Cdis99
100+ Head-Fier
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- Dec 31, 2010
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This discussion began when someone posted a problem they were having with a possible virus on their computer.
I am by no means a computer expert, but after this discussion I did a good amount of research on the best antivirus/spyware & adware programs available. I figured I'd post some of the better programs I found and the hopefully be a help to someone who may not know that much about how to protect their PC properly.
These are the current programs I use:
avast! 5.0: Offers real time protection, one of the best free antivirus softwares out there. Other good programs I encountered during my search were Microsoft Security Essentials and Avira.
Malwarebytes Anti-Malware and SuperAntiSpyware: Before doing this research, I used only once scanner. One common theme I found amongst most so-called "experts" was that installing, and using, two malware/spyware scanners is one of the best things you can do for your computer. Both of these programs got rave reviews from PCMag and CNET.
Basically, using two scanners gives you double the chance of catching and removing malware from your system.
SpywareBlaster: In addition to the scanners listed above, I use SpywareBlaster. Since Wikipedia does a much better job of explaining what this program does, here's a quote from their page, "SpywareBlaster blocks the installation of most ActiveX-based spyware, adware, browser hijackers, dialers and other unwanted programs from the user's computer. SpywareBlaster works by blacklisting the CLSID of known malware programs, effectively preventing them from infecting a protected computer. This approach differs from many other anti-spyware programs, which typically offer the user a possibility to "scan" the memory and hard drive of the computer and remove the unwanted software, after it has been installed."
In conclusion, it stops the malware/spyware before it has a chance to infect your computer. This just adds another layer of protection.
Adblock Plus and NoScript Firefox add-ons. If you're using IE, I would advise you switch over to firefox. Not only is it faster and safer, the numerous add-ons that are available make it possible to customize it any way you want to.
From the Adblock Plus website, "The add-on is supported by over forty filter subscriptions in dozens of languages which automatically configure it for purposes ranging from removing online advertising to blocking all known malware domains. Adblock Plus also allows you to customize your filters with the assistance of a variety of useful features, including a context option for images, a block tab for Flash and Java objects, and a list of blockable items to remove scripts and stylesheets."
From the NoScript website, "It allows JavaScript, Java and other executable content to run only from trusted domains of your choice, e.g. your home-banking web site, guarding your "trust boundaries" against cross-site scripting attacks (XSS), cross-zone DNS rebinding / CSRF attacks (router hacking), and Clickjacking attempts, thanks to its unique ClearClick technology... uch a preemptive approach prevents exploitation of security vulnerabilities (known and even unknown!) with no loss of functionality.
There are other options out there. (Yes, MSE and Avira are good.) However, I have found that these programs protect your PC from all angles, all at no cost. Not only that, they all play well together and are lightweight (don't slow down your system... i.e your browsing speeds will be the same). The only program which is constantly running in the background is avast!.
Do keep in mind, no machine can replace common sense. If something looks suspicious, just avoid it. There's no such thing as full proof protection. If you take the proper precautions and use these programs, you should never have another virus or worm harm your PC again.
Hope this helped someone