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So, Windows defender is there and has worked fine for me in past (MSE). I read a few blogs where it mentioned that there are better free options available. I saw a lot of praise for BitDefender, Kaspersky and Avira as well.
What would you recommend as a free antivirus software? And where should I put my money on between Kaspersky and BitDefender?
"You'd have to be a floating database guru clad in a white toga and ghandi level of sereneness to fix this goddamn clusterfuck.", BruceN[ ^]
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I'm using Kaspersky, and it's less intrusive than Defender (which used to while away the afternoons scanning my whole PC and rendering it useless in the process, despite all the times I told it to do it at 1 AM).
The only hassle with it is it's "Safe Money / Safe Browser" thing, which is very slow to start the first time after a reboot - so if I access the bank or try to use Paypal it takes 15 or 20 seconds to switch over. Second time it's about 5 seconds.
Other than that, it's pretty good - hasn't found any problems which either means I'm more careful than I need to be, or it's not doing anything at all... 
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
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I have found Win10Pro Defender irritating as well. I have managed to minimize it by using Task Scheduler. Let's face it, Anti-Virus programs are for dummys, in that the first line of defense is your brain, the second is the firewall, as it prevents those things from coming in the first place, IFF you didn't use the first line of defense. Defender is only good for defending against those things that MS installs, as it can only really check MS it's updates, and just spy's on everything else. Defender doesn't go after the OS segments like itself. If you install from unknown sources, you're asking for trouble anyway. CCleaner (free) does way more than Defender, and is less offensive, it removes and fixes for free. SpyHunter (free version) is even more effect in finding stuff in your deep directories and registry, but to "fix them" they want you to buy their full version, bust still find stuff CCleaner missed and Defender could less about any way. 
The World as we think we know it Has a lot more to it than meets the eye.
A Mad Scientist who has seen it for himself....
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The_Inventor wrote: Let's face it, Anti-Virus programs are for dummys, in that the first line of defense is your brain, the second is the firewall, as it prevents those things from coming in the first place
You're kidding me, right?
Malware and virus infections come through "safe" vectors. You download a popular app from an app store and you (and the rest of the world) discovers that a backdoor was in place. Or you go to a "safe" website and find someone has managed to insert malicious code either in user generated content, via a 3rd party a brokerage, or even a disgruntled employee. The only way to be "smart" about these things is turn off your internet connection and hide under your bed.
With regards to firewalls, I'm not sure how one would use them to help against malware and viruses. Ransomware doesn't actually make any external calls, and unless you work on the principle that you have a whitelist of a very few selected sites / IPs that will allow traffic, you're going to have a hardtime containing viruses coming in or sending info out.
I'm happy to be educated here...
cheers
Chris Maunder
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Having Anything less than a desktop, and one is in for trouble, especially if one has fat finger like I do. Again remember the first line of defense, if it looks hinky it most likely is hinky. Know an Ad link from the correct download link, etc. A secure browser is a happy browser. It will notify you of a bad certificate of some ad that is replacing a previous one. Pop-ups will. If you keep track of what you are doing, and stay away from I-sites with 'free wifi" as these are definite places for trouble. Most of what gets on your HD comes from clicking 'yes' to something you didn't really want but came with something that you did want. Adobe "updater" ads are the worst.
The World as we think we know it Has a lot more to it than meets the eye.
A Mad Scientist who has seen it for himself....
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I'm using ClamAV to do full HD scans, the CLI works pretty slick: ClamavNet[^].
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Personally I've had good (free) results with Avast. Comodo is also very good, but needs tuning and is better for advanced-expert level users. Whatever you choose, you owe it to yourself to install a tiny program called unchecky that prevents most potentially unwanted programs (toolbars etc) getting on the PC in the 1st place. It's seriously clever. Links:
<a href="http://www.unchecky.com/">Unchecky - Keeps your checkboxes clear</a>[<a href="http://www.unchecky.com/" target="_blank" title="New Window">^</a>]
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None of them and all of them. In the end I just use Windows Defender.
I've had Avast bombard me with false positives, AVG has security issues, Kaspersky is just as hard on my machine as anything else, and they all want to spend an inordinate amount of time making sure I realise just how hard they are working to Keep Me Safe.
I'm struggling to see how any one of them is (in the long term) better than any of the others. One day one of them can spot a virus the other's can't, and the next day that one is falling behind.
cheers
Chris Maunder
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Do you have some specific problem with Windows Defender? If not - do not change it...There are a lot of pros and cons for each, but at the end all can fail if you make foolish moves (visiting sites you should not, running applications from unknown source... you know the staff...)...
Skipper: We'll fix it.
Alex: Fix it? How you gonna fix this?
Skipper: Grit, spit and a whole lotta duct tape.
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Avast free, then behave yourself.
You should be a-ok.
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I just use Windows Defender. I have tried some other proprietary anti-virus solutions, but ended up disliking all of them. I manually update Defender once a day and run a quick scan. Then I manually run a full scan on my system drive - maybe once a week.
But I have another tier of defense:
I have a second drive in my desktop for data only. I keep a full backup of my data drive on two external drives, not normally connected to my computer, as a safeguard against Ransomware and drive failures.
To back up my systems drive, I regularly take an image of the entire drive, that I also store on an external drive. I usually take a fresh image after any major update of Windows. You can try and use the Windows 7 imaging utility (it's still there, in the Windows 10 Control Panel), but it is not dependable and is likely to leave you stranded at the most inopportune time. For imaging, I use Macrium's Reflect - a free tool. Reflect can also create a boot disc for you, from which you can boot to re-image your drive. In case of a disaster, re-imaging my systems drive takes about 10 to 15 minutes.
How do we preserve the wisdom men will need,
when their violent passions are spent?
- The Lost Horizon
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U.S. Acres[^]
Skipper: We'll fix it.
Alex: Fix it? How you gonna fix this?
Skipper: Grit, spit and a whole lotta duct tape.
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Oh, It looks like Orsons Farm (by Jim Davis, Garfield creator) has it now been renamed US Acres (? )
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It was always called U.S. Acres inside the US and Orson Farm from outside...
Skipper: We'll fix it.
Alex: Fix it? How you gonna fix this?
Skipper: Grit, spit and a whole lotta duct tape.
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That I did not know. 
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One of those rare occasions on which USA! USA! USA! does not feel the need to shoehorn itself into everything for us foreigners!
I am not a number. I am a ... no, wait!
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I worked on some software years ago where this very issue came up. Try as I might I could never get this through to our Project Architect, and some of the others; all of whom lived in a country with at least 4 timezones.
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I am interested in high frequency trading software this year. can anybody share some experience on good software or platform?
diligent hands rule....
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footcardigan
Skipper: We'll fix it.
Alex: Fix it? How you gonna fix this?
Skipper: Grit, spit and a whole lotta duct tape.
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Isn't that just a sock that buttons up at the front?
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
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Exactly - and I trade them in a very high frequency...Once a month...
(visit that site for a bit of fun  )
Skipper: We'll fix it.
Alex: Fix it? How you gonna fix this?
Skipper: Grit, spit and a whole lotta duct tape.
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I work on the "Student Sock Rotation" method: throw them all at the wall and wear the ones that don't stick...
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
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And what are you doing with those DO stick? 
Skipper: We'll fix it.
Alex: Fix it? How you gonna fix this?
Skipper: Grit, spit and a whole lotta duct tape.
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Turn it into a climbing wall.
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
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