Free Antivirus Help Blog

     I have heard this line many times before. Is Norton better than McAfee? Is Kaspersky better than Avast? What is the best antivirus? Thankfully there are many ways to validate how an antivirus stacks up against their competitors.

      The first way is to find one of the many antivirus comparison companies and view their reports. One of my favorite is av-comparatives.org . You can view their latest report here. The company basically takes all of the well known antivirus software and runs a battery of tests on them. They use approximately 2,309,850 viruses on their test machines. They then rank each antivirus performance according to a battery of malware including backdoors, viruses, bots, and Trojans etc. The company then takes scanning times (Winners: ranked left to right, Avast, Symantec, Avira, and Sophos.), Detection Rates (Avira McAfee, Symantec, Avast then F-Secure 99.5% through 97.5%) and Missed Samples (Avira, McAfee, Symantec , and then Avast lower is better). Finally they assign an overall score with Avast, Symantec Norton, and Bitdefender ranked the highest.  McAfee is ranked in a tier below the following antiviruses. There are also four levels of certification with the av comparatives rankings depending on effectiveness.

    There are also other ranking services including WestCoast labs. This laboratory again tests an assortment of antivirus variables. Unfortunately, the company only provides two certifications platinum or a regular certification. So, Antivirus software either has a certification or it doesn’t as the company doesn’t rank antivirus software. However, it’s still good to check for WestCoast labs certified antivirus.

     Next, is ICSA labs. I like ICSA labs because they not only test antivirus but antispyware and anti spam as well. I believe that ICSA labs is one of the original malware testing services so I presume them to also have the most experience. However, the company like Westcoast labs only provides a certification rather than a ranking.

     Finally is Virus Bulletin. VB is the same as the last 2 certification companies in that they only provides a single Vb100 certification. This Vb100 certification means that the antivirus product detected 100 percent of viruses in the wild. Only 15 of the 26 security products that they tested passed. However, according to Av-comparatives no antivirus scored 100 percent detection.

      Some things that virus testing services don’t tell you. The first thing is the virus testing or comparative labs do not usually test free antivirus products. Free antivirus usually have modified code or scaled down functionality from the full versions. Therefore, you can’t say that full antivirus software and a free antivirus software detection rates are even close to similar. This is unfortunate because most antivirus these days are free antivirus. Just do a quick Google search for “antivirus” and the first program is free avg. However, don’t be discouraged. Check out av-comparatives and then make sure the software also has certifications on the other three sites listed above. This should answer most users’ questions about what is the best antivirus or what antivirus is better?

I know we usually only look at free antivirus software but today I also wanted to take a look at a free firewall software.  Also don't be concerned by the name the software is also compatible with Windows Vista.

Background:
Interestingly, Windows 7 and Vista already come with a firewall built into the core of the Windows operating system.  However, the firewall is under utilized as it only provides inbound protection and not outbound.  Outbound protection is crucial to a secure computer because Trojans and viruses will often try to contact a hacker’s website to send a user’s personal details, download additional viruses and automatically install them, or sit idle waiting instructions from an attacker to attack other systems.  A firewall can also be instrumental in detecting unknown viruses or other malware.  If an unknown program attempts to connect to the internet, a user will alerted to the program and it’s location.

Review:,
Windows 7 firewall control adds this crucial outbound protection to the already built in windows firewall.  Therefore, a user will not have to deal with additional firewall software that will hog CPU and memory.   Windows 7 firewall control also adds individual application protection.   While the standard firewall has a basic application setting, Windows 7 firewall control lets a user tweak inbound and outbound settings for each and every application detected.

The free firewall add on also includes zones settings.  This will allow a user to create customs zones based upon usage.  For example, a user can set a zone to only enable internet browsing or only p2p traffic. I personally liked the LAN only setting which allows a computer to only communicate with computers on a LAN and not on the internet; this is great for local servers. The different security zones can also be activated with a simple hotkey.

Additional Features:
Windows 7 firewall control includes many of the similar features in other firewalls including port forwarding and rules based firewall.  However, there are a few features that I think really make the software amazing.

Taskbar Integration – currently not available on a regular windows 7 or windows vista computer.  A user can easily access the firewall from a simple icon rather than navigating countless menus.

Special Firewall Modes – In addition to the standard enable or disable all connections, the firewall includes an expansive or insecure connection mode.  This mode is perfect for a public hotspot in which a user only wants to give a specific program access through the hotspot.  For example, you’re at a coffee shop and only want to browse the web.  You can enable insecure connection mode and only allow the web browser but not other programs, to access the internet for an intermittent period.

Shell Integration -  The Windows 7 firewall control can be integrated directly into the Windows shell.  When a users right clicks a program,  the firewall will give the user a ton of available options such as adding the application to a zone or blocking etc.

IPV6 support - a user can easily discern and categorize IPV6 traffic with this firewall.

Conclusion:
Windows 7 firewall control is a must have freeware for any Windows 7 or Vista computer.  Download it here.

Avast 5.0 Introduction 

Avast was one of the first free antivirus products that I ever used.  I have always really liked the software for its abundance of features including the screen saver scanner and all of the different shields like the p2p shield.  The only problem I have had with Avast, is that the interface has really lagged behind their competitors.  I honestly think the menus haven’t changed for maybe 7 years.  The lifted Sim City sound effects (when you click a button) also started to drive me a little crazy.

Thankfully, all of this has changed with the Avast free 5.0 beta update.  The interface has really improved and now looks like a top notch antivirus product comparable to the latest Norton and McAfee versions.  See the shocking software evolution below.

The previous Avast 4.8 shown below

The new Avast 5.0 Beta displayed below

A Norton antivirus 2010 comparison screenshot

Avast 5.0 beta technology

       In addition to the new look, Avast has also made a lot of advances in their antivirus technology.  The first is that Avast 5.0 Beta includes spyware and anti rootkit detection built in.  The anti root kit detection now has real-time protection versus a passive system hence, the avast behavior shield.  We are not exactly sure why Avast doesn’t call their product an internet security software because it includes all of the core features (anti rootkit and spyware technology) into their software package.  Just a quick note Free AVG doesn’t include rootkit detection and only includes the technology in the full version. Avast 5.0 also includes a boot scanning feature simular to Free AnVir which will allow you to scan a system even before Windows completely starts.  This prevent viruses from locking themselves into memory so that they can easily be deleted.

      The underlying antivirus system also has numerous improvements.  The first being that the free antivirus now supports multi threading.  This will allow Avast 5.0 to break up a virus scan to all of a computer’s cores.  According to infosecurity magazine,  this will allow the Avast to scan up to more than fifty percent faster than the previous Avast 4.8.
In addition, to the free version AVast will also release a full Avast 5.0 software.  The antivirus software will include completely new functionality called sandbox mode.  This will allow a user to surf the internet without worry of contracting a virus through their internet browser. This is very similar to the ImmunOS feature found on this website.

      In conclusion, Free Avast 5.0 is an excellent upgrade compared to the 4.8 software.  Download the free antivirus here before it is even officially released.

Download

Get Avast 5.0 beta here

    The first thing that might come to mind is why do I need antivirus software for my Mac?  I thought Macs cannot get infected by computer viruses?  Unfortunately, Macs are prone to viruses and Trojans and the threat is increasing.  This is because Macs are rapidly gaining more market share and are garnering more and more interest by hackers.  Specifically, for passwords stealing Trojans because Mac users tend to have a higher affluence level.  Mac users need to understand that they are vulnerable or a future virus could rain havoc on Mac users because the nomenclature “Macs can’t be susceptible,”exposed here, is false.

    Thankfully, the antivirus industry has responded with some antivirus alternatives.  Unfortunately, there are only a few free options.

    1) Kaspersky Antivirus for Mac - The just released software scans a Mac for Mac OSX and Windows viruses.  The goal of the software is to prevent a Mac from spreading PC viruses onto other computers within a home network.  The logic is that about 90% of Mac users also own a PC.  We like how the software uses only a maximum of 1% CPU power with real time protection enabled. You can download Kaspersky here.

    2) Trend Micro Online Scan – If you go to the Australian and New Zealand Trend Micro site, it states in the requirements that the scan supports Mac OS X.  The online scanner has undergown several rereleases  so the Mac support is not guarranteed.  I have looked through a few blogs to try to find this out.  Apparently, the support is available to users outside the United States  Try this link out here.

    3) ClamXav -  We have reviewed this antivirus software before here.  The antivirus software is a free nonprofit and open source program.  However, we advise you to be cautious about ClamXav only because there isn’t a large antivirus company backing the software. The software doesn't have a full time staff to find the latest viruses.  You can download the ClamXav free antivirus here.

    4) PC Tools iantivirus - This antivirus is new from PC tools.  The company makes a wide variety of other antispyware and antivirus software.  This software is highly recommended by us for Mac usage. Download the software here.

    5) MacScan Antivirus - This company has a particular advantage because they only focus on Mac viruses and spyware.  I like the cookie blocker that blocks about 9000 bad tracking cookies. Download MacScan here.

    6) Mcafee Virex Antivirus - Mcafee is another trusted name in the mac antivirus business.  The Mcafee Virex software can deployed easily over mac networks. Unfortunately, I haven't always had luck with Mcafee products. Read more here.

In conclusion, its important for a Mac computer to have antivirus installed.  Hopefully, these security options will keep Macs and Windows PC's alike safe.

I have recommended Comodo products for a while in fact, they are still on the main page today.  Our original link was for a comodo firewall however, the company has since updated their software to include a fully functional free antivirus. 

Features

Secure DNS - What's nice about Comodo's software is that it incorporates the company's knowledge of secure SSL internet encryption and identity management.  The software includes a secure DNS functionality that will protect a PC when surfing the internet.  Comodo's secure DNS will make sure that when you type in a website that you will goto to that website rather than a fake or phishing website. Comodo will also constantly weed out unacceptable and malware websites to make sure that a computer has the best protection available.

Intrustion Prevention System - Comodo's security software also comes with proactive protection.  Rather than just waiting for an antivirus or worm to infect a user's system, the antivirus software will proactively seek and destroy threats even before they can be completely downloaded. This type of antivirus technology minimizes virus clean up and makes sure that the antivirus doesn't leave traces in the registry and Windows folder.

Always on virus scanning -  alot of free antivirus do not include on access or always on scanning.  Comodo free 3.8 offers this technology and uses fewer resources due to a redesigned engine.

SafeList scanning - Comodo free antivirus gives the user an option to compile a list of safe programs on their computer.  This will prevent the antivirus from repeatedly scanning a safe location such as a large iso or compressed folder.  The safe list can be utilized during the incremental scanning option to ensure that only user defined and virus prone locations are scanned.

Heuristic Protection - We also like the inclusion of heuristic protection which kind of adds an additional layer of security on top of the Intrusion Prevention System.  If the IPS fails to detect the virus and there isn't a virus definition file available, Comodo antivirus will as a final resort, watch for suspicious virus behavior.  If the malware behavior is detected, the user will be alerted and given the opportunity to delete the file.  Therefore, the antivirus software provides a 3 tier or 3 layer security solution. 

Resource Use and Scanning 

There have been some complaints about Comodo's resource usage and scanning.  However, the company has addresed most of these problems.  In our personal tests, the software scanned on par with other free antivirus offerings and didn't slow down our computer by a large amount. 

Conclusion

Comodo 3.8 free antivirus is an excellent antivirus and now even comes bundled with a free firewall.  The software package also recieved PC magazines editor choice award and provides excellent security with a 3 layer solution.  We advise you to at least install and play around with the latest build. Get it here http://www.download3000.com/download_14828.html

Windows 7 has just been released and the big question breaks down to whether previous antivirus software designed for Windows Vista and Windows XP will work.  Unfortunately, most of the legacy antivirus software, especially those with Windows services, will have some problems with Windows 7.  I know this because I ran Windows 7 beta for a few months.  While the antivirus software might not have been completely non functional, I ran into a lot of graphical interface problems and auto protect problems.  Therefore, for those of you who have just upgraded to Windows 7,  I offer a list of free antivirus that are compatible so you do have to go out to the store and buy a new copy.

1) Windows Security Essentials - I reviewed this software a few weeks ago here.  Security Essentials was released especially for Windows 7 users.  It's free and provides great protection.  A very important feature of this antivirus is the fact that it natively supports 64bit operating systems.  Very few antivirus have this functionality*

2) AVG free Edition 9.0 -  This antivirus software was also just released just prior to the Windows 7 launch. It offers full compatibility with Windows 7. You can get the software here.

3) Avast Free Edition 4.8 - The features page of the software here, states that the software is compatible with Windows 7.  However, 4.8 is relatively old so you might want to check out the full version.  The full version comes with the "Windows 7 Certified" logo stating that software has been tested by Microsoft. 

4) McAfee Beta Total Protection for Windows 7 -  this is a new antivirus program offered by McAfee.  The software is free but it is in beta so it still may have some bugs.  Get it here.

5) McAfee Internet Security - I saw this the other day when I was logging in.  McAfee is offering 12 free months of security for Bank of America online users.  Get it here

Finally, most antivirus vendors have made sure their products are compatible with the latest verison of Windows. The thing that consumers need to look for are the "Certified for Windows 7" logos.  This will ensure that the software is completely compatible with Windows 7. Good Luck with making your version of Windows 7 more secure from viruses!

Review Summary  

     I just installed IObit Security 360. The software is not aimed at replacing a main antivirus software but augmenting a PC’s security.  On the main menu, there is a check your pc’s security option.  Basically, it includes a cookie and track deletion utility.  The program has a quick scanning feature; however, the scanning will stop when you leave the scanning page.  Security 360 uses about 62 megabytes when scanning for viruses and malware and about 17 megabytes when idle.  The memory usage is significantly higher than competing antivirus products.  The virus scan found mostly cookies on my machine.  The virus scan also found “Hijack.DisplayProperties.”  Interestingly, this is identical to what MalwareBytes Antispyware finds and is not a result of malicious modification hence a false positive.  (Update 11/03 This issue is explained on this thread here and here and is very common among Windows Vista 64bit Operating systems. It is not malicious.  BTW Malwarebytes was originally the only antispyware program to alert me to this problem) I have posted below a picture of the malwarebytes detection and the iObit detection. Notice the same name and location.

MalwareBytes Hijack.DisplayProperties Photo

Here it is clearer...

Iobit Hijack.DisplayProperties Photo

You can read a more indepth analysis into this issue at http://www.wilderssecurity.com/showpost.php?p=1568991&postcount=133

Original Review continued...

The real-time protection isn’t completely enabled and excludes zero day virus protection.  However, this can be enabled by simply going to the real time protection menu and selecting the button.  It seems like the trial works as if it is freeware only automatic updates and scheduling scans are disabled. However, you can still update the program by clicking update.  The program also offers virus tools which basically are rebranded versions of Spyware Blaster and Hijackthis but with more user friendly menus. 

Conclusion

   The only problem I have with Security 360 is that it isn’t a mature product.  The program only has about 200,000 security fingerprints. This is in contrast to other competing software with millions of detection definitions.  The Security Holes scanning utility is also not available for 64bit O/S yet.  It comes with a currently "not supported message" instead of a functional utility.

Download

   While IObit Security 360 is far from perfect, you can get Security 360 full for free during the promotional period. Goto the website below to download.

http://db.iobit.com/license-free/win7-special-offer.php

Spyware Doctor 10.0 has just been released and has recieved a significant amount of fanfare.   The software was awarded PC magazines highest rating ever of 95% for an antivirus / antispyware product.  I definitely tend to agree with this award as it's been a featured product on this website for over 2 years.  Unfortunately, the latest version of spyware doctor must be purchased.  While this may seem like a downside, if you want the latest in PC protection definetly think about picking up the full product. However, most of the readers of this website want a free verison.  Therefore,  there are many free offerings that people are unaware of made by PC tools.  In addition to Free Spyware Doctor starter edition, PC tools offers a free antivirus software, free firewall, and threat fire to protect against undiscovered malware threats.

PC tools Antivirus 6.1:

PC tools antivirus is an excellent free antivirus software. The program uses very little resources and is certified by Westcoast and ICSA labs (the main antivirus reviewing companies.) The updates are very fast and the software includes a realtime scanning agent. I'am not quite sure why PC tools doesn't charge money for this antivirus software. 

PC tools Firewall Plus:

The company has an excellent free firewall that works with all versions of Windows including, Windows 7.  The default Windows firewall only includes an inbound firewall.  PC tools firewall will also give a PC inbound protection in addition to out bound protection.  I really like the included support for IPV6 which will soon become the standard on the internet.  Most current firewalls omit IPV6 protection and only protect IPV4 creating a lot of vulnerabilities.

ThreatFire 4.5:

ThreatFire is an antivirus addon that uses behavorial technology to detect viruses even before they are released. ThreatFire has already scanned more than 100 billion programs and counting. 

In conclusion, if you install all of these free programs you are practically ensuring that your PC will be secure even in some of the most mission critical situations.  So head over to the PC tools website and happy downloading :).

  I just downloaded and installed the newest Adaware Free version on my Vista 64 bit edition laptop.  The software has really come a long way from the original free ad-aware software in multiple ways.  The first is that the free version now includes "Ad-watch" Live real time protection. The scanner works like an antivirus shield constantly scanning for spyware and Trojans. However, the real watch only includes process protection.  Registry and Network real time protection are omitted and are only available in the paid version.  Still, the inclusion of real-time protection is still better than not having it at all.

     Adware is going the trend of most antivirus programs and now includes the ability to switch between simple and advanced modes. The latter gives more options such as statistics on what spyware items are detected, additional settings to be tweaked, and the ability to schedule scans.  However, it appears that you cannot click the schedule scans button; it simply says "Upcoming Scheduled Scans." I assume this means that the feature will be included in latter versions.  Adaware 8.1 also includes a new smart scan feature in addition to the full and customized scans.  The smart scan took about 5 minutes to complete and appeared to look in the windows directory, active processes, registry, and many other areas that malware like to hide. The myriad of malware detection capabilities are amazing with the Full scan. I really like how all of the detection technologies are shown highlighted depending on which type of scan is selected. Ad-Aware also includes a track sweep privacy protector tab.  Unfortunately, the sweeper only sweeps Firefox, Internet Explorer, and Opera tracks (available in the paid version.) 

     Adware Free 8.1 was a pretty big download, 73.53 mb to be exact.  I figured a program of this size would already include a lot of updated spyware signatures.  However, upon updating the software, Adware wanted to download additional updates. Therefore, I think it’s safe to say the total download size is about 100mb.  Finally, I think the interface could be better.  It feels kind of cheap to me with unnecessary transparent windows and unclear text.  Regardless of the minor faults, everyone should have antispyware software in addition to antivirus software. Adaware is one of the oldest on the block and offers a lot of protection.

Download Adaware 8.1 Free

    Grisoft has just released a new version of their antivirus software AVG 9.0.  The software improves upon the previous AVG 8.0 in several ways.  The first is faster scanning.  The AVG site states that scanning capability has increased with a new and improved scanning engine. Grisoft has stated that the scanning time has decreased by as much as 50%.  Grisoft has also stated that AVG 9.0 features improvements in boot times, memory consumption, and installation time. Unfortunately, after testing the software some review sites have stated that the scanning has not really improved and the software produces false positives.  In addition to the new scanning features, the internet security package includes a new phishing scanner and a firewall. 
    I think the most important fact about this announcement is its timing.  Microsoft just released their Security Essentials product and the antivirus industry has to be really nervous. I recall that antivirus companies have even stated that they'll take legal action against Microsoft if they release a free antivirus program. AVG probably felt it needed to release an updated product to combat Microsoft's free antivirus public relations frenzy. While users will have to pay for AVG 9.0, I think one can make a sure bet that the technology will be siphoned down to the Free AVG product line shortly. Watch out for a new free AVG version