help choosing/building secutiry suite

[rmdl51]

I want to get rid of McAfee replacing it with a lower resource demand software, but I need to choose wise three things:

For Antivirus I'm trying AVG on one computer and Avast it the other, I think they are good, I'm gonna test them and see which one performs better.

Firewall I don' really know if the one with XP is enough, I guess not, but don't know much about other firewalls, I'm gonna try zone alarm. I've heard it's a good one.

Where I have no idea and I need suggestion is with Antispyware/adware/malware please let me know what do you use.

Thank you!

 

[Route44]

You would get more responses if this was placed in the Security and the Web forum. A moderator will probably move it there. plus they got grreat stickies that i suggest you read. That being said and since I am already here...

1. Do you have a router? If not get one A.S.A.P. That is your first, best defense.

2. Are you willing to pay money for protection? If so Kaspersky and NOD32 for anti-virus. Kaspersky has the #1 detection rate and NOD32 is just about there. I run NOD32 though it takes time to initially configure, but it's resource demand is some of the lightest in the industry.

3. There are security suites (anti-virus, anti-spyware, firewall, etc., included) such as Kaspersky's 6.0 offering, Bit-Defender (a lot of people like this), and Norton's latest offering called 360. Norton was a major resource hog for years through various versions but from what I have read and have actually talked to people their newest offering is much better all around. These all cost $.

My first choice would be Kaspersky.

4. Free antivirus offerings are AVG, AVAST!, and Avira. All three are used extensively though I have been reading of late that AVG free has some issues. I would be interested on how your like the first two. I loaded AVAST on my daughter's laptop and liked how easy it was to install with Vista Home Premium. Not problems so far.

5. The firewall in XP isn't good enough. ZA is okay but it can slow a system down; I don't know how good their free firewall really is. I run Sunbelt's Firewall but I have had too many issues with it, i.e., BSODs.

The best one at this point according to all the testing is actually a free one: Comodo. Seriously, it is free and they have a tremendous community that will help you set it up.

For $:Online Armor gets good ratings but I believe Mark is still trying to secure three ports. Kaspersky's firewall in their Suite has high marks.

6. Superantispyware looks really good though it costs $ but is very reasonable. I really like AVG's free anti-spyware but from what I have read after a month the shield protection disappears.

Another $ one is Webroot's Spysweeper but it takes a really long time to do a full sweep, but its shields are really nice.

Just a few suggestions; others will happily disagree with me on some points.

 

[rmdl51]

Thank you so much for everything! If you dont mention it I will keep thinking that I post the thread on the security area, I was actually looking for it and thought it was removed, but your post sent me an email and find it!

Well, first one I don't understand why a Router improve my defense, even though I have one for two wireless computers and this one that it's wired.

Then I don't want to deal with Norton again, many issues in the past and it's the worst suite about resources. For everything else I think I'll consider every option and try them, the free ones of course

I think that I'm willing to pay but I really want to pay for something that really works and it's light on resources, you are right about Avast! I just installed on my dad's Laptop (he had McAfee) and what a difference!! there's like two minutes of loading time saved! Well I just hope it really protects you against the virus.

Did anyone of the antispyware you mention is freeware? is comodo a firewall? maybe I should try kaspersky but I have to pay for it, I wish there were trials for full versions to test them, and then decide if it's worth the money or not.

Again Thank you for your time and I hope a moderator can help me to move this to the correct forum. I don't know what happen maybe I selected wrong, I just noticed the terrible spelling of the thread title, man I was on rush

 

[Route44]

1. Routers are your first line if defense and the most essential for protection. They have a hardware firewall built in. This is not to say you don't need an anti-virus or malware defender. But since you have a few already you don't need to buy one.

2. I fully understand about Norton. They have lost quite a few customers over the years for various reasons. But like I said, their 360 seems to be a lot better.

3. Light resorces = NOD32 but it takes quite a bit of initial configuration. The free anti-virus offerings should do you fine just as long as you are amart in your online habits.

4. You can download Kaspersky for a 30 day free trial.

5. Comodo is absolutely free and an excellent firewall. Just google Comodo.

6. The only anti-spyware that I listed that is free comes from AVG.