i think antivirus tools are def. worth installing,
BUT
they do consume cpu scanning every file, and i think a case could definitely be made for NOT installing a resident antivirus, and only using an on-demand antivirus tool, providing you are very careful about not executing programs until you scan them.
on the whole though, i definitely feel safer having a resident antivirus and unless one is playing some top of the line game, the lost cpu cycles are a fair price to pay for some increased safety.
-mouser
This is a good point. I failed to mention that I myself am a gammer who is paranoid about programs taking up my valuable resources, which is primarily why I am so obsessed with programs that require little use of them.
Now don't get me wrong guys... an Antivirus is a great added layer of security to have (If you don't mind the resource hogging.)
But for me it is pretty much useless as almost 99% of the time, common sense will be your #1 virus prevention and I figure that the 1% risk is not worth the toll on the CPU that this software will take. NOD32 is very good with resource usage... just incase anyone is interested. Also, if you want the bare minimum (as this topic suggests) I say to hell with the antivirus...
my system has only sufferred a virus infection twice in about 5 years or so - and that was my own fault for installing suspicious software.
-nudone
careful careful careful.... common sense is KEY :)
i have one question - does process guard (or the other programs you mention) bombard you with confirmation dialog boxes every time you run a program?
-nudone
If you hate confirmation dialogs then PG is not for you ;)
Nah I'm just kidding. At first, PG will be annoying with its pop ups. The first thing you will notice is that it acts like a firewall for loading programs. So basically, the only things that can load up on your computer are the things you give permission to load up. Once you teach PG what is OK, it will stop bugging you.
Not only does it protect all the files on your computer from loading, it will also notify you if the file you are loading has changed since the last time you gave it permission to load. So lets say you permanently allow your browser to load up because you don't want to see the confirmation every time you want to use it. This is OK because now PG knows it is allowed, but most importantly it records the CRC of the file, the path of the file, and the size of the file. If a virus takes over your browser or modifies something in it, PG will give you a conformation before you load it up saying that the file was changed and it is not the original that you normally allow to load.
That's great security. Also, there are leaks in firewalls that can be taken advantage of. So like, a malicious file will attempt to inject itself into your browser and since your browser has permission by the firewall to access the internet, the virus has successfully broken through your firewall and can do what it likes. But PG will protect all loaded programs from modification in real time. So it easily defeats this.
I can go on about PG all day, there is so much more that it does. Just download the trial and play around with it and you will see what I mean.
RegDefend will also give you confirmations every time a registry key is modified/added/deleted. This mostly happens when installing new software and things like that. It wont be so annoying, and it's a good layer of security.
Someone tell me what I need PLEASE. I read so many different things and am so confused.
I run Avast, Conterspy,Sygate,Spyware Blaster,Spyware Doctor, And Spyware Guard all of the time! What more should I have? I also use Spysweeper once a week. I NEVER open links in emails! Also I use Firefox as my default browser. I love to download and try software but am careful. Thanks
-Ann Elm
OK you are running Avast, which is a great antivirus so you are fine there. Just be sure to update it as often as you can.
Get rid of Sygate. Its weak firewall and I wouldn't recommened it to anyone. There are more advanced firewalls today. Get Outpost, its easy to use and top of the line. Plus if you ever need help just go to
www.outpostfirewall.com and you will see a forum full of wonderful people who are there to help you with your outpost needs.
That's another thing guys, in my opinion, in order for a security program to be good, it MUST have a support forum where average users can come together and discuss problems and help each other. The software designers will be able to read user comments and problems and keep making the programs better and better. Every single piece of security software I have mentioned throughout this thread has a forum of good, dedicated people... which is a must!
Ann Elm, I would suggest you invest in Process Guard. It is a one-time fee and you are good for life with upgrades just like all DiamondCS software.
If you download allot and run suspicious software without scanning, or open email that you don't know where it came from, I would recommend WormGuard (
http://wormguard.diamondcs.com.au/index.php?page=home ) This a another security layer which I've started using recently. It uses absolutely no resources. It sort of integrates into your OS and is never loaded in the memory. It will alert you only when you run something that it feels isn't safe or might be harmful. It's a good security program to have and DiamondCS is working on a new version which is supposed to be waaaaay better. Don't wait for the new version get it now (upgrades are free for life).
Just so you guys know, I have absolutely no affiliation with DiamondCS... it's just that this company produces the most secure protection for computers with the least amount of resource use. It just doesn't get any better. They are simply the best.