Which Internet Security Suite is the best?

I ordered a series F 2290x and it will be shipping shortly. I got it with 30 days free of Norton. My question is is Norton a good program to use, or is there a better one? I was thinking of getting McAfee Total Protection, as they have a discount on it right now. For email I use gmail for all of my addresses, so I don't need the program to work with a stand alone email program. I do surf the web a lot and download a lot, so i will need a strong program to work with that.

Should I stay with Norton or go with McAfee or is there another program suite out there that is better.

 

use microsoft security essentials

 

ESET Smart Security

 

Norton is usually one of the top-rated comprehensive security suites out there in terms of detection accuracy and ease of use (Check published reviews such as CNET, Consumer Reports, or PCWorld). You really can't go wrong with any mainstream Windows security program though, since almost all of them are pretty good at detecting harmful malware/trojans/keyloggers etc. Even so, they all will still identify some safe programs as false positives and let some malicious software infect your PC. Remember, there's no substitute for vigilance!

The price you'll pay for security software is definitely worth the benefits, but if you're pinching pennies, microsoft security essentials is a solid option too. Whatever you choose, you can also supplement your PC's security with browser add-ons and things like that. Firefox's NoScript is a particular favorite of mine.

I hope this helps.

 

eh go with MSE (Microsoft Security Essentials - free) for day to day antivirus + Malwarebytes (Free edition) for scanning. That's all you'll ever need.

 

+1 for Microsoft Security Essentials in the free category
and + 2 for ESET Smart Security in the licensed category

 

I concur. MSE is the solution that bogs down the machine the least, followed by ESET, which is more comprehensive. All other AV/FW solutions are heavier, and some of them can really bring a machine to a crawl.

Although I'd recommend ESET Nod32 Antivirus combined with Windows Firewall, and not the full ESET Smart Security - the reason is that Smart Security is slower, and more often give false positives (blocking traffic that should have gone through). You still get scanning of HTTP network traffic with the AV-only software.
ESET Nod32 is also one of the few solutions that work well within a VM. Two of the more popular AV/FW apps will blue screen VMs, or slow it down until it's unusable.

 

Norton 2011, nothing else comes close. Plus in the UK you can get it for about £25 for a years subscription!

 

Not too fond of Norton.. back in the day (1998 - 1999) Norton utils was the dogs dangalies.. but its been bloated too much since then.

 

There is a list of "best" security software from someplace called Notebook Review. I don't know if they're considered reliable. Based on their forums, they seem to include some pretty dodgy people.

Best Internet Security Suites 2011 Buyers Guide

ESET is marked down because they don't include parental controls.

 

LOL Louche.

If I had to choose between Norton and MacAfee, I'd go for Norton every time. Microsoft Security Essentials is free, but uses the Windows Firewall - the configuration of which is a right PITA.

Note: Microsoft Security Essentials is incompatible with Windows 8. Do not install MSE on Windows 8 or you'll have problems, like file corruption. Use the built-in Windows Defender instead.