I am an idiot

[Muffins]

Originally Posted by Vulcan

I use MSE along with the free versions of Malwarebytes and SuperAntispyware. I've tried most of the other free options and some paid. Every time I start thinking they are pretty good, they start doing some invasive actions on my computer and they are almost as hard to get rid of as a virus. I recently re-installed windows twice before I glommed on to what was causing my problems. They may say free but they want a part of you, except for the three I mentioned. This was my last experience with Avast.

http://forum.avast.com/index.php?topic=138156.0

Were Firefox or Chrome not a option?
Personally, I avoid IE like the plague. I don't even touch it at home and only need it for my time sheet at work.

[Vulcan]

Originally Posted by Muffins

Were Firefox or Chrome not a option?
Personally, I avoid IE like the plague. I don't even touch it at home and only need it for my time sheet at work.

Oh yeah, I use Firefox 99.9% of the time but being barred from Explorer got me angry. There were other problems as well, various sites on Firefox, like the Fan, wouldn't work but they would on Explorer except Explorer quit working as well. Getting rid of Avast solved my problems.

As for Chrome, any download that is foisted on me when I didn't ask for it, gets in my bad books. Also having any Google appliance, installs an unwanted 'add on' on Firefox that you can't get rid of unless you delete google completely.

[QuadCityImages]

From what I've seen all antivirus software is crap. MalwareBytes is the only one I don't hate, although they're not technically an anvirus program. I just use Windows Defender, for whatever its worth, and fix issues if they arise. It only makes sense that the folks creating malware are always going to be one step ahead of the folks detecting/curing it.

The key thing, as has been said before, is to use NoScript when visiting questionable websites. I use Chrome for my daily browsing, but if I'm going to search for a TV episode to stream or something, I use Firefox with NoScript. I was using NS for everything, but it just got too damn annoying for constant use.

[BigBrodieFan]

Originally Posted by keratosis

Not to mention it became unstable.
Another good one to use in combination with Malware Bytes is Spyware Blaster.
Update once a week or so and runs un-noticed in the background.

I have used spybot for 7 years now faithfully and it has saved my butt on several occasions. I am not exactly IT oriented so I guess I never found the need to search for anything different. If something isn't working right I just run a scan and get rid of all the malware, and my computer perks right up. I don't use either my laptop nor my home pc for anything of any importance though, but I will say I worked at an IT based firm for 8 years and the geeks there used spybot religiously. This IS a great thread!

[I-Hate-Hulse]

Just thought I'd bump this - thought it was a good idea to move away from MSE so I bought the 3 user Bitdefender license for $30 or something.

Terrible move. Popups and notices galore, even though I paid for it - just an annoying experience overall. Worst of all, just like Kaspersky - it strangled my network to the point shaw.speedtest wouldn't even return a result because it was too slow. Complete waste of $30 (and am now consigned to a life time of email spam from these guys).

Uninstalled it, put in Avast-Freeware and the connection is right back to 25mbps.

Avoid Bitdefender.

[Vulcan]

i"ve got teh fee Bidtefender and no problems.

[dissentowner]

Originally Posted by Vulcan

i"ve got teh fee Bidtefender and no problems.

What the hell language is this? You sound like the thread title anyhow.

[strombad]

Originally Posted by dissentowner

What the hell language is this?

Nerd.

[photon]

Yeah I put free Bitdefender on my kid's computer with no popups, the only thing it does is when the computer starts it shows the status from the notification icon.

[Vulcan]

Originally Posted by dissentowner

What the hell language is this? You sound like the thread title anyhow.

Nah, it's how I normally type before I edit it, I just didn't bother correcting it this time. Than when I edit it, the syntax often gets all screwed up.

The point is Bitdefender Free has been fine and I hope it's a little better than MSE.

By the way, Malwarebytes has a new free version (2.0) out. It's faster than the old one.

oh yeah, and you're a jerk

[dissentowner]

Originally Posted by Vulcan

oh yeah, and you're a jerk

Lighten up, take a joke for god sake.

[keratosis]

Originally Posted by dissentowner

What the hell language is this? You sound like the thread title anyhow.

Bit defender speak.

[I-Hate-Hulse]

Hmm.... clearly I'm in the minority with Bitdefender. It's a shame MSE went down the crapper, I really do miss how unobtrusive it was compared to Bidefender or Avast.

[GoinAllTheWay]

I had bitdefender for a year as well and also dumped it. May be a hell of an A/V but something about the interface really rubbed me wrong. Avast! has been great for me for years. With it plus Malwarebytes and Super Antispyware, I think I'm in good shape.