My virus protection trial ends in two days..what should I get?

@JenInTN (27514)

United States

January 13, 2010 4:10am CST

I got a free trial of McAfee on my computer and so far so good I think. The trial ends in a couple of days and I am trying to decide if I should renew it or get something else. There are some computer programmers at work that suggest a protection called Kapersky and then there are some that say take free protection like AVG or Avast. There is another I know of called Avira too. The company I get my internet through has a free virus protection option too. What are you using and what do you think works the best?

9 people like this

43 responses

@zed_k4 (17589)

• Singapore

14 Jan 10

I recommend AVG. It has been with me for quite awhile and I think it works wonders...not that bad in my opinion.

2 people like this

virus protection

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@zed_k4 (17589)

• Singapore

14 Jan 10

LOL...thanks Jenin. you are cute with that description of yours. That kind of avatar will make me smile definitely. You must be really freezing over there.. do take some hot cocoa to warm off yeah. So have you decided on an anti-virus then?

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@zed_k4 (17589)

• Singapore

14 Jan 10

And you are definitely welcome..

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@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

14 Jan 10

Hi zed! Nice avatar! I wish we needed shades here. I need to change mine to a pic of me with earmuffs and chattering teeth..lol. I am thinking that there are a lot of people out there that use AVG and for good reason. Thanks for the suggestion and I hope you have been well. Take care.

2 people like this

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@jwfarrimond (4473)

•

13 Jan 10

I have been using Avast free version for many years now without trouble. It updates itself every day, and if you are using the free version there is no charge for that. There are several other free anti - virus programs available and you have mentioned the main ones already. I have only had experience with Avast, so I can't comment on them. I do however, find it necessary to supplement the virus scan with a another program to scan for spyware. I've used various programs for that, Yahoo's Anti - spy, Windows Defender, and Malwarebytes anti malware program. These are all either free of have free versions. I've found Malwarebytes to be particularly useful.

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@jwfarrimond (4473)

•

13 Jan 10

The thing is, there is no single program that will eliminate every type of virus, adware or trojan in one sweep. Typically a virus will install itself into several different locations and if a virus scanner finds only one or two of these, then the remainder will reinsall themselves into those deleted locations. Sometimes, even if the scanner finds and deletes ALL active copies of the virus, you'll find that it will still be able to regenenerate an reistall itself from a data "template" that the virus scanner cannot find. The only way to stop that is to reboot immediatly following the scan and sometimes it is necesssary to do this several times after scannng with different programs because as I said above, despite what the people who make these programs say, there is no single program that is effective at finding and removing every single virus.

2 people like this

@lordwarwizard (35747)

• Singapore

13 Jan 10

Yea avast was decent when I tested it too. I actually conducted an experiment once by letting them test know viruses. I found AVG the best in the lot for the free ones so I went with it.

1 person likes this

@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

13 Jan 10

i have not used Avast before but it is one that I have heard serves it's purpose well. I had no idea that I would need a seperate spyware program though. I thought that virus protection had that included. thanks again

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@derek_a (10873)

•

14 Jan 10

Ihave used McAfee for several years now and I have found it to be the best anti-virus programs, often updating several times a day to keep my machine safe. I have had other virus protection, but that program allowed a virus to wipe my hard drive. So it is McAfee for me every time - well worth the small payment each year for peace of mind.

- Derek

2 people like this

@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

14 Jan 10

McAfee has yet to find any threats on my pc which kind of makes me nervous..lol..In a perfect world that is the way it would be but as much as I surf and such, it seems unrealistic that there have been no threats. I'm just beign paranoid I guess. Your right that a few dollars a year is worth the peace of mind for sure. Thanks for responding.

@Citizen_Stuart (2016)

•

13 Jan 10

Personally, I use the free edition of AVG. It's as good as any other virus detector/killer that I know of, and you don't have to pay anything. You can set it to scan your computer on a regular basis and download updates. It's very easy to use and I've never had a problem with a virus since I've been using it, which has been several years now.

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@Citizen_Stuart (2016)

•

14 Jan 10

Yes, I just checked and it's version 9.0 that I'm using at the moment.

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@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

14 Jan 10

I thought it was 9 now. Thanks for checking for me. Take care.

@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

14 Jan 10

Thanks for the experienced response. It means a lot that it has served you well for so long. It was great for me when I had it on my other computer. I think that one was the 8.5 version. Isn't there a 9 version now?

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andryan7legends

@andryan7legends (1297)

• Indonesia

14 Jan 10

Just use the free protection if you don't have money. I use AVG free. It's great and it's light. I love it very much!

2 people like this

@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

14 Jan 10

Avg is a great free program for sure. It was a bit large for the last laptop I had but I bet my new one can support it though..lol..I had a very old operating system on my last laptop. Take care.

• United States

14 Jan 10

I do a lot of virus removal for customers, and I always suggest AVG. However to be honest I have not tried Kapersky or Avast. I do know that AVG has caught near 95% of every virus I have had to deal with. An SuperAntiSpyware is a good combination to add to it. Good luck in any dissension you make.

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@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

14 Jan 10

Ahhh,,,so it is your profession to help customers with computer maintaince issues. It's great to get your input on this. I have heard that AVG is very trusted among most techs. I must ask you though..what is exactly the difference in AVG's free and paid version? I do understand there is a version for businesses but there is also a paid version for home use. Thanks in advance for your response and welcome to myLot

@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

15 Jan 10

That's ok..I don't know anyone that has upgraded to pay version either.

• United States

14 Jan 10

The diffrences between AVG FREE, Home and Enterprise are located... http://free.avg.com/us-en/download-avg-anti-virus-free Basicly if you get the paid versions you get alot more protection. I do not know anyone that uses the paid versions of AVG. So sorry but I cannot be of much more help on that than this.

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@Allie_xoxo (1063)

• Canada

13 Jan 10

Hey Jen, There's no need to pay for another subscription, it's nothing but a money grab when there are ones that are just as good that work for free. Check out AVG. Good luck!

2 people like this

virus protection

@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

14 Jan 10

I am thinking that alot of software that the companies claim you "need" is a money racket. Everyone wants to protect their investment in a computer so here we go paying a fortune for virus software. I have always herad that AVG was really good. It was good for me when I used it before too. Thanks for the input.

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@lxffly621 (10)

•

14 Jan 10

You can change it for a new virus protection trial,as like as kingsoft antivirus.It's free too.

2 people like this

@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

14 Jan 10

Thanks for the advice but I was kind of looking for something to make permanant. I don't like having to keep up with how much time I have. I'm kind of busy and I'm afraid I'll forget. Take care and welcome to myLot.

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FRANCISCOANDLEE

@FRANCISCOANDLEE (750)

• United States

13 Jan 10

Hi JenInTn, Remove the McAfee and install AVG and or AVAST. They are both free and run great. They even give the top rated free spyware sites that you can visit and download. I use to use McAfee and Nortons paid the annual fees to renew and still had issues at times . That is until I talked to our IT tech at work about the situation and he advised me to remove all software I currently had and install the avast. Wow what a difference it has made. Give it a try its user friendly you can do quick scans when ever you want and you can do deep scans when your sleeping best part is it really is free and gives a piece of mind.

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@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

14 Jan 10

Sounds great! I was turned on to AVG by someone at work a couple of years ago but then he turned around and said..well...it's not as reliable as I thought. I never had problems with it on my old computer though. It just made me second guess it because he said that. I have heard of Avast but have never dealt with it before. I'll check it out..Thanks.

@goodday007 (316)

• India

14 Jan 10

If u want the best protection ......... go for Kaspersky blindly........... however its a bit costly.............. however u can get free keys through torrent......... though that will be piracy......... u can get free anti virus through AVG or Avast........ but they are not full poof............ i m using Nod32 ............. its also good.................. u can get free keys of Nod32 in nod321.com site............. hope this information solves your antivirus problem.............

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@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

14 Jan 10

Thanks for the input. I certainly don't want to chance any piracy but I like the idea of the free programs you mentioned. Take care.

@getbiswa2000 (5544)

• India

14 Jan 10

Hello, Even if all ISP s claim to have some kinda protection, I don't think they are of any use. As a matter of fact you can use any free antivirus in your system. All of them basically work on the same principle. The protection entirely depends upon your usage habits and the frequency with which your antivirus gets updated. I would recommend Avast Home Edition for ordinary users. But if you are a high end user, you should buy a professional edition of Norton Internet Security or Kaspersky. A regularly updated virus database,where all the virus signatures are kept, is the most important thing. Take care... God bless you

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@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

14 Jan 10

I think your right about that. I am not a high end user so to speak but I am certainly surfing and on the computer a lot. I liked my AVG when I had it before but I like the idea of my internet provider providing protection too. Thanks for the advice and take care.

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Peaches and Herbs

@lipstick2009 (1236)

• Philippines

14 Jan 10

Avast is good.You can download a trial version that will work for 60days.What's good about avast is u can download it again when it expires.So it will be like downloading a trial version every two months.Unless u want to buy a cd copy of it where u can have it more longer,with no expiration. I had problems with AVG before although i been using it for years already.I don't know if they fixed a bug already. But i'm satisfied with Avast right now.Of course u still need a spyware scanner aside from avast to be sure that your computer will be safe.

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@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

14 Jan 10

I have heard that there were some that have had problems with AGV. I used it before and it was fine for me but a lot bigger file than Avira. I haven't used Avast yet but there is a lot of good things said about it here. Thanks for the advice.

1 person likes this

• Romania

13 Jan 10

I use ESET Nod32 Antivirus. In my opinion this is one of the best Antivirus Softwares. It detects even the smallest threats and you can also set the protection from low to high or you can put also exceptions.

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@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

14 Jan 10

Sounds like a very precise type of protection. I think we can all use something like that in this day and time. Thanks for responding and welcome to myLot!

• India

13 Jan 10

As for as home PC is concerned, in my opinion it is Avira 9 series that can be good for you. It provides safety against viruses as well the Trojans and worms from Internet.

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@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

14 Jan 10

Is the Avira 9 the pay version or the free? I can't remember what version I had of it before. It was the free one before though. I did notice that there was a pay version. There are a lot of people that day that Avira is the best. Thanks for the input an welcome to myLot.

@lordwarwizard (35747)

• Singapore

13 Jan 10

Hi Jen, If you want something free and decently good, I would suggest the free version of AVG. It had served me well for many years.

Here's the link: http://free.avg.com/

2 people like this

@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

14 Jan 10

Thanks for the link. I may be needing that. I have always heard that AVG is the best free online virus protection out there.

1 person likes this

@jpso138 (7851)

• Philippines

13 Jan 10

I am using avira and I find it really great. I have been using it for quite a time already. I have used AVG before but same like you, a friend of mine who I consider good on those aspects told me that AVG is not that great. He told me to switch to Avira. I have used it for a year already and I find it very light yet very effective.

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@jpso138 (7851)

• Philippines

21 Jan 10

Yes, I do find avira great. This is the reason why after discovering Avira, I have not shifted to any other anti virus programs. I find it effective and good. Well, I know there is no such thing as a perfect anti-virus but the point is we have to insure that we update our anti-virus to be effective as much as possible.

@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

21 Jan 10

@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

13 Jan 10

I have found that Avira doe take a lot less space up than AGV. I had Avira on a laptop a year or so ago and it seemed to do good. Thanks for the input.

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@AndrewFreyne (6281)

• United Kingdom

13 Jan 10

Hi Jen, I personally would go for Norton 360! This is what I presently use and it does absolutely everything, I've had no problems with it. I scan my system once per week and everything is fine. Good luck. Andrew

2 people like this

@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

14 Jan 10

Hi Andrew! Thanks for sharing. I would love to have protection that I could trust to run once a week versus once a day. I'll check in to that.

@magtibaygom (4858)

• Philippines

13 Jan 10

I'm using Symantec Endpoint Protection, full version. Symantec is one of the leading online security company that is being used by Yahoo (Norton). The Symantec Endpoint Protection is the one I am proud to recommend to you, because, not only it is good as anti-virus, it is also an excellent anti-spyware program. That's one of the most important thing online, the anti-spyware part, since you are fond of surfing numerous websites.

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symantec endpoint protection better

@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

14 Jan 10

I saw that software at Office Max and wondered if it was any good. I'm glad that you have found one that you are so comfortable with. I'll check into that one for sure. Thanks for the response.

1 person likes this

@nocturn98 (956)

• Venezuela

13 Jan 10

I use ESET Smart Security on my PC and laptop because it doesn't hog resources as much as the other antivirus. It is easy to configure and it silently updates itself every once in a while.

1 person likes this

@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

13 Jan 10

Is that an online download? Is there a fee involved? That is a problem I ran into in the past with a huge amount of resources used with virus protection. The one that my internet provider gives is huge. I really appreciate your response.

@nocturn98 (956)

• Venezuela

13 Jan 10

Well it's free to try. Just check out their site on http://www.eset.com/smartsecurity It downloads fast and trial lasts for 30 days.

@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

13 Jan 10

Thanks for the link! I'll check it out.

• Philippines

13 Jan 10

hi there, i'm using a kaspersky antivirus 2010, a trial version. i cant afford to buy a working one so i modify it and change it to beta..it expires after 30 days..the good thing is, you just have to modify it again then another 30 days life will be added.. i also have this avira, which i bought from my friend in the neighboorhood, i just copied his anti virus and use it on my pc, but still, i paid him...lol ^^ for any question, just ask, if i know an answer, i'll answer..i' new here so i don't know where people cold send me an email or just pm's in this site...

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anti virus free or minimum

@JenInTN (27514)

• United States

14 Jan 10

Welcome...you have to request friends so that they can PM you. Once you have them as friends..you can send and receive pms anytime you want. You can also leave comments on your friends pictures and profile pages once you've accepted of been accepted as a friend. Thanks for extending the offer to help me out and for your virus protection secret

I have heard that Kaspersky is very good protection. I'll have to research it. Thanks again.