Best Free Antivirus Software
Antivirus software provide a good layer of protection from a multitude of virus, trojan and rootkit threats. With the huge increase in malware, anti-viruses cannot fully keep up with all the viruses and other malware. This is why it's so important to use other security programs as well. Using more than one real-time antivirus can cause conflicts and uses much system resources, so in most cases it is recommended you only choose one antivirus software for real-time protection.
Avast! 4 Home Edition is my top pick for average users, although its funky media player style interface is not to everyone's taste. Avast is the least restricted product out of the three, with both anti-rootkit and anti-spyware capabilities. It also has full real-time capabilities, including a web scanner, an e-mail scanner and IM and P2P protection. In my usage of it, Avast was fairly light on resources. Avast is also the only one out of these three to continue support for older Windows platforms. However, Avast has a relatively high rate of false postives. It also requires periodic re-registration, whereas AVG Free does not. The sharware version also includes a script blocker, PUSH updates and various other features.
Avira AntiVir Personal Edition is my top recommendation if you're looking for the best protection against viruses. It is very light on resources and the detection rate of viruses and rootkits is outstanding, however, there are some reservations. First, it does not include antispyware protection or e-mail scanning, they are only available in the paid version. The lack of an e-mail scanner means that AntiVir won't warn you of infected emails before you open them. However, should you open an infected email, AntiVir will still spring into action, so it doesn't mean that you're not protected from email-based infections. Second, AntiVir's updates are usually slower than Avast and AVG, and occasionally stops updating for short periods of time due to server problems. Although AntiVir has advertisements that appear with every update, these ads can be disabled. Finally, AntiVir Personal Edition Classic has a time-limited license. It is renewable, but be aware that you'll have to periodically go through the hoops. Neither Avast or AVG is as effective in detection of viruses as AntiVir, but both are more complete products, and less intrusive in use.
AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition has been continuously refined since it was initially released in 1991. The latest version makes further improvements to an already solid product. It now includes spyware, phishing, and email scam protection. Its detection rate is still very good. Regular automatic updates come quickly as before and, despite rumors, the new email scanning feature is not trial limited to 30 days. It has grown considerably in size, is heavy on resources and has very slow scan speeds. The automatic updates occasionally did not work on my computer. By default, it installs the AVG Security Toolbar with Yahoo search. Free and paid versions are available; the differences are that the free version has anti-rootkit disabled, provides Linkscanner Lite instead of Linkscanner Pro and has no technical support other than a free user forum.
These are excellent free antivirus that provide a real alternative to the major antivirus software.
You can increase your protection if you run on demand scans with another antivirus. On demand scans can be run regularly to check for viruses and other malware that may have been missed by your main scanner. If you have a good preventive security strategy in place, however, the extra protection this offers is minimal.
AntiVir or Avast can be used as an on demand scanner by choosing custom install when you are installin the product and disabling the real-time. AVG can be used as an on demand scanner by disabling the the real-time protection.
Another good option for on demand scanning is BitDefender 10 Free Edition, the free version of the commercial BitDefender Antivirus. It has good detection rates, but because the free version lacks an email scanner and a resident virus guard, it's only suitable for use as an on-demand scanner, not as your main AV program. There are some other limitations as well. It has an annoying habit of detecting malware products that have been quarantined by other security products, and you can't exclude these areas from subsequent scans. The program itself is using an old version of the engine, so the detection is weaker. And it's only available with a one year non-renewable license.
Dr.Web CureIt! or the Kaspersky Virus Removal Tool can also be used as on demand scanners. Both of these are portable applications, and are also excellent for cleaning computers that are already infected with malware. However, they both require you downloading the whole file again if you want to update it. In recent tests, Dr.Web has not been scoring very high. Kaspersky AVP Tool uses version 7 of the Kaspersky engine, not the newer version 8, so the detection will be lower. Nevertheless, they are still good choices as a secondary on demand scanner.
Avast! 4 Home Edition
Website: www.avast.com/eng/avast_4_home.html
Download link: www.download.com/Avast-Home-Edition/3000-2239_4-10019223.html
Author: Alwil Software
Version: 4.8.1296
Date: November 28, 2008
Download file size: 27.88MB
License: Freeware
Operating systems supported: 95/98/ME/NT/2000/XP/Vista
64 bit capable: Yes
Portable version available: No
Other languages supported: Yes
Additional software required: None
Avira AntiVir Personal Edition
Website: www.free-av.com/en/products/1/avira_antivir_personal__free_antivirus.html
Download link: www.download.com/Avira-AntiVir-Personal-Free-Antivirus/3000-2239_4-10322935.html
Author: Avira
Version: 8.2.00.337
Date: November 28, 2008
Download file size: 21.04MB
License: Free for personal use
Operating systems supported: 2000/XP/Vista
64 bit capable: Yes
Portable version available: No
Other languages supported: German
Additional software required: None
AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition
Website: free.avg.com/ww.download-avg-anti-virus-free-edition
Download link: www.download.com/AVG-Anti-Virus-Free-Edition/3000-2239_4-10320142.html
Author: Grisoft
Version: 8.0.176
Date: November 28, 2008
Download file size: 51.20MB
License: Freeware
Operating systems supported: 2000/XP/Vista
64 bit capable: Yes
Portable version available: No
Other languages supported: No
Additional software required: None
BitDefender 10 Free Edition
Website: www.bitdefender.com/PRODUCT-14-en--BitDefender-Free-Edition.html
Download link: filehippo.com/download_bitdefender/
Author: SOFTWIN
Date: August 23, 2007
Version: 10
Download file size: 21.08MB
License: Free for one year, requires registration
Operating systems supported: 98/ME/NT/2000/XP/Vista
64 bit capable: Yes
Portable version available: No
Other languages supported: Yes
Additional software required: None
Dr.Web CureIt!
Website: www.freedrweb.com/cureit/
Download link: www.freedrweb.com/cureit/
Author: Dr.Web
Date: April 11, 2008
Version: 4.44
Download file size: ~11MB
License: Freeware
Operating systems supported: 95/98/ME/NT/2000/XP/Vista/2003 Server
64 bit capable: Unknown
Portable version available: Program is portable - does not require installation
Other languages supported: Arabic, Armenian, Belarusian, Bulgarian, Chinese Simplified, Chinese Traditional, Czech, Dutch, Esperanto, Estonian, Finnish, French, Georgian, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Latvian, Lithuanian, Norwegian, Persian (Farsi), Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Vietnamese
Additional software required: None
Kaspersky Virus Removal Tool
Website: avptool.virusinfo.info/en/
Download link: devbuilds.kaspersky-labs.com/devbuilds/AVPTool/
Author: Kaspersky
Date: April 11, 2008
Version: 7
Download file size: ~27MB
License: Freeware
Operating systems supported: 2000/XP/Vista
64 bit capable: Unknown
Portable version available: Program is portable - does not require installation
Other languages supported: Unknown
Additional software required: None
Related Topics
- Best Free Adware/Spyware/Scumware Remover
- Best Free Trojan Scanner/Trojan Remover
- Best Free Rootkit Scanner/Remover
- Best Free Firewall
- Best Free Intrusion Prevention and Detection Utility for Home Use (HIPS)
- Gizmo's Guide to Securing Your PC
- How to Surf More Securely
- Best Free Browser Protection Utility
- Best Free Spam Filter for the Average User
- Best Free Spam Filter for the Experienced User
- JonathanT's Spyware Removal Guide
This software category is maintained by volunteer editor JonathanT. Registered site users can contact JonathanT by clicking here.
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i recently recieved viruses and multiple cookies trojan horse vundo AQ ..fake
alert viruses..etc. i have xp home edition 2002 and ran avg 8.0 numerous times
in both regular mode and safe mode some of the viruses cannot be moved to vault
or deleted unless i reboot...my system restore point could not function and i
have turned it off..i now get pop ups in which befor i didnt and some explorer
sites i cannot access or update my avg...my firewall also shows that updates are
off and wont allow me to turn on...i have also tried running in last know good
config but to no avail...my comp is exremely slow on start and usually freezes
and i must reset 3 or 4 times befor i can get it to run...and when it does run
it freezes up causing me to reset again...plz help
1) Use
'Kaspersky Virus Removal Tool'
and
'Dr.Web CureIt'
to clean your already infected PC.
----------------------------------
Once you clean your PC,
2) Replace AVG with
either 'avast! Home Edition' (Free)
or 'AVIRA AntiVir Personal Edition' (Free)
-ALSO have another Backup Scanner (=On Demand):
3) Install
either A-Squared 3.5 AntiMalware (Free)
or SUPERAntiSpyware Free Edition
----------------------------------
How did you get all of that all of a sudden? Anyway, it does sound like you will have to format your hard drive and reinstall windows. Do you by chance use internet explorer? If you do then you seriously might want to try Firefox or Opera, Safari is also good but it is singled out a bit more but it gets updates very often. That might help. Another thing you can do is set up your browser to delete cookies when you exit the program. Or at least set it to only accept them from sites you are visiting. You might want to try Avira instead of AVG as AVG has been having issues ever since 8 surfaced. Even on powerful computers it is a hog and when you experience slow down like you did then that can make the AV practically useless. Also you should have a good Antispyware program on your computer, either SAS (SuperAntiSpyware) or MBAM (MalwareBytes Anti-Malware), unless you pay for them they are only on demand scanners, but you can set them to scan and update automatically with windows schedueler or in the programs them selves. You might even want some memory and registry protection both of which you can get for free from Comodo. Well, good luck, hope it all goes well.
Duskao
Your system sounds as if it's so corrupt that the only sensible remedy is to format the hard disk and re-install windows. XP System Restore is notoriously poor at restoration.
This is one reason why we recommend "disk imaging", "partiioning" and use of an external usb drive for "backups".
Try searching this site using those terms for more info.
Just had to restore my entire computer from scratch using disks after attempting to remove CA antivirus+. I'm not sure if this is just my vista configuration that caused the crash or not, but It did cause my system to completely fail causing me to have to do a complete restore from recovery discs. I'll stop posting comments and let someone read them now. Kendell.
Ok, this should be my last comment tonight. Has anyone heard of Ca antivirus? I've run across it on the web a few times and I haven't heard of it. Has anyone used it? It's certified by icsa and vb, so that's good.
one more thing, if someone helps me, I'd prefer an antivirus that's been certified by one of thevirus testing sites, or have good scan scores. I've downloaded and subsequently uninstalled hundreds of antivirus programs that said they had what I needed and ultimately turned out to be either scams, or unaccessible. My fiance even baught one without checking it out or trying, just bought it and it wasn't effective, and had no realtime protection. I think it was called "antivirus and trogen." I'll shut up now before I annoy someone. Kendell
http://www.av-comparatives.org/
http://www.virusbtn.com/news/2008/09_02
most other products then these tests r fake or suck.
If you are going to buy any go for Kaspersky or BitDefender. They are two of the top rated pay AV's, and they come fully equiped if you get the internet security suites. Firewall, AV, AS, malware, rootkits, realtime scanning, email scanning, and pretty much everything else.
Duskao
I've heard the Norton 2009 products are also excellent.
Hello. Can someone help me find an antivirus that has realtime protection and scheduling? I've tried all the recommended software on this page and google searched but kept uninstalling the ones I found for one reason or another. I am blind and some of the products (avast, AVG, and avira conflict with my screenreader, either they think it's malware and refuse it, or the screenreader simply refuses to read the UI. I've tried PC tools antivirus free edition and that's completely visually oriented, too many clicking with the mouse. Comodo internet security is also unusable for the same reason. I want to find a program I can stick with and would prefer not to reregister if possible like avast requires. I tried one other, Rising antivirus, and that was a fllp, not accessible. it's a very obscure program based out of china, I think and I don't recommend it. Sorry about the long comment but I need someone to help me find an antivirus program that I won't uninstall in a week. Accessibility is the key, if I can't use it I won't keep it. If it will help, I'm using windows vista home premium, intel t7100, 32 bit, 1.80ghz, 2GB ram, and 160gb Hard drive. any help would be appreciated. The program doesn't have to contain antispyware capabilities since I have malwarebytes. antimalware. Kendell.
Hi. I don't know exactly what you need but have you tried McAfee from AOL? It's got realtime protection, but I'm not sure about scheduling and accessibilty.
It's no longer free. Now you need a payed plan.
Thanks for informing me, I didn't realise before.
Which programm is best to remove "Antivirus 2009"?
MalwareBytes Anti-Malware
How to remove Antivirus 2009 (Uninstall Instructions)
I think AVIRA is the best!!! Because it very light and fast. It doesn't slow the PC.
Just an aside comment about avg.
A curious problem I had with avg (a couple of years ago now). Was reinstalling (at that time) windows 2k, installed OS, drivers , . . , rebooting as requested, then avg antivirus, reboot - windows wouldn't start. Couldn't do a thing, tried repair ect, could boot safe mode but couldn't find problem. Gave up, started again, same place, same result.
Tried the original windows cd (not slipstreamed with SP 4), all OK, even after avg. Download SP4, still OK. Went to disable WFP (patched sfc.dll); A-HA: windows would not boot.
Anyway, fixed the problem; not by putting WFP back, but by tossing avg and going with avast. (Earlier avg versions worked, started about I think v7.??)
Shame avg is broken, now used to avast so wouldn't go back without good reason.
Avira AntiVir Personal Edition with silent updates turned on and splash screen turned off - almost ideal software.
Yep, I agree, tweaking Antivir like that makes it a sort of unnoficial upgrade. Better than free & shareware versions.
No respect intended, but do you guys also have shares in Avira?
Dr. Phil McAvity
Indeed, that's why we use free version. Grow up Doc !
I've got a computer virus, do I need to see a real doctor?
Dr. Jeffrey Brown
I am using avast along with lot of my friends and I never felt a need to go for some thing else.This is one among my essential handpicked softwares. www.freewarepick.blogspot.com
Dr. Jeffrey Brown has shares in Avira.
Avast scores very highly in all independant tests, so your comment that it is third rate is laughable.
Yours faithfully,
Dr. Phil McAvity
Dr. Phil McAvity,
I have shares in many things. You might read on in this forum and others like it about the ongoing Avast issues that remain unsolved by Alwil. I've clients that ask "does Avast send me false positive code in updates?" I'll simply refer to another Dr. Phil on this site called Alien IP that Avast can't even scan nor ignore without flashing lights and sirens (That's a feature I won't even indulge you in Dr. that this product has that scares the shit out of most first time users).
Please Dr. download and try Avast on Alien IP and watch as Avast destroys Alien IP. It's only one example of this poor performer, but many other Avast users are destroying their safe programs because Avast says to. For now I'll take you at your word your actually a Dr. and have the certs in this field, otherwise I'll just refer you on to this:
http://forum.avast.com/index.php?topic=40424.0
Dr. Jeffrey Brown in IT and CS (since we're all hanging it out)
IT Security Specialist
Dr. Jeffrey Brown,
You post a link where someone notices a false positive and the Alwil team responds and fixes it within hours.
Yes very third rate that isn't it!
Yours,
Dr. Phil McAvity in IT and Gynaecology
Dr,...
Like most liberals you skirted my invite to test Avast against a safe program on this site called Alien IP and like most lib weenies you shot your load before bringing any truth to the discussion. I doubt you have a PHD in IT since your a medical doctor as well. I think it's safe to say you do not know what you're talking about here since you also have not quoted Avast as having one of the highest FP rates in all of AV history. I think we've now separated the wheat from the chafe here.
JB
IT bla, bla, bla and tons of shingles I'm sure you have too.
Ian, you once had a kind and meaningful site when you ran it yourself. It seems now this has all changed and is outside your reach to correct, so I bid you, your guests here, and Jon a final ado. Please find your own AV answers and solutions to "believe in." I don't get paid to put up with this crap on any site.
Well bye bye then Dr, don't let Avast scan you on the way out!
Things can (and do) change quite fast in the world of security.
Avast is no longer the solution it once was, and there are far too many problems with AVG8.
Because it does one thing very well, Avira is the way to go !
Until of course, something better comes along !
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