antivirus software

[dombanks]

my antivirus software has apparently run out and Mcaffe want 30quid for some more. is it worth it or are there better ones out there?

i used AVG free before and it seemed ok is it worth paying at all?

[adamnreeves]

I seem to survive using the free edition of avast!

[Tom Frankland (T3OMF)]

Microsoft Essentials

Forgot to say.............  Yes its Free

[DerekJ]

One BIG thumbs up for AVG free combined with ZoneAlarm free firewall.

[PeP]

Probably been said before but Avast is far superior to AVG and still free. I used to use AVG until ver.4 I think it was and it ended up being bloated and slow.

I also have Spybot and MS Essentials running.

http://www.techsupportalert.com/best-free-anti-virus-software.htm

Don't bother running Firewall software if you are behind a router.

[Exsandman]

Avast gets my vote

[Stuart]

Avast, Avira or the Comodo Internet Security suite - all free and all good.  Avast if you just want antivirus I would say.  Keeps itself updated and user friendly.  Trouble is it gives me a hang after boot problem with XP that I can't solve.  So I am using the Comodo suite which is quite new and is antivirus and firewall in one package.  Good reviews so far and easy to use.  Also updates itself (Avira is manual updates)

[boris77]

Probably been said before but Avast is far superior to AVG and still free. I used to use AVG until ver.4 I think it was and it ended up being bloated and slow.

I also have Spybot and MS Essentials running.

http://www.techsupportalert.com/best-free-anti-virus-software.htm

Don't bother running Firewall software if you are behind a router.

Router firewall generally only protects you from inbound traffic. Things like Zonealarm help stop outbound traffic, such as a trojan. Having said that, a lot of windows stuff has odd names so working out what is legit isn't always that easy.

When I do run Windows I use AVG. Just turn the link scanner side of things off as it gets on my wick. I tend to run Linux for most things, built in firewall and not a lot of viruses for it.

[Captain Colonial]

Another vote for Avast, but make sure whatever you download, uninstall MacAfee totally and do a full reboot first before installing the new antivirus.

[Cleggy the Spyder Man]

always use Norton - mega cheap on ebay for activation code

[boris77]

always use Norton - mega cheap on ebay for activation code

Not sure what Norton is like these days, but it used to be a resource hog and slow the PC down considerably.

[fatbaldbloke]

I use Panda Cloud.  Free and been very impressed.

[Andy Banks]

I've always used AVG but a bit disapointed with the latest versions integration with the latest MS Outlook. Also used Avast without problems. Both are vbery good either in free or paid for form.

[MGF255]

always use Norton - mega cheap on ebay for activation code

Not sure what Norton is like these days, but it used to be a resource hog and slow the PC down considerably.

after the 2005 version it`s much better , less of a system hog , the 2011 version is much less intrusive , I use the 2011 internet security suite but wouldnt recommend a switch to the 360 software as that caused me more problems than it cured .  

[Stuart]

Another vote for Avast, but make sure whatever you download, uninstall MacAfee totally and do a full reboot first before installing the new antivirus.

As an aside on freeware, Revo Uninstaller is brilliant for removing all traces of programmes.  Amazing how many registry items some of their uninstallers leave - up to several thousand.  Revo finds these and deletes 'em