The FREE Antivirus thread

Post by **YeOldeStonecat** » Wed Nov 27, 2013 1:55 pm

This thread is to help spread knowledge about the various offerings of "free" antivirus programs out there. There are quite a few more besides the commonly known AVG, Avast, Antivir/Avira, and MSE.

I would like to keep revisiting this thread, updating information as we come across it.

Now, I mostly turn to free AV products for the freebie jobs I do for friends, family, neighbors. And even though I have tons of NFR licenses for many different "big name" brand products from work...I still use MSE at home. So far it has proven to work well for me....but I'll admit, I do have concern about its sinking ratings over the past year. And I wouldn't be good at my job if I wasn't keeping an eye out for other possible replacement products for this product.

Also at work, we focus 99% on business clients, but we have a lot of home users rigs come across our bench to get worked on...and we've been putting on MSE.

I'm aware of the "pay for" products...most of what I work in day to day is with the best of the best of security products, Kaspersky, Eset, BitDefender, Panda, etc. That's a whole separate topic and I don't wish to mix those into this thread which is solely on the "free AV" products.

Now...one of the biggest concerns for me is simplicity of use, and how easily the end user can keep the product running. By that last point, I mean...basically they don't have to worry about keeping it registered on a yearly basis. Because we all know that home users are horrible about keeping antivirus licenses renewed. I'd rather have a mediocre antivirus product on their rig that is "set it and forget it" for the life of the computer, versus a more effective product that needs to be renewed and/or reactivated on a yearly basis. It is likely the end user will ignore that..so after the first year is up, it expires, it fails to update and protect..and now they're screwed. This right here is the primary purpose that I've liked and used MSE for this type of end user.

I also do not like to see advertisements...or frequent "nags" to upgrade to the pro/paid for version. Some products are guilty of that...it disqualifies them from anything I'll use.

A list of products...lets get a long list together, and I will keep editing this list as new products keep coming in.

360Safe/360 Internet Security/Qihoo360 - Runs triple engines, 360Cloud, Qihoo QVM, and BitDefender. Free for home use only. I installed this on my own laptop yesterday to start testing it, (11/26/13) and so far it's been solid, haven't noticed a performance hit which I did expect from a triple engine. No adware so far.
http://www.360safe.com/

AdAware free antivirus - Most of us know Lavasofts AdAware adware/spyware removal program from years ago, they added a combo antivirus product also. Haven't looked at yet.
http://www.lavasoft.com/products/ad_aware_free.php

Agnitum Outpost Free -
http://free.agnitum.com/

Amiti Antivirus - An open source clone running on Clamwin
http://sourceforge.net/projects/amitiantivirus/

Anvi Smart Defender - Reviews said it's not very effective
http://www.anvisoft.com/smart-defender.html

AVG - I remember the days when AVG was the free product of choice..back with version 5 or 6....but it really started dropping in effectiveness around version 7 (early XP days?). And I don't like its browser protection bar...seen it cause so many issues. I still see so many computers that have AVG come across our bench from infections.
http://free.avg.com/us-en/homepage

AntiVir - Pretty decent detection rates, amusing reference to Star Wars in the name of its scanning engine, but horribly high false positive rages. And the constant nags to upgrade to the Pro version drive end users nuts. Frequent reliability problems with the free update servers....so clients often lag behind in definitions.
http://www.avira.com/en/avira-free-antivirus

Avast - I've liked its performance in detection rates. Relatively low false positives. A rather quirky interface. But what kept me from liking it was the fact that, last that I knew (I'll admit it's been a few years) you had to keep an account with them and re-register the product yearly.
http://www.avast.com/en-us/free-antivirus-download
They currently offer a "Free for EDU" package (educational facilities....added this link on 04/12/2013 and I don't know how long the special will last)
http://www.avast.com/en-us/education?Cl ... e4i4ifailn

Baidu - Similar to 360Safe, triple engine....Baidu local scan, Baidu cloud, and AntiVir.
http://antivirus.baidu.com

BitDefender - They recently released a new free product that does have real time file protection. Unlike their prior version which did not. Very bland interface, doesn't let you configure much. But quite good performance. You do have to register with them once to get an account and updates...so that alone makes me think it's not a good option for me to use for this type of client needs.
http://www.bitdefender.com/solutions/free.html

Commodo - I tried it once...it had frequent problems updating.
http://antivirus.comodo.com/

ClamWin - relatively ineffective against more modern web based "threats".
http://www.clamwin.com/

CYSEC - Have not tried yet, interesting website. Based in London. Also offer free remote access and network mapping tools.
http://cysec.com/

Digital Defender - Haven't looked at it yet.
http://www.digital-defender.com/

DrWeb CuritIt - Haven't looked at it yet.
http://www.freedrweb.com/?lng=en

Fortinet Forticlient Lite - Haven't looked at it in a while.....was a full security suite only, meaning software firewall too.
http://www.forticlient.com/lite.html

Immunet - Haven't looked at it yet.
http://www.immunet.com/main/index.html

Kingsoft - Haven't looked at yet but feature set looks good
http://www.kingsoftsecurity.com/

MSE - Came out on the market doing fairly well in reviews, has been sliding in ratings lately, but it really is a "set and forget" product. No registration required, no renewals, no nags, simple interface. It also is unique among the other offerings as being the only "free antivirus" that is licensed to be used in a busines....currently of up to 10x computers. Desktops only, no server operating systems.
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/wind ... s-download

NANO antivirus - no info
http://www.nanoav.ru/index.php?option=c ... 74&lang=en

Panda Cloud Free - Panda has been doing very well in detection of new/rising threats. A cloud based product, as the name illustrates. Just installed on my laptop, no registration required (good). During install there are 3x checkbox options for "me-too ware"...it wants to put in the Panda Security Toolbar in Internet Exploader and Firefox, based on Blekko search, and it was to set Blekko for the default search engine. As well as set the home page to MyStart. You can opt out of all 3 of those. For the management console, a decent set of features, including file and directory exclusion options.
http://www.cloudantivirus.com/en/#!/fre ... s-download

PCTools - Haven't looked at it yet.
http://www.pctools.com/free-antivirus/index/d/2

Returnil -
http://www.returnilvirtualsystem.com/re ... ystem-safe

RisingFree - Haven't looked at it yet.
http://www.freerav.com/
Appears to have a version which they say is compatible with Server 2003 and Server 2008...
http://www.rising-global.com/Download/R ... virus.html

Roboscan - Reviews show as mediocre
http://www.roboscan.com/

UnThreat - Haven't looked at it yet.
http://www.unthreat.com/free-antivirus

ZenOK - Haven't looked at it yet.
http://www.zenok.com/en/free-antivirus/

Zillya Antivirus -
http://zillya.com/node/20

ZoneAlarm - Haven't looked at it yet.
http://www.zonealarm.com/security/en-us ... rewall.htm

RaisinCain · Post by **RaisinCain** » Wed Nov 27, 2013 3:49 pm

Aren't best user practices and common sense first and foremost when dealing with viruses and malware? That being said I would first off recommend a paid subscription product. Comodo is high on my list for free av/security software. Awesome list though. TY for taking the time to put it together!

CableDude · Post by **CableDude** » Wed Nov 27, 2013 4:26 pm

Yosc, ftw!

Mark · Post by **Mark** » Wed Nov 27, 2013 4:54 pm

CableDude wrote:Yosc, ftw!

yes i agree

Easto · Post by **Easto** » Wed Nov 27, 2013 11:30 pm

I'd also like to see something about the "pay for" services offered too. I've been following your posts regarding MSE and you've got me thinking about switching to something new. I'd be willing to pay as long as I thought it was worth it.

Thanks for the great work above.

CableDude · Post by **CableDude** » Thu Nov 28, 2013 6:29 am

Easto wrote:Thanks for the great work above.

Post by **YeOldeStonecat** » Thu Nov 28, 2013 8:29 am

Easto wrote:I'd also like to see something about the "pay for" services offered too. I've been following your posts regarding MSE and you've got me thinking about switching to something new. I'd be willing to pay as long as I thought it was worth it..

That would be a very long post. I've worked with the majority of brands in the US market, when it comes to "paid AV"....my 3 favorite products are (and not in any order of preference..so I'll just name them alphabetically)
*Bitdefender
*Eset
*Kaspersky

Yet even with the best pro products, malware can slip by. I've seen current threats blow right past the best of the best. That's why I'm a firm believer in "layering" your security.
*Start with "Safe DNS services"....set your router or your networks domain controllers DNS services to forward to OpenDNS or Nortons ConnectSafe DNS servers...not your ISPs, not Googles, not roots....but safe DNS services.
*Maintain your Microsoft updates
*Maintain your web player updates (Java, Adobe Flash, Shockwave, PDF Reader, Quicktime viewers, etc)
*Use an AdBlocker...as these days lots of malware comes in through poisoned advertising banners on legit websites. Either a local adblocker like AdBlock Plus extension installed in Chrome, or through a UTM appliance at the edge like Untangle which supports blocking ads right at the gateway.
*Surf with a more secure browser. Right now....Google Chrome is king here, plus Chrome has its own built in sandbox for itself. It's so much harder to infect your computer if you surf with Chrome, versus Firefox or Internet Exploader.

*For my business clients...I'm a firm believer in a UTM appliance at the edge. Plain old NAT routers are old technology, not secure enough for a business network. UTM appliances are needed, every single one of my primary clients now have one as their gateway.

Back to the "pay for AV" versus "Free AV" thing....IMO, if you follow my first couple of "best practices" above...one of the better free AV's is fine for you. I have "NFR" licensing for tons of top pro AV products...so I could use any of those for my home computers, but I stick with MSE and now and then try a few other ones.
*The big reason we use "pay for" AV products for our clients..first of all, licensing. Most free products are only legal for personal use, not commercial. And the couple that are legal for commercial..such as MSE, only for smaller businesses <10 computers such as with MSE...and only desktop Windows, no servers.
*Another reason...management. We use managed antivirus..one central console to deploy/update/configure/monitor the entire network.
*Yeah of course we make money reselling product...but that's not really a point, its pocket change compared to our consulting fees.

Qui-Gon John · Post by **Qui-Gon John** » Mon Mar 10, 2014 4:38 pm

With all the gloom and doom Microsoft is spouting about the end is near for Windows XP, do you know if MSE running on Windows XP will continue to get updates after the official no more support date?

RaisinCain · Post by **RaisinCain** » Mon Mar 10, 2014 5:43 pm

Nope. Microsoft has even recommended not using it as a stand alone solution.

http://www.howtogeek.com/173291/goodbye ... antivirus/

I have been using Bitdefender Free currently and find that it performs VERY well.

Qui-Gon John · Post by **Qui-Gon John** » Mon Mar 10, 2014 7:27 pm

That is odd. I first learned about MSE here on Speedguide, when I had been using Avira. And also, Microsoft rolled MSE (now Windows Defender) as a built-in part of Windows 8. Why would they abandon it?

TonyT · Post by **TonyT** » Mon Mar 10, 2014 7:33 pm

You will still be able to use and update MSE on XP:
http://curah.microsoft.com/52707/micros ... -july-2015

Post by **YeOldeStonecat** » Tue Mar 11, 2014 6:02 am

Qui-Gon John wrote:That is odd. I first learned about MSE here on Speedguide, when I had been using Avira. And also, Microsoft rolled MSE (now Windows Defender) as a built-in part of Windows 8. Why would they abandon it?

They didn't really "abandon" it...but they have lowered their research/upkeep with it. MSE came out of the gateways a few years ago as a good product, performing very very well several times in a row at AV-Comparatives.org's "dynamic tests" (which is their real world current malware web based tests). They started putting less effort into it last year..as far as updates and detection rates. I can only suspect that they feel they're encroaching on anti-trust laws and don't want to bother dealing with complaints and lawsuits from the major antivirus vendors. (or maybe some of the bigger antivirus companies lobbied them or offered big cash donations to lower its quality). Who knows.

mspl · Post by **mspl** » Sat Mar 15, 2014 12:58 pm

I know your supposed to only have one AV, but has anyone had a problem with both MSE and free bitdefender on same machine?

RaisinCain · Post by **RaisinCain** » Sat Mar 15, 2014 3:13 pm

I have seen where both are installed and have not had a problem but, why run 2 AV programs? MSE is a piece of crap. I would just run BitDefender (and Malwarebytes Free) as a stand alone solution.

mspl · Post by **mspl** » Sun Mar 16, 2014 11:38 am

I was going to try the Bitdefender did not want to uninstall the MSE till sure I wanted to stay with Bit (every time I installed MSE always seems to be months behind on updates takes long time to update) but Bit asked if I wanted current removed went ahead and uninstalled MSE. Already have Malewarebytes free installed, I guess there is no way to manually check for update with Bitdefender just auto.

Qui-Gon John · Post by **Qui-Gon John** » Sun Mar 16, 2014 12:12 pm

RaisinCain wrote:I have been using Bitdefender Free currently and find that it performs VERY well.

Does BitDefender Free give you any nags to get the paid version?

Post by **YeOldeStonecat** » Sun Mar 16, 2014 12:13 pm

Yeah stay away from running 2 or more AV programs at the same time...their real time file protection systems will step on each others toes. MalwareBytes is not an antivirus program, so we can exclude discussing that as far as the question of running 2 or more AV programs at the same time.

Yes you can get a system to appear to run "OK with two or more AV programs at the same time...but it's a fact that they will impact the reliability of the detection ability of each other...so why risk it? Not to mention a greater system slowdown, and an occasional application hang or system hang.

BitDefender looks for defintion updates every 15 minutes and program updates hourly...no need to worry about manual update.

mspl · Post by **mspl** » Mon Mar 17, 2014 10:01 am

Qui-Gon John wrote:Does BitDefender Free give you any nags to get the paid version?

From their site -- We know you don't like it when intrusive commercials disrupt your user experience. That's why Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition only displays discreet, rare messages, with stuff you really need to know.--

mspl · Post by **mspl** » Wed Mar 19, 2014 6:06 pm

I definitely like the Bitdefender, will stick with it when/if I go to 7.

mspl · Post by **mspl** » Thu Apr 03, 2014 4:57 pm

Bitdefender last update was 4/2, 1:09PM, version 1.0.21.1099 did repair (just in case) stayed the same, has been updating several times a day. Is this current or do I have a problem?/ EDIT: Finally updated today at 7:08PM.

CableDude · Post by **CableDude** » Sat Apr 05, 2014 3:07 pm

I have found bitdefender to be a pain in the ass. Creating account and it will not work until you sign in. Does not seem to work for me for what ever reason.

Will give it another try some other time, maybe.

Qui-Gon John · Post by **Qui-Gon John** » Sat Apr 05, 2014 3:58 pm

I tried to use Bit Defender Free, helping a friend with an XP computer. What I did not like was, one time after I loaded it I click the SCAN section and there was a button for QUICK SWEEP, but then I could never get that back, it only said IDLE or if I right-clicked the tray icon I had the option for a full scan. Not happy with it's user interface.

mspl · Post by **mspl** » Sat Apr 05, 2014 4:56 pm

Qui-Gon John wrote:I tried to use Bit Defender Free, helping a friend with an XP computer. What I did not like was, one time after I loaded it I click the SCAN section and there was a button for QUICK SWEEP, but then I could never get that back, it only said IDLE or if I right-clicked the tray icon I had the option for a full scan. Not happy with it's user interface.

If you haven't already uninstall then reinstall, I did because after finally updated, next time I signed on updated again as it had been doing before but desk icon was gone so I reinstalled. Icon is back and is updating pretty much every time I sign on to internet the way it was before updating froze. They have place to tell them why you are reinstalling after survey.

Post by **YeOldeStonecat** » Sun Apr 06, 2014 7:22 am

CableDude wrote:I have found bitdefender to be a pain in the ass. Creating account and it will not work until you sign in. Does not seem to work for me for what ever reason.

Will give it another try some other time, maybe.

It will work...for 30 days..and then you need the account and have to sign in. Did you create an account and activate it? Easy to create an account, receive the e-mail...click to activate....and then go to the BD client and "sign in" with that e-mail address and password you created when signing up for the account. All in all...about 30 maybe 45 seconds...

Post by **YeOldeStonecat** » Sun Apr 06, 2014 7:23 am

Qui-Gon John wrote:I tried to use Bit Defender Free, helping a friend with an XP computer. What I did not like was, one time after I loaded it I click the SCAN section and there was a button for QUICK SWEEP, but then I could never get that back, it only said IDLE or if I right-clicked the tray icon I had the option for a full scan. Not happy with it's user interface.

It is a very simple interface. designed for typical home users....really just runs on auto pilot. Not an AV product for a more advanced user that likes to dig in there and play with settings. Another good AV product that does have some more configuration options is Panda Cloud Free.

CableDude · Post by **CableDude** » Sun Apr 06, 2014 9:23 am

YeOldeStonecat wrote:It will work...for 30 days..and then you need the account and have to sign in. Did you create an account and activate it? Easy to create an account, receive the e-mail...click to activate....and then go to the BD client and "sign in" with that e-mail address and password you created when signing up for the account. All in all...about 30 maybe 45 seconds...

Exactly what I did. Weird thing is when I right click in the lower right corner to enter email and pass....it like rejects it.

Yet I can go to mybitdefender.com and sign in with the same email and pass and get in with no problems at all.

24giovanni · Post by **24giovanni** » Sun Apr 06, 2014 11:57 pm

CableDude wrote:Exactly what I did. Weird thing is when I right click in the lower right corner to enter email and pass....it like rejects it.

Yet I can go to mybitdefender.com and sign in with the same email and pass and get in with no problems at all.

Been using it since Sept. I think it is great.

mspl · Post by **mspl** » Wed Jun 18, 2014 2:23 pm

There is updated version of free Malewarebytes out, I like the new control panel. I have several months with free Bitdefender very happy with it.

Post by **YeOldeStonecat** » Wed Jun 18, 2014 3:23 pm

Many techs reporting issues with the latest MalwareBytes (what is it...2.9?)
However...MalwareBytes is technically not an antivirus program...it's an antimalware program that compliments an existing antivirus program.

Qui-Gon John · Post by **Qui-Gon John** » Wed Jun 18, 2014 4:16 pm

mspl wrote:There is updated version of free Malewarebytes out, I like the new control panel. I have several months with free Bitdefender very happy with it.

Is this an updated version of the new one they put out in March/April or is that the one you are talking about. A lot of problems with the one from the spring, I still use 1.75 because of that. Be nice if they finally fixed those issues with a newer update.

mspl · Post by **mspl** » Wed Jun 18, 2014 9:04 pm

Qui-Gon John wrote:Is this an updated version of the new one they put out in March/April or is that the one you are talking about. A lot of problems with the one from the spring, I still use 1.75 because of that. Be nice if they finally fixed those issues with a newer update.

May be the free equivalent of that, is version 2.0.2.1012 what problems (I've only had this version a few hours) have people had? The only thing that bugged me about my earlier version was very slow to open when you wanted to update, this loads much faster. They had list of issues it fixed over earlier when asking if I wanted to update, but don't remember what they were.

Qui-Gon John · Post by **Qui-Gon John** » Wed Jun 18, 2014 9:21 pm

Several issues. For one, many people are upset with the new look, think it's too much like a lot of the malware it is trying to find. I can overlook that, but I do not like that it is not as easy to navigate nor to tell if you are doing a quick scan or a full scan. For one thing, they renamed them, for no good reason. Also, and I saw this happen myself, if you try to cancel a scan, it can (and did for me), freeze the entire program, had to kill the process in Task Mgr.

There is a Malwarebytes Forum and many people commented about issues. Reps from the company said they were taking note and would fix things, but not yet, as far as I know.

Here's that link: http://blog.malwarebytes.org/news/2014/ ... lware-2-0/

Also, I don't like that for people who choose to buy the Pro version, it is now an annual cost vs. a one time cost, like it was prior to this latest release. It is still one of the biggest tools in my arsenal, just I stay with 1.75.

Post by **YeOldeStonecat** » Fri Jun 20, 2014 6:52 pm

Bump....cuz I added a few more to the list.

Qui-Gon John · Post by **Qui-Gon John** » Tue Oct 13, 2015 7:50 am

I was wondering how folks are feeling about the new Malwarebytes Anti-Malware since a couple years of this new version have gone by. I still have been staying with the Tried & True v. 1.75. I see the NEW version still looks the same as when it was released. But I was wondering if they worked out any of the bugs, like it freezing the computer, etc.?

Post by **YeOldeStonecat** » Tue Oct 13, 2015 2:23 pm

Stacylu wrote:That's real cool, well known anti-virus software combination list. I'm using of Advanced SystemCare [....] to optimise PC with antivirus gadgets as well.

IOBit...mild junkware/scamware...frowned upon by IT professional. It usually snowballs into a bunch of "me-too-ware" getting added to the system, bordering on the "rogue antivirus" category.

YARDofSTUF · Post by **YARDofSTUF** » Tue Oct 13, 2015 6:26 pm

I just moved back to Avira, like it so far. Interface is pretty simple, good option control.

ghostwriter · Post by **ghostwriter** » Thu Jan 05, 2017 8:09 am

I only use after the fact ones like Malwarebytes. They seem to be more trouble than the virus's.

samw · Post by **samw** » Thu Mar 01, 2018 1:22 pm

thanks, i like avg

purecomedy · Post by **purecomedy** » Tue Dec 24, 2019 3:44 pm

Any refresh for end of 2019, start of 2020 what's the best anti-virus software these days?

Every few years I try a different one (usually due to frustration with how bloated most scanners become and filled with nags to get you to pay a subscription). I always find when I do an initial scan with new software it always finds something in my old torrent download folder that the previous one didn't. Not exactly a comforting thought!

Post by **Philip** » Tue Dec 24, 2019 11:03 pm

Some of them are over-zealous in the effort to differentiate themselves and deem something PUP (potentially unwanted program), giving them the bragging rights of being more comprehensive than the next anti-virus software. I don't like how heavy-handed many have become, not only with the nags to buy subscription, but also in interfering with web browsing, email and slowing down all aspects of using your computer.

I find myself simply using Windows Defender these days, I may run an on-demand Malwarebytes or CCleaner if need be.