Antivirus/Spyware Thread

[Almighty Malachi]

Yeah, I'm sure there's another one, but I don't use search, and scanning the last 5 pages indicates the threads essentially buried. Plus, my question is easy.

Do I need anything beyond what's offered in the Google Pack? If so, what?

FTR, the PACK contains:

Norton Security Scan

• Detects and eliminates viruses and internet worms
• Free detection updates and scheduled scanning

Spyware Doctor Starter Edition

• Detects and removes spyware, adware, trojans and keyloggers
• Includes Smart Updates and scheduling to protect your PC

[E]

I use the free version of AVG. It works very well and doesn't bog down your system.

[Tom]

Bazooka and AdAware are both good tools.

Bazooka tends to find things the others don't. It doesn't have an automatic removal system, but it does walk you through the process to remove it manually.

[Ron Weasley]

In terms of generic internet protection, you may also need to add a firewall.

RW

[Almighty Malachi]

Well, Windows firewall is plenty for me, i don't care enough to go further.

[Brad Gile]

I use Norton Internet Security for firewall + antivirus. It has been excellent for me. In addition, I have Spyware Doctor and Antivirus, which is the best I have seen for spyware. I used to have Spysweeper, which was superb until it suddenly didn't play well with other programs, so I deep sixed it permanently.

There are plenty of options, but I would never entrust my system to just the free stuff.

[E]

Originally Posted by Almighty Malachi

Well, Windows firewall is plenty for me, i don't care enough to go further.

Using a router is an easy way to add extra firewall protection too.

[ahow]

On the desktop that only I use, I took all antivirus and antispyware software off. You'd be amazed at how resource intensive that crap is. I am pretty careful of my browsing on that computer and I have a firewall router hooked up.

I wouldn't necessarily recommend this unless you are confident in your ability to make wise decisions on the sites you browse. Otherwise I would use AVG free.

[E]

One of the best ways to protect against malware online is to avoid using Internet Explorer. Firefox and Opera are both good choices.

[GadgetGeek]

Use VirtualBox to set up an environment for unsafe browsing.