Whats the best anti-virus software?

Norton (Symantec) & McAfee are the big ones, Kaspersky is the IT geeks favourite.

ÿAVG is ok for free, but you get what you pay for. Problem with the free ones is that although they offer a reasonable level of protection, they can be slow to react to new vulnerabilities, leaving you open for a longer period than you would with the paid-for products.ÿ

margetti:

Norton (Symantec) & McAfee are the big ones, Kaspersky is the IT geeks favourite.

ÿAVG is ok for free, but you get what you pay for. Problem with the free ones is that although they offer a reasonable level of protection, they can be slow to react to new vulnerabilities, leaving you open for a longer period than you would with the paid-for products.ÿ

Gerrardasnails:

margetti:

Norton (Symantec) & McAfee are the big ones, Kaspersky is the IT geeks favourite.

ÿAVG is ok for free, but you get what you pay for. Problem with the free ones is that although they offer a reasonable level of protection, they can be slow to react to new vulnerabilities, leaving you open for a longer period than you would with the paid-for products.ÿ

I must be a geek!

ÿAnd moi!ÿ

Mac OSX.

But I must be a cheapskate, since I use the free AVG on my laptop to good effect.

I rely on Bitdefender! In some tests, it was the best av software.

If you get the Internet Security package, you also get a bunch of goodies (firewall, game mode, file vault, parental control, anti-phishing, IM ecryption).

The free edition is also a good choice, but you do not get real-time support.

Well I got McAfee free from my bank last year (which expired last friday) and had been impressed by it so bought the McAffee Total Protection 2009 to replace it, and it is/was available at less than half price in the pc world sale atm(£25 for 3 user edition).

Have also used Norton's in the past which i didn't find anywhere near as good as McAfee and a complete PITA to completely remove/uninstall from your pc when done with it.

daveh75:

Well I got McAfee free from my bank last year (which expired last friday) and had been impressed by it so bought the McAffee Total Protection 2009 to replace it, and it is/was available at less than half price in the pc world sale atm(£25 for 3 user edition).

Have also used Norton's in the past which i didn't find anywhere near as good as McAfee and a complete PITA to completely remove/uninstall from your pc when done with it.

Likewise McAfee- doesn't interfere too often and pretty good on the updates. Ditched Norton 2 years ago.Our IT support push Kaspersky as well.

comodo firewall/anti virus/malware.  free as well.  a year or so ago, comodo where beating everyone in security tests - don't know if that's still the case.

I use Bitdefender , have no issues with it , also McAfee is very good, switched purely due to price. Norton is slow and hard to uninstall and I think quite poor value for money.

I use the free version of AntiVir which has a good reputation. Free version does have a pop up when it updates asking you to buy the full product & won't scan emails if you use email client software.

AVG, Comodo and Avast! are other alternatives.

Mac's cost money, Linux is the ultimate free alternative!.

I"m not a geek but I do  have Kapersky, Do find it okay though so far.[had it since oct 2008]

Being a "cheapskate" at the moment with AVG. However laptop is clear of infection and I never run into problems as I update daily and run tests weekly.

I used to use Kaspersky and would thoroughly recommend it if you want the added piece of mind.It doesn't hog resources like Norton and McAfee.

BitDefender!   Which updates every 60 minutes, and includes encryption, system tools, game mode, browser anti-phishing utility etc.

BD's updates are done in the background, and are non-intrusive (you don't have to have a browser open, unlike some others).

Personally, I think both Norton's and McAfee could really do with a make-over, as in my experience they are slow and clunky.

You should also look at (free!) anti-spyware utilities such as SpywareBlaster and Spybot - Search and Destroy.

My AVG install worked fine until it kept falling over and refusing to update even with a new OS install.

I'm currently using free versions of AntiVir for viruses, ZoneAlarm firewall and AdAware 2008. Touch wood, all is working great.

It's probably true that to some extent you get what you pay for. Antivirus software is not a replacement for regular back ups.

I'd avoid mcafee, didnt have a problem until i tried renewing the subscription when i ended up having to reinstall the whole system to stop the mess it caused.

Used Kaspersky with no problems for a while though.