Help me help myself

[SabaII]

Okay guys I am a big non-believer in anti-virus and the like. I almost think its all a conspiracy. But I am open to change. Little back story here. My uncle back some years ago built a system. He installed all of his programs including Norton and then hooked up to the internet. He updated what he had to including Norton and then ran a scan on his system. He then was being told that there were x amount of viruses and male-ware ect on his system. Now I am (at least for a while was) convinced the anti-virus companies are making the viruses. You know like fuzz-buster companies. They make the radars the cops use then come out with a new detector then a better radar. At least that is what I have herd? Anyway with the system I bought now I am kicking around the idea of getting some protection on it. 7 years ago the system I built I never put anything on it and never had a problem. I just have a feeling I should put something on there. So what do you guys run and recommend?

 

[myinfinity]

Well, I actually install Bit Defender 2011. There are independent websites that compare Anti Virus software.

http://www.av-test.org/en/home

http://www.[B]av[/B]-comparatives.org

 

[Chiefcrowe]

I like MSE, and also NOD32 and Kaspersky

 

[Slugbait]

My uncle back some years ago built a system. He installed all of his programs including Norton and then hooked up to the internet. He updated what he had to including Norton and then ran a scan on his system. He then was being told that there were x amount of viruses and male-ware ect on his system.

Yeah, years ago that was a very common story. Install XP or XPSP1 from a retail disc, and within seconds of connecting to the Internet you're already infected with Blaster and Sasser.

It's not a conspiracy, it's very real.

I've cleaned plenty of machines that "never had a problem". And the reason for all the botnets out there? It's specifically because the zombie owners don't know their machines have been compromised. About 11 years ago, my wife was perusing thru folders on her E drive (running W2K) and found 80 gigs of warez (only half the folders had content, they were still in the upload process), after which I found the FTP program they remotely installed.

Maybe you're right, and you really never had a problem...that, or you are one of tens of millions of people who only think they've never had a problem.

Anyway, another nod at MSE.

 

[SabaII]

Yeah, years ago that was a very common story. Install XP or XPSP1 from a retail disc, and within seconds of connecting to the Internet you're already infected with Blaster and Sasser.

It's not a conspiracy, it's very real.

I've cleaned plenty of machines that "never had a problem". And the reason for all the botnets out there? It's specifically because the zombie owners don't know their machines have been compromised. About 11 years ago, my wife was perusing thru folders on her E drive (running W2K) and found 80 gigs of warez (only half the folders had content, they were still in the upload process), after which I found the FTP program they remotely installed.

Maybe you're right, and you really never had a problem...that, or you are one of tens of millions of people who only think they've never had a problem.

Anyway, another nod at MSE.

I very well could have had a problem but just did not notice it. Not enough to slow me down or crash the system ever. Again I now realize how important it is to have decent security now these days. I have also seen security suites slow systems down. Is that still a problem? I don't want to spend the money on something and have it de-nut my computer as it isn't the fastest system out there.

 

[mechBgon]

Think beyond the conventional security software. Mitigating and eliminating vulnerabilities is solid gold and may not slow your system down at all. The link in my sig has some easy free steps to look at. You can build on that, but get the foundations solid first.

 

[SabaII]

Think beyond the conventional security software. Mitigating and eliminating vulnerabilities is solid gold and may not slow your system down at all. The link in my sig has some easy free steps to look at. You can build on that, but get the foundations solid first.

Thanks. Will get on it. :thumbsup:

 

[Paperlantern]

I very well could have had a problem but just did not notice it. Not enough to slow me down or crash the system ever. Again I now realize how important it is to have decent security now these days. I have also seen security suites slow systems down. Is that still a problem? I don't want to spend the money on something and have it de-nut my computer as it isn't the fastest system out there.

If its not the fastest system, what is it that you do with it? If you just surf the internet, watch youtube and check e mail and facebook I would recommend switching to a lightweight Linux distro. I recently checked out Peppermint Two, its designed to be out of the box perfect for anyone wanting a workstation that will do all of the things i listed above, and have access to tons of other apps right in the application manager for free. Linux Mint is also a decent one.

The switch to *nix will give you a lot less security concerns (they still exist, but are really next to non-existent), while still giving you a good fast platform to do your computing.

If you do any gaming on your rig or have any windows specific programs (like most games), then this may not be the answer for you.

 

[Insomnihacks]

Another nod for MSE. I've been a MSE believer when it smoked Nortons 360 in virus / malware removal.

I do completely agree with mechBgon's signature guide. It's all laid out there

 

[SabaII]

If its not the fastest system, what is it that you do with it? If you just surf the internet, watch youtube and check e mail and facebook I would recommend switching to a lightweight Linux distro. I recently checked out Peppermint Two, its designed to be out of the box perfect for anyone wanting a workstation that will do all of the things i listed above, and have access to tons of other apps right in the application manager for free. Linux Mint is also a decent one.

The switch to *nix will give you a lot less security concerns (they still exist, but are really next to non-existent), while still giving you a good fast platform to do your computing.

If you do any gaming on your rig or have any windows specific programs (like most games), then this may not be the answer for you.

Well you can see in my sig what I am running. I do play BF3 and eventually TOR. What I meant by that was that I am not running 32gb of mem and an Eight core type system.