and such, things that you don't even have a chance to allow/disallow (unless you really want to get anal about your browsing experience). So having these protections makes sense. And anyone who downloads something that isn't verified safe/secure, and/or scans it on their own, is just asking for trouble.

ManBeast

 

[tilldeath]

comodo+malwarebytes is all I run on all my pc's and never had an issue at all. And it's free

PS: What you running?

 

[ManBeast]

Listed at the top.

 

[tilldeath]

Listed at the top.

no I meant whats in you PC.

 

[ManBeast]

ahhhh
Intel core i7 1.7ghz, nvidia geforce gtx 440M 1.5gigs, 8gigs ram, 1TB 7200RPM hard drive.

ManBeast

 

[Eberly]

Just wanted to post up with the best combination I've found so far for windows computers. There is a truly nasty virus going around calling itself "Windows 7 AntiSpyware 2012" (or something similar) and just wanted to point people to a solid combination for prevention/cleanup.

Microsoft Security Essentials:
Microsoft Security Essentials - Free Antivirus for Windows

SuperAntiSpyware (free edition):
SUPERAntiSpyware.com | Remove Malware | Remove Spyware - AntiMalware, AntiSpyware, AntiAdware!

Spybot Search and Destroy:
The home of Spybot-S&D!

I use these three primarily and have the following for tough situations:

Bazooka:
Bazooka™ Adware and Spyware Scanner - Free spyware scanner

Trying out their latest and greatest - FreeFixer:
FreeFixer - a general purpose spyware removal tool

Both of these are much more involved and can give "false positives" so they are NOT (I repeat, NOT) for someone who doesn't understand things like registry editing.

The final tool that I have only had a couple days but already love is Sandboxie:
Sandboxie - Sandbox software for application isolation and secure Web browsing

I plan on actually paying for and registering this since it is a life-long license for any computer that I own.

ManBeast

Great contributions!

 

[Eberly]

I have been using Microsoft Security Essentials for at least a year with no issues so far. Free and works well. If for some reason you want to uninstall it you can. I tried to remove AVG from my mom's computer the other day. No luck. It seems to be rooted very deep.

I havent tried that. Are they pretty comfortable?

 

[T-AD]

I take a different approach with all of my computers. They're all connected to the internet all the time, firewalls turned off (or atleast down to bare bones), and I run absolutely NO anti-anything software. I'm WIDE open. How many problems have I ever had? Zero. Nill. None. Nada. Zilch.

Sometimes I think the more protected your computer is, the more apt you are to pick up something. It's like viruses and such seek out systems that have specific programs just to hack through them. So, I run nothing, and I have never had any problems whatsoever.

 

[tattoopierced1]

malwarebytes is the shiznit!

 

[TMCCLUNG]

I havent tried that. Are they pretty comfortable?

I'm not sure what you mean by comfortable.

 

[southpaw23]

malwarebytes is the shiznit!

I second this. Malwarebytes removes EVERYTHING and ANYTHING. I normall run Spyboy rigth after the make sure if picked up everything.

 

[DAdams91982]

Fair enough.. my other point was why ppl bother to download crap that they dont need? I would add that the apps you mention fall into that category... I dont use any of them nor do I need them.. your point to start this thread is well taken but yes they do slow down your pc while booting or simply running those disk scans in the background

I do think you see less virus on mac bc their users are smarter.. j/k

This is completely changing now. Mac viruses are on the rise fastest now... only reason they weren't growing was the market share wasn't enough to warrant writing malware, really still isn't, but cyber crimanals are ready to take a bite of the apple.

Ironically the last 5 years in multiple hacker conventions, Mac was always first to be hacked... all within 30 seconds.