The best free security software

Why? Is Avira 8 supposed to be either faster or more secure than AVG and is there any documentation/proof?

 

Not yet, as no one has been able to test it yet.

 

Just to let everyone know, CFP is no longer remembering my application permissions that I set. Having to click through the options every time I launch certain apps has become a real pain and I'm tired of it. It looks like I'll have to move on to something else, to bad, because other than that I really liked CFP.

 

Thanks again for your help, Baserk

Oh, scooberdoober, does it help by turning off Defense+?

 

I tried that, and it did help, with less pop-ups, but there still are some.

 

Oh dear... It will be an annoying problem.

I am thinking of turning off Defense+ and using Threatfire instead..

 

That's what I tried too, but still CFP keeps going with the annoying pop-ups.

 

Will try the setup when I get back my laptop.. Thanks for the reminder

 

Are you on WinXP? If so, OA works really well and doesn't have this problem (which I had also with CFP).

 

i wish OA developers release a Vista supported version.

 

I do use XP and I already tried OA and ruled it out because it fails in port stealthing.

 

I am very new to setting up my own laptop as all my computer experience previously is 'someone elses setup'.
my question is should i have some sort of AV before heading on the internet to download an AV?

There is an option to install symantec NIS. i will and then uninstall if necessary, but is it necessary?

 

No, you don't need an AV to download another AV. If you're looking for a free AV get Avira Antivir, if you want to pay, get NOD32. Don't install NIS as you don't need it.

 

Thanks Calvin.
Yeah, I am going with Avira. With everything in this thread and a couple hours, plus the feel of the websit (as kitchy as this is), it feels like the optimal choice for coverage and efficiency.

 

Do you guys know if Spybot's host protection (immunization) is basically the same as spywareblaster's protection. I'd like to get rid of spybot and ad-aware since I don't think they're that effective anymore. I'm thinking of running A2 and superantispyware (based on what I've read here) unless you guys have another suggestion. Spyware Doctor is rated fairly highly, but I had some bad experiences with high memory usage in the past. I wouldn't mind switching to it if that problem is fixed. My current setup:

OA
Spywareblaster
Winpatrol (go doggy go!)
ad-aware
spybot
avira (primary scanner)
a2
avast (secondary scanner and active protection)

 

Yeah... um. Spyware Doctor is an amazing memory hog. Very effective, but takes up 20k to 50k of RAM.

My setup:
Avira
SUPERantispyware
Comodo
Threatfire

You really don't need that many programs.

 

I like to have secondary scanners which is why I use so many programs. Plus, spywareblaster doesn't take up any resources and winpatrol offers some good protection.

Edit: Tried to uninstall ad aware 2007 and it didn't do anything So this is one of those annoying to uninstall programs. Aug, had to do the whole reinstall uninstall bit. Is there any way to turn off the splash screen for superantispyware?

 

Sure I'll give that a go to. I don't mind having extra scanners because it's not like they take up resources outside of scanning.

Fortunately, the splash screen isn't that annoying since it only stays up for a sec. It literally flashes on then disappears. Surprisingly, Superantispyware actually found something. Winpatrol caught it first, but I didn't know it was spyware so I allowed it on accident.

 

I run:

Threatfire
Avira AntiVir Free
Windows Vista Firewall
Windows Defender

I haven't had any trouble at all, and my sys resources are pretty low.

 

I would suggest replacing Windows firewall with one of the better free alternatives, such as ZoneAlarm Free, and ditching Windows defender all together.

 

Since you have Vista home premium though, i suggest you get Comodo firewall pro instead of ZoneAlarm.

 

Windows firewall is enough for an average user. Windows defender is a pretty good real time spyware protection program.

 

I vouch for Comodo as well.

 

The reason I recommended ZA is because I found some big problems with both OA and CFP, and ZA is the least demanding on the user.

 

Some people have problems with CFP on XP but for vista CFP is better than ZA.

 

I still don't agree with you on the OA thing, but I think most of us can agree that windows firewall isn't good enough. OA is really a non-factor here anyway since deltafx1942 has Vista.

deltafx1942: You could always try Zone Alarm and Comodo and see which one you like the most. It's not that big of a deal seeing that both are free.

 

i've used comodo before, but I found that for my needs, vista's built in was good enough. plus, it doesn't take up as much resources as comodo. as for windows defender, again, i'm looking for the least system impact. adaware2007 is pretty heavy, has lots of start up processes, and is difficult to uninstall. for now, i think i'm pretty good. besides, my school network has a firewall that is also pretty effective.

 

I disagree with the idea that windows firewall is good enough. However, I doubt I'll change your mind, so at least check to make sure its inbound protection is enabled.

 

Haha, thanks dude. i'm pretty open minded when it comes to software. i tried all the comodo products last summer, and didn't like them that much, although all the reviews rave about them. i don't know, maybe i'll go back and check them out.

 

Oh my mistake then. It's just usually people that promote windows firewall won't listen to anyone else. Still, I think the whole is windows firewall good hinges on if you believe outbound protection and the other things 3rd party firewalls offer are important. I might make a thread asking what everyone thinks about windows firewall.

If you tried Comodo when they just released 3.0, I'd give it another shot. When it first came out, it was horrible. Now it seems like people have warmed back up to it.

 

yeah, thanks! i'm gonna have to rep you. CFP 3 is way better than 2 and I think I'm gonna keep it.

 

No problem, hope it works out well for you. I think I'm going to go ahead with an analysis of windows firewall after I finish this freaking research paper.

 

Hello,
Thank you very much for this nice thread. I am a newbie with these computer thingy, could you guys please help me out a little? Previously, I didn't have internet at home so for my notebook (WindowXP, SP2) I only equipped it with AVG Free 7.5. But now I got internet at home and so I intended to try out: Comodo, Threatfire, SuperAntispyware. But for the antivirus I am not sure if I should change to either Avira Antivir or Avast (all free versions). It seems that the AV is very good and less a resource hogger than Avast, but Avast got the antirootkits thing. So I am wavering between these two. If you say that Avast takes up more resource, then how much more is more? Is this really a big problem to be of real concern?

Thank you very much.

 

The problem with Comodo is that it's too complicated. I downloaded it last week, and I still don't really understand the program all too much. I don't know if I've made my computer more or less vulnerable by adding it.

 

Avast has a poor antispyware detection rate, so I recommend you not to use it as the primary antispyware scanner.

 

Three quick questions:

Out of Avast!, Avira, and AVG, which one is the best realtime scanner and which one is the best on-demand scanner? Is there a link that compares these free antivirus softwares?

And also, is SuperAntispyware good if I were to install it as my only adware/spyware on-demand scanner? Are there better ones?

I guess I should have a real-time adware/spyware scanner as well. I assume SpywareBlaster is best for this?

What I mean by "best" is the most thorough. I don't care how long it takes as long as it does the best thorough scan. I'd also like the real-time scanners to be as lightweight and least-intrusive as possible.

Thanks a lot.

 

Thank you very much for your help, Baserk, Leon. I will give Avast a try then. About OA, the free version doesn't have autoupdate, right? So how do I do update? Go to their website?
Also, another stupid question. Isn't Threatfire also function somewhat like an antivirus program? Won't it conflict with other AV?

 

Thank you very much for your help, Baserk.

 

I've got ESET Smart Security installed on my laptop. NOD32 is supposed to be the best antivirus but are the antispyware, firewall and antispam included in this package good?

 

Thanks a lot Baserk.

It seems Avira is the most lightweight, (size and RAM) and most in-depth scanner, correct?

 

Is Comodo a good firewall to install to guard against infections from usb drives/CDs/DVDs? Or what would be good for this? I don't currently have an internet connection, so don't have to worry about that, but want to still be safe from infections from removable media.

 

An antivirus would help more. I recommend Avira Antivir.

 

Thank you! Would that stop anything trying to install itself from my usb pen drive? I have downloaded quite a lot of executable files.

 

Executable files shouldn't run unless you run it yourself. I know ZoneAlarm warns you when a program is opening and gives you the option deny or allow it into your trusted zone. I'm not sure if Comodo does the same thing though.

Can someone confirm?

 

Only when they attempt to access the net, like ZA. My problem with CFP is that it started forgetting my choices for some apps. I've never had that problem with ZA.

 

Yeah, I like how ZA asks for confirmation about the trusted zone (your computer) and internet access.

 

So if I install Antivir and ZA/Comodo and I also have Threatfire and would like to put that in in addition to the other two. Is that going to cause a conflict?

Will I have enough cover?

 

you don't need both ZA and comodo. just comodo is more than enough. i have the exact set up you have up there, and my computer runs great and is virus free!

threatfire, avira, and comodo are really some of the best products out there

 

Threatfire is junk according to me.

 

What don't you like about it? Poor performance, detection, resource hog... ? I'm curious since many others seem to swear by it.