New
#41
I have used just Avira for years. Recommended it to everybody and they had a lot less issues then before with various solutions. Free version! The only nagging is a small popup from time to time at the notification area, asking you to upgrade to their paid solution.I did test that for a year, and the firewall addition was a lot better than Windows, but I did comeback to the free version since it offers enough protection for my needs. Funny thing, you can disable with Autoruns the system tray icon and with it, the popups, while still getting all the protection and auto-updates since those are service-based.
Zero issues. No blah-blah, gui-less AV just doing it's job, only comes into view when detecting something. Much like Defender, but with top level protection and without the freaking performance hit while cruising files or playing games. Other solutions offer gaming mode and other gimmicks... Avira is light by default. Just follow the visual setup guide I've made and you're set. Even if I've unchecked Web protection in my guide, does not mean it offers none. It will still trigger blocking on access, without making web browsing slow. Still, if you want more, then use an ad blocker and select malware lists. I recommend uBlock (Origin), available for Chrome, Firefox and Safari.
I have never needed Ad-aware, Malwarebytes or other anti-spyware ever since I've started using Avira, but do have to resort to such products to clean up other people's systems. Once I setup their system as above, they rarely need help again. I just got a call from an old friend asking me the password I've set for Avira, because he needs to add a keylogger to exceptions - and it's been more than a year since I've set it up. That's what I call reliability (sure, it helps if you are not a rager/paranoic to reformat after every small bump).
Avira shares (most)definitions with Panda, Kaspersky, Bitdefender and Trend. No wonder there, are these products offer top protection in every comparative test. But unlike the others in the family, It is the lightest on resources, it's less nagging, requires less fiddling and does not impede gaming. Before you ask, I would go Panda as my second choice.
Ending note: no AV will protect you from yourself. If you do Next Next Next without reading or clearing checkboxes while installing something, If you can't spot a fake Windows message box inside a webpage, If toggling extensions for known file types is not the first thing you do after installing Windows and get your stuff stolen after clicking those steam chat jpg.scr links, maybe it's best if you sign up for supervising and use a limited account as your main.
My vote goes to Avira. I'm currently using that on my desktop - Win 10. Had been using the same on Win 7. Before that have used AVG, Avast. In latest AV scores, I found AVG and Avast a bit lower than Avira. So Avira it is for now.
Comodo Firewall was also great, but took a lot of pain to configure. But it did give you complete control. Did find some compatibility issues of Comodo Firewall with other AV softwares. This was all in pre Win 7 era. Have not used Comodo from Win 7 onwards.
Right now, I have Avira, MBAB and Windows Firewall.
I use Eset Smart Security and Malwarebytes premium
I've used Norton Internet Security for years and will never use anything else. I have never had a virus or malware. It's little enough to pay for security in these times when it seems like everyone is trying to hack, throttle and attack.
100% nothing wrong with it. I've used MSE since it came out on W7 on three computers. Not once have I had an issue in five years. Now on 10 I'm using Defender (which is to be a good upgrade from MSE), and again on the three. I don't need to worry about threats. I do use common sense like scanning web page links, or downloads, with Virustotal.com if I'm not sure BEFORE I go to the page, or do the download, and then again after the download. I also use WOT as a visual tool, but don't trust it as much as Defender or Virustotal.com. Of course YMMV.
There's no need to use the Pro version of Malwarebytes, especially if you have another AV scanner.
The entire point is to pick one active scanner (free or not), then use the free version of Malwarebytes on demand, when you want a "second opinion". There's no need to run two active scanners at once, or you may end up crippling your system's performance.