Re: question re: free a/v software

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On Wed, 30 Apr 2008 12:45:40 -0400, "D." <wdstk@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:

does free a/v software provide
adequate security ?



That depends on what you are asking.

If you're asking whether all free anti-virus programs are good, the
answer is no (but neither are all paid-for anti-virus programs).

If you are asking whether the best free anti-virus program is as good
as the best paid-for anti-virus program, the answer is still no,
although the better free ones are very good and are close to the best
paid-for ones.

If you are asking whether *any* anti-virus alone provides adequate
security, the answer is also no. For adequate security, you also need
to run a firewall program, and two or more anti-spyware programs.

Also note that some of the most well-known and most commonly-used
anti-virus programs are among the poorest available--for example,
Norton and McAfee.

My personal choice of anti-virus software is NOD32 (a paid-for
product) but the free version of Avast is close behind it.

--
Ken Blake, Microsoft MVP - Windows Desktop Experience
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Relevant Pages

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