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Saturday, February 19, 2011

Free VS Paid Antivirus

Security for your computer, is a must have for you right? Good, you got the first part right. Is paying for that antivirus worth it? Let's see why, its not worth paying for something, you aren't getting.

Is it more secure?
You're paying for this antivirus, that you think is more secure. Perhaps, it has a better virus scanner? Well, sorry to dampen your spirits, but you're wrong. You're actually getting the same, as the free version. Forget AVG. They're completely the same as the free ones, in my opinion.

So why pay?
You're actually paying for features, more than safety. Kaspersky, Norton and all those companies that advertise, all you get from paying is the Sandbox Feature. You can even get this Sandbox Feature for free. Google Sandboxie, it's a non-profit software that does those sandboxing features that make paid antiviruses so much more special. Other than that, I don't see it being any different from the free ones.


Recommendations
If you're smart, ditch the paid antivirus thing. Save the money for other stuff, eg. photography gear, or computer accesories. Getting a free one, is just as good, and best of all, it's completely free. There are a few good ones out there. Avast 5.0, a great antivirus, get's the #1 choice from me. Everything about it is just perfect. Leaving viruses behind was Avast's problem. But they fixed it with adding more than 50,000 virus definitions to keep your computer at the safest state.

There's also Microsoft Security Essentials; Microsoft's free solution for an antivirus software. Microsoft announced this antivirus, right after they announced their so called 'ultimate antivirus' solution(not too sure of its name). But there is a drawback. Good luck trying to install this on a cracked copy of Windows except for Windows XP. It's a pretty good antivirus, but I hate it, because you can't install it on a cracked copy of Windows.

And lastly, there's the all-in-one Comodo Internet Security. Lately, it's recommended because of its firewall(what Comodo is known for). It's a good alternative, but their antivirus is crap. You don't have to go for this all-in-one package for their firewall; just download and install the firewall itself here(32-bit) | (64-bit).

Stay away from...
If you're joining the free antivirus club, good. But, whatever you do, stay away from free ones like AVG or Spyware Doctor. Both of them will slow down your computer without you realizing. So far, no other antivirus causes this 'dilemma' as far as I know.

What next?
Google Chrome, has a safe browsing feature, which blocks you from going into any malicious websites(websites with virus). So far, Google Chrome's safe feature and Avast have kept me away from viruses that will kill your computer, literally.

I suggest that you don't have to be too geeky and get all sorts of applications, just to ensure your security. Your standard Windows Firewall, will just be alright. I've tried ZoneAlarm's and Comodo's Firewall. Comodo wasn't too bad. ZoneAlarm, was a hogger, completely slowing my startup.

So far, with the default Windows firewall and Avast antivirus software, it seems to be quite okay. No virus attacks and no startup hogging, what I want and I bet that's what you want to. If the recommendations don't suit you, it's fine. Just keep on searching the right one for you.

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