Anything Goes Discussions

Yes you can have good Internet security without paying for it over and over again every year. As I visit clients I see them with a multitude of different security solutions. The vast majority are the paid versions from the major players such as Symantec, McAfee and Trend Micro and I always ask why.

The  3 biggest reasons I get are:

1. It came with the computer
2. I saw it advertised online or in a computer magazine
3. My ISP gave it to me for free

Lets take all of those in order and answer them.

1. They either bought it with the computer purchase or it was trial version and bought it when prompted
2. The online magazines and reviews always tend to favor the major players because they have this all in one solution, but it is not always the best solution.
3. But the ISP didn’t tell them they have to pay after the first year

Okay, I really chalk most of this to inexperienced users just trying to protect their computer. I’m actually happy they tried, but I feel sorry for them not getting another choice other than a company trying to sell them something. So here is what I use, all free versions, all get the job done and all do it pretty well. Before I start, let me say that there are other free solutions and I’m not saying that mine is only solution. If you have other ideas, please feel free to add to the discussion in the comments.

My Free Internet Security Solution

Anti-Virus – AVG 8.0 Free

It works well, finds almost everything and has a small footprint. Plus, its easy to configure and does scheduled scans and updates. It also has Anti-Spyware in 8.0, but I also recommend a separate spyware scanner.

Anti-Spyware – SuperAntiSpyware

I love this program. It gets just about everything and in concert with AVG has yet to fail me in a virus cleanup for a client that was infected while they were using other programs for virus protection. The free version of SuperAntiSpyware does not do realtime protection or let you schedule scans, but AVG includes realtime anti-spyware scanning. Doing a weekly scan takes 5 clicks on a Saturday or Sunday and you can do the weekend things we all do while it’s running.

Firewall -  Comodo Firewall

Easy to use and install, unintrusive and has many features that add to AVG and SuperAntiSpyware. As a bonus, it also looks for malware, including rootkits.

All of these things together load less processes than any of the major vendors and they are real good at what they are supposed to do. They don’t do everything, which takes away from their main job. I’d rather have 3 products that are free that do what they are supposed to well, rather than one program that I’ve paid for that does everything mediocre leaving me open to infection.

That’s what I use for my clients and recommend to anyone wanting good internet security for a great price. Remember, the initial cost for a paid program is $40 to $50 dollars and $30 to $40 a year to update. At our current prices for gas alone that is 10 to 12 gallons of gas. I’d rather have the money for gas and food then give it to companies that don’t put out a good product.