<p>S received a new laptop for a grad gift. The pre-loads are very basic and I’m not seeing any security software. There is a free trial Norton, but I’m not a Norton fan - seems I have read many anti-Norton comments on the web. </p>
<p>I was planning to have him download AVG and Malwarebytes - I have used these with success it seems on our home computer. Does that cover the protection or are there other programs we should consider?</p>
<p>[Chart</a> - Top Antivirus Software - PCWorld](<a href=“http://www.pcworld.com/article/124475/top_antivirus_software.html]Chart”>http://www.pcworld.com/article/124475/top_antivirus_software.html)</p>
<p>Here’s a quick and dirty PC World article ranking antivirus software. I personally use AVG (licensed version) and Malwarebytes as an alternate. I’ve been pretty lucky in avoiding a virus shutdown. </p>
<p>I have had my email account hacked once though–where someone used my email account to send an advertisement to everyone in my address book. Sometimes hackers will hack into places where you shop online. You give the retailer an email address and you choose a password for that retail account. I admit to being lax in using the same password for my email account and the retail account. I have been more careful about passwords and change the important ones more frequently.</p>
<p>H has a separate email address to give to retailers.</p>
<p>Go onto his college’s website and see if the school has a free antivirus download.</p>
<p>I couldn’t find it, but it’s on my list of questions to ask at orientation next weekend. :)</p>
<p>I use Microsoft Security Essentials wherever possible (it isn’t supported on Windows XP x64 edition). I removed my Avast installations and installed Security Essentials. Security Essentials combines antivirus and antispyware into one product and is supposed to use less CPU resources than other solutions.</p>
<p>My home desktop runs XP x64 so I can’t use Security Essentials but I can use the antispyware piece (Windows Defender). I use Avast for antivirus. Also recommended: Ad Aware and MalWareBytes to run scans from time to time. I think that you need multiple products today and scans from time to time to make sure that something didn’t slip through.</p>
<p>One of my friends just told me that his computer is currently unusable. The machine is ten years old and I suggested that he replace it. I think that he’s just going to use another machine that he has for now. He wanted some help in getting his files off of the machine so I’m going to use one of my external disk enclosures for his disks and hook them up to my Mac to get the files off.</p>
<p>My next desktop will be a Mac. I’m getting tired of the malware problems, and the incessant updates that even plague Windows 7.</p>
<p>Don’t use either of those. They don’t do very well. Go for kapersky.</p>
<p>Does your internet provider offer it? We have Norton for free from our cable company which we have installed on five different computer plus both my boys can get antivirus software (not sure which one) at no charge from their schools.</p>
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That list is from 2006! That is an eternity in computer years.</p>
<p>The newest versions of Norton are greatly improved - much more stable, <em>much</em> faster with a lower impact on your system.</p>
<p>I tried Norton a while ago - corporate version. I installed it and it hosed my system. Spent two hours trying to figure out how to remove it (deinstallation left pieces behind). Then I tried the installation again. Did the same thing. Spent an hour removing it. A few other people in the office had the same problem. IT support had to come in to fix the systems.</p>
<p>I just installed Security Essentials instead and have had zero problems. Corporate requirements are Norton but I use my own equipment in the office so I can use anything that I want to.</p>
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<p>The orientation people might not know - although that sounds like a good question that lots of other parents might not have thought to ask. Unless it’s answered by someone from Information Services, follow up with them. This stuff changes so quickly that I wouldn’t expect the general campus administration to know the answer.</p>
<p>[Mount</a> Union College Student Support](<a href=“http://it.muc.edu/documents/burn/symantec.html]Mount”>http://it.muc.edu/documents/burn/symantec.html)
^abasket: Is this what you’re looking for?</p>
<p>I have had good luck with Trend Micro.</p>
<p>Years ago, I had problems with with Norton & McAfee . (many annoying prompts and it slowed the computer down) When I bought my new laptop a year ago, it had a free 30 day trial of Norton. It seemed to work alright then, but I’ve become used to Trend Micro - no complex interface, I don’t need a million bells & whistles, and I’ve never had problems with viruses or system incompatibilities.</p>
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<p>Sorry! But PC World runs a like article every year–I remember reading it for this year recently. Just get the 2010 list…</p>
<p>I use Zone Alarm Extreme security on both my home computer and my D’s laptop and have had it for a bout 3 years. We have never had a problem and it is actually quite cheap and allows for up to 3 computers on one license. It is full package with Virus scan, Firewall and many other little extras that all work well.</p>
<p>Wow NYSmile you’re good!!! :)</p>
<p>Yep, that would be correct. I still think I will ask or call and maybe have him install something here for the next couple of months till he goes and then install that when he is there…plus it doesn’t list Windows 7 on there yet so I’ll want a verbal “go ahead” first… thank you!</p>
<p>AVG 9.0 free version on all of our computers, and never had a problem.</p>
<p>I’ve spent some time disinfecting a computer today. 10-year-old system with two disks. I put them in an enclosure one at a time and ran Microsoft Security Essentials and Avast on them. MSE caught far more than avast did.</p>
<p>I wasn’t able to install and upgrade MalwareBytes on my laptop as they have a bug that I wasn’t able to get around. I was able to install it on my desktop but I don’t have time to run another scan. I will probably run it against my home desktop which has MalwareBytes on it.</p>
<p>He’s a software professional so he should know better but even professionals don’t like to do a lot of the system maintenance associated with Windows. I should probably run AdAware Scans on the remaining disk. He took the first disk as it was scanned and cleaned with both MSE and Avast. I’ll suggest that he run a MalwareBytes scan on the first disk when he gets his system booted.</p>
<p>His system was so bad that he couldn’t do anything on it when it booted.</p>
<p>Zone Alarm and Trend Micro have very good reputations, but BitDefender was recommended to me and it works great. I hear that Panda is good, too. Also, I used CA (Computer Associates) Anti-Virus for a time, but it was a bit overwhelming. I’m signing up for BitDefender again when my current subscription expires.</p>
<p>A couple of years ago we tried ZoneAlarm and were not able to upgrade it from the upgrade CD we bought at a store. It absolutely required you credit card number and online download. Their tech support was really lousy and unfriendly. We have never experienced anything like this with other antivirus programs. Currently, we run Kaspersky at home and ESET at work. Kaspersky likes to block my Zappos emails (go figure!), and once it cried wolf by labeling something as a Trojan (it was not). Otherwise, it is fine and not very invasive. I like Eset - it quietly does its job and runs automatic updates without slowing things down.</p>
<p>The scans on my friends disks take about three to five hours to run each. Avast did find something that Microsoft Security Essentials didn’t. The MalwareBytes run that I tried overnight didn’t finish as it was competing with Avast for the disk. This cleaning up of infected machines is a headache and I have the hardware and knowledge to do the cleanup. No wonder places like Best Buy can charge so much for tuneups and for cleaning machines of viruses and spyware.</p>