Reinvesting in Security? THINK ONCE AGAIN!

This blog posts involves on how to opt a perfect (if not most apt) antivirus security/software for your system (generally a PC)? Based on freewares, trialwares and paid versions of some well known security softwares available on the market today, presented below are glimpses of facts associated with them. Its obvious not all anti-spyware tools, anti-spam tools have been covered here. Freeware are the precedence.

Never use real viruses for testing the operation of an anti-virus product!

Anti-Virus Programs

·         Avast! Home Edition*** is one of the most widely used free antivirus software out there. The only way to test antivirus software is to treat viruses- so it must be manually done by removing if any from one's system.

Avast also has VRDB means Virus Recovery DataBase. VRDB helps when, despite all the security measures, a virus gets inside the computer and files get infected. It is possible to repair infected files, return them exactly to their original state.

 Avast is very light on system a resource which is the most for almost every user. For support visit: http://avast.com/ and a good forum at http://forum.avast.com/. Free avast! Home Edition can be downloaded from www.avast.com/.

·         AVG Free Edition is another popular free antivirus. Rapid virus database updates are available for the lifetime of the product from the website http://free.grisoft.com/. AVG will not slow down the system or use minimal system resources. The interface and use is very easy going.

·         AntiVir from the word antivirus, another free antivirus is very light in system's resources. In AntiVir, you have the option of scanning all files, or using a file extension list. Private and individual use of AntiVir Personal Edition is completely free of charge. Get it from http://free-av.com/.

·         Symantec's Norton Antivirus and many other security softwares are not a point to be reviewed. Simply, because the cost is relatively high and the processor need to be of high speed, some of the newbie tech guys having NAV Clients on their system later get rid of, having been tired of slow response of the system. Opt if you have gigs of RAM and bucks! Visit http://symantect.com Now!

·         Kaspersky Antivirus  provides complex computer protection against viruses, spywares and other malicious programs. Many previous blog posts about security in this blog explain how Kaspersky Antivirus is using the latest in tech today. Proactive defense, Multitask Protection Management, iChecker, and many other. A 30 day or 60 day trial is downloadable from http://www.kaspersky.com and another site worth visiting would be http://www.viruslist.com. If you have bucks (not too costly) and the system is not that too old, consider purchasing a key.

·          NOD 32 Antivirus System is one of the oldest of its type. And also with many users, probably many adding everyday. You can download and buy NOD 32 from the net. Associated with ESET, spol. s r.o., this threatSense® engine is a sophisticated, well-balanced system, visit http://www.eset.com/  for details.

Test "virus" EICAR and its modifications

This test "virus" was specially designed by EICAR (The European Institute for Computer Antivirus Research) for testing anti-virus products. The test "virus" IS NOT A VIRUS because it does not contain code that can harm your computer. However, most anti-virus products manufacturers identify this file as a virus. Never use real viruses for testing the operation of an anti-virus product!

You can download this test "virus" from the official website of the EICAR organization at: http://www.eicar.org/anti_virus_test_file.htm. The file that you downloaded from the EICAR website contains the body of a standard test virus.

Firewalls

·         Sygate Personla Firewall- SPF- http://sygate.com/.

·         ZoneAlarm - www.zonealarm.com/

·         Kerio Personal Firewall- KPF – http://www.kerio.com/kpf_comparision_version.html/

Anti-Spyware

·         Ad-Aware SE – http://www.lavasoftusa.com/support/download/

·         Spybot – Search & Destroy- SS&D – http://www.safer-networking.org/en/download/

Anti-Spam Software

·         POPFile – http://popfile.sourceforge.net/

·         K9- http://www.keir.net/k9.html

Folder and Drive Protection Software

This can be another nightmare to find a program that disables mobile drives or your private email folders. Test some of few free on the net and some might never have been considered of. Please, search the geeklog for more on this topic.

·         The Microsoft TweakUI Powertoy - www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/downloads/powertoys/xppowertoys.mspx   

·         CleverCrypt Lite - www.tucows.com/preview/388836

·         WinGuard Pro - www.winguardpro.com

Related Links:

The information presented herein the blog is directly from the end user experiences of the various programs (either trial or full versions). Please, visit the product's official website before making purchase. Read more from the following links:

·         Previous posts about Security Softwares from this blog

·         Google's responses on Antivirus Softwares

·         Free Antivirus Softwares available on the net

·         Download ready made registry hacks

·         Viruses are a big no-no today, and many a posts at geeklog are here.

·         The easiest way to remove viruses/malwares without installing any antivirus software

Intruder Alert and Autorun viruses on pen drives are strictly prohibited!