Need Spyware Suggestions

[Condor]

I've been runing Trend anti-virus for over 15 years and have been very happy with the results, but..... this year after I renewed on my machine and tried to install it on the family laptop (they allow 3 installs) I have run into a ton of user unfriendly snags and wasted more time that I want to admit.. I've had it!! So toss some suggestions at me... The laptop came with Nortons but I erased it per trend requirements before trying to install trend. Now I wish I hadn't, but that's life in the fast lane.... Is anyone just using MS Security Essentials??

[SilvrT]

Spybot S&D and Avast... both are free

[Taking it EZ]

Been using MS Security Essentials about 2 yrs now, never had a problem. I have it on my wife's laptop and she is the type that signs up for every internet offer she sees and clicks on every link she can find. No problem so far. Not 100% sure but I believe I heard that it was developed in collaboration with Norton

[XV1100SE]

2nd on Microsoft Security Essentials. Run it on all my machines. Doesn't slow them down like other virus s/w and never had any issues.

[KIC]

Spybot is muey bueno. It seems to always find stuff other programs don't .

[albyzee]

Microsoft Security essentials for a virus scan and AD-Aware for scanning for adware. Then spybot-search and destroy also. They are all free.

[GAWildKat]

I use Avast, spybot, malawarebytes, ccleaner, and comodo firewall on my computer. Comodo is the only one of the bunch that will nag you about every link or page you go to, so install at your own risk. I use it because I go to sites that tend to download things to one's computer w/o permission and feel safer knowing what connections I have incoming.

[tibadoe]

Microsoft Security Essentials - no problems.

[dacheedah]

Been running microsoft for some time, not a problem

[Kirby]

Linux Mint 12

[jonesy]

malwarebytes, is my choice. free, just decline using the trial verision.

[Mike G in SC]

I normally keep paid suites on my PC's and supplement with some adware packs.

I am finally dumping Norton Internet Security and going to Kaspersky Pure One.

Norton is a major resource hog on older machines, seems to think the purpose of the box is to support Norton it's self.

 

My two weeks with Kaspersky on my old office box has been great. Hardly notice it.

(Amazon 3 pk $33 or off eBay for $23.)

[Primebeef]

The laptop came with Nortons but I erased it per trend requirements before trying to install trend. ?

 

You didn't say how you "removed" Norton's.......But if you didn't use the "Norton Removal Tool" program, there is still some Norton's stuff on the PC that WILL cause you problems. I'd suggest running the program to clean your PC of ALL Norton's stuff, then proceed with installing the other Anti-Virus program you have......

[bongobobny]

I've been using Trend for several years now with no problems and am very happy with it as opposed to McAffee, but only depend on it for anti virus. For spyware I use Spybot and Lava.

 

Wizard765 my computer Guru highly recommends the Microsoft Essentials as it is free and as mentioned does not slow the computer down as some security software tends to...

[Guest Slab_Ryder]

McAfee works great for me. I was recently attacked and McAfee sorted the issue. Where it was sent from tried to cover their tracks, but we're not successful.

[Chinto]

I have been using Microsoft Security Essentials on all my computer for the past several years. It is fast effective and the really cool part it is free.

[silent67]

Linux Mint 12

 

I tried Mint 12 and had printer problems, same with latest Kubuntu distro so I am sticking with Mint 11 for now until someone else solves the driver problem. I did not want to fool with figuring it out this time.

[GAWildKat]

Here's the main reason I won't ever use McAfee ever again. In the 90's it became the goto resource for virus removal. As a computer lab employee at my college I was tasked to not only maintain the lab computers but the professors and other staff computers on campus. (Now y'all know why I'm an IT geek lol) In all, over 2000 computers give or take. If an employee called the lab saying their computer acted funny I or one of the other student employees dropped everything and would race over with a disk and virus scan their computer. Norton didn't have the ability to put a portable copy on disk so we used McAfee. All well and good during my school years. However in the late 90's or early 2000's McAfee started reporting major virus scares that Norton wouldn't know about. A lot of people bought into the idea that McAfee was doing such a great job at releasing these reports. These same people raced out in fear to buy the latest McAfee and kept buying into it for a few years. At some point internal company memos were leaked to the press that showed these "virus scares" were just hype designed to increase sales. The "viruses" were just code that McAfee installed on people's computers to lull people into thinking that the program was working. Honestly, I'm amazed McAfee is still in business after that.

 

Some of y'all mentioned how Norton is a resource hog and difficult to uninstall cleanly. That's why I won't use it either. To each their own.

 

If I didn't play windows based games I'd scrap Windows and migrate to linux in a heartbeat.

[SilvrT]

Here's the main reason I won't ever use McAfee ever again. In the 90's it became the goto resource for virus removal. As a computer lab employee at my college I was tasked to not only maintain the lab computers but the professors and other staff computers on campus. (Now y'all know why I'm an IT geek lol) In all, over 2000 computers give or take. If an employee called the lab saying their computer acted funny I or one of the other student employees dropped everything and would race over with a disk and virus scan their computer. Norton didn't have the ability to put a portable copy on disk so we used McAfee. All well and good during my school years. However in the late 90's or early 2000's McAfee started reporting major virus scares that Norton wouldn't know about. A lot of people bought into the idea that McAfee was doing such a great job at releasing these reports. These same people raced out in fear to buy the latest McAfee and kept buying into it for a few years. At some point internal company memos were leaked to the press that showed these "virus scares" were just hype designed to increase sales. The "viruses" were just code that McAfee installed on people's computers to lull people into thinking that the program was working. Honestly, I'm amazed McAfee is still in business after that.

 

Some of y'all mentioned how Norton is a resource hog and difficult to uninstall cleanly. That's why I won't use it either. To each their own.

 

If I didn't play windows based games I'd scrap Windows and migrate to linux in a heartbeat.

 

I been in IT since 1987 and it never fails to amaze me how much there is to know and this is something I hadn't heard about before.... very interesting and believable and if it's acutally true, it is surprising that they are still in business.

 

As for Norton and McAfee ... there was a time when they were "the ones" but once the virus creator's figured out how to disable them, that was when I dumped them both. Norton especially was very susceptible and once hacked, it was a real PITA to fix.

 

I'd also be running Linux if I didn't have to run Windows to be able to do my work. In fact, I do have a Linux server as part of my server rack for a specific purpose (runs Apache & MySQL)

[Bvinson]

I have pretty much tried them all. Seems to me that Kaspersky is a little friendlier with the system resources. I have been using it for 3 years now.

[friesman]

I will never use Norton as it is a performance hog and installs a bunch of stuff with it that you dont want, unless you carefully watch your install and deselect what isnt needed.

Mcafee will never grace one of my machines ever again either as we used them with good results for years with the schools. But they kept raising the price up and up every year until our price was over 75k a year. So we changed to Sophos with similar features for less than 50% of the cost. Then Mcafee threatened to sue us if anyof our computers tried to connect with their server for updates after the chageover date two days later. In the original price negotiations McAfee kept dragging their feet as we were trying to get prices out of them so we didnt have any time at all to get all 6000 desktops changed over, but, we made it. I felt McAfee was being totally unreasonable by making that statement.

BTW Sophos was ended up being much easier to use and very current with updates every 10 minutes. Excellent product. I liked it much better than the MS Forefront product we use now, that decision was made strictly on price as the provincial govt signed an agreement where any MS product as free for education. its clunky to administer and has missed a couple of nasty viruses.

 

Brian

[Kirby]

I tried Mint 12 and had printer problems, same with latest Kubuntu distro so I am sticking with Mint 11 for now until someone else solves the driver problem. I did not want to fool with figuring it out this time.

 

I tried Ubuntu and Freespire. Both were a pita. I'm now using the 64 bit version Of Linux Mint 12 on an AMD processor with a Gigabit mobo and have had nothing but good results. Didn't even need to run the disc that came with my printer, it just works! I'll only use a MS OS now if it comes on the machine, once it starts to give me problems..., format and install linux.

[GAWildKat]

Mint is based on ubuntu, and ubuntu is the 1st linux distribution that was user friendly to most people. To stay ahead of the curve and be innovative ubuntu made alot of changes over the years that have left people frustrated and going to things like Mint.

[Guest tx2sturgis]

One word:

 

Mac.

 

 

 

 

 

Hey Kat, why not run a Mac with a windows virtual machine or dual boot. Windows when gaming, Mac when surfing and all the other stuff. Tastes great, less filling!

 

[GAWildKat]

I can build my own pcs and love doing it. Never got to go to Apple school to be trained on apple hardware sadly, so I use what I like and know best.