Avast or AntiVir or AVG or ... ???

[Guest]

[grampa]

Hiya,
I've been using Avira AntiVir for several years now and get bored with it. I know this is not a good reason to change, especially as it has never disappointed me.  However, I started searching the web for alternatives and of course found many. Trying to find more information about effectiveness, bugs, impact on resources etc. I got, of course, very contradictory opinions.
Btw, I already gave CAVS beta (version 2.?) a try but encountered many problems; so I think I'll wait for a stable final version before giving it another try).
Back to business:
I know that it's best to simply try a prog and find out for oneself. No two systems are alike, no two opinions are exactly alike, no two ... are alike.
I'm still interested in what you think as I have a very high opinion of the people here in the Comodo forum, and their opinions.
So please share.

Btw, even if you're welcome to mention EVERY single AV that exists, I'm most interested in free solutions (call me a tight-arse if you like ).
Thanks for sharing your opinions.
Cheers,
grampa.

P.S.: Do you know how I can make sure to uninstall AntiVir completely?

[Rednose]

Lol Grampa, you are bored with your AV 

If you are looking for a freeware AV, you will find some useful information here :

http://wiki.castlecops.com/AntiVirus_Comparison

Greetz, Red.

[grampa]

Hey Red,
good to hear from you again!
I already read about any test / on any site / in any forum I could possible find (including the one you linked - of which I'm really grateful: very useful information indeed).
I'm just interested in the opinions of fellow Comodians and in which AV they use.
Btw, 'bored' is the wrong word, I'm just in the mood for trying new (to me) progs - with CPF v3 beta being released soon.
What's more, I've heard many people say that Avast was the better AV, which raised my interest in other forum-member's opinions.
Cheers,
grampa.
 

[Toggie]

Me again

I have been using Avast Home for years, and it's always served me well. I don't, however, use all the included features, as they tend to slow my poor 56k connection down too much.

I must admit, based on some of the conversations, here and elsewhere, I have to wonder about the need for 'resident' AV.

Attack vectors are changing, as are the malware. It seems to me that a new approach may be necessary to counter these threats.

There was an interesting post at the BBC,   Interesting article from BBC...  that Melih linked to yesterday. The PDF is linked here, it's an interesting read.

Toggie

[grampa]

Hey Toggie,
always glad to hear from you.
Thanks for sharing your very interesting thoughts. I've already read the BBC article, quite interesting (if somewhat worrying ).
As you said:

Attack vectors are changing, as are the malware. It seems to me that a new approach may be necessary to counter these threats.

I think CPF v3 is a step in the right direction. 
Cheers,
grampa.

[Soyabeaner]

With CF 3 you can close this thread .  By that I mean I agree with Toggie. 

Grampa, you sure know how to attract members to reply everytime you start a new topic.  Of the 3, I've only used AVG in the past.  Here's more from my answer:
http://forums.comodo.com/index.php/topic,6122.0.html

[grampa]

2 days to go ... (I hope)
 

P.S. If you want to post in this thread, make haste. It will be closed on monday! 

[Soyabeaner]

With CF 3 you can close this thread .

I only meant that in the metaphoric sense in that an AV isn't needed with CF 3.  You can keep it open if you like.

[LeoniAquila]

Hi grampa! I'm certainly no expert, but here is my view - which is mainly coloured by input and experiences from the last few weeks of trying Comodo products: It's too difficult to say which AV is "the best". Therefore, I've started to think about the whole spectra of protection, and computer usage habits. I think the actual risk of getting infected by malware depends so much on what you click or not click.

Currently I use CAVS 2 beta (because  ), but to be honest, I have a feeling that those three AVs you mention are all better - as long as we don't have HIPS in the picture. Now we do have HIPS, so bad files never have to be executed, and for extra protection there's BOClean.

So my conclusion, I guess, is - consider your computer usage habits, use a FW that de facto is quite leak safe (CPF 2.4 of course) and chose any AV of the four we have discussed in this thread - and don't forget BOClean.

Being careful in usage (and careful in backin up) I will most likely use only CPF 3 (when it is released) + BOClean. But that's just me

By the way, check out this thread where I some AV matters with Soya:
http://forums.comodo.com/index.php/topic,8172.0.html

[grampa]

Hey Soya,

I only meant that in the metaphoric sense in that an AV isn't needed with CF 3.  You can keep it open if you like.

I understood that, hence the 
And I totally agree with you, hence the

2 days to go ... (I hope)
 

Oh, I forgot to say goodbye:
Cheers,
grampa 

[Rednose]

I agree with LeoniAquila

The question should not be what AV is the best. The question should be what "security suite" is the best

But I don't agree with Soya 

In my opinion HIPS is no replacement for Black- ( or White- ) listing. They all should be working together. My ideal AV/AS scanner would work like this :

1. If the item is on the White list it is allowed.
2. If the item is on the Black list it is not allowed.
3. If the item is not on the White- or the Black list use HIPS.

Greetz, Red.

[Soyabeaner]

I'm only pointing out my perspective.  As per the other threads I noted it's based on experience, knowledge, confidence levels, non-IE browser, etc.  After being on a clean system for so many months, there's simply no need for scanners, not even for backup.  I've been through these things for some time so my position is apparently different than the general, common user.

[Rednose]

I respect your opinion Soya, but don't you think that the general common user wants a "security suite" that takes all/most decisions for him/her ? Than a Firewall and HIPS only can't be the answer.

Greetz, Red.

[Rotty]

I like AVG, it seems very stable and since it works I don't bother to change it.

Antivirus products tend to go through varying performance levels throughout their life-time.  Today x product could be the best and tomorrow y could be the best....

Stick with one that you like..

[Soyabeaner]

I respect your opinion Soya, but don't you think that the general common user wants a "security suite" that takes all/most decisions for him/her ? Than a Firewall and HIPS only can't be the answer.

Greetz, Red.

Yup.  That's pretty much the other side of what I tried to explain.  Then it would make me a non-general user.  A FW + HIPS (especially Comodo's v3) is enough for someone who's experienced and careful, but I don't want to continue this particular topic here in the AV thread.

More interesting questions are when was the last time your [anyone reading this] AV detected a true virus and what sites/downloads caused those viruses to infect your pc?  The last time AVG did for me was so many years ago, which was one reason why I didn't need it anymore.  Aside from that, it isn't a bad product.  Although many reports on the web state its detection rate isn't as high as the other (free) AV's like Avast or Antivir for a long time.  Just depends exactly what factors one prioritizes.

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