Avira free version—no need to download any other program they have available except for possibly the firewall.
Look at the latest AV-acomparatives.org review:
https://www.av-comparatives.org/tests/real-world-protection-test-feb-mar-2020-factsheet/
Avira is free and ties with Bitdefender.
AVG, Norton etc are viruses.
Ductape
Malwarebytes...
(the 1st one is a joke)
I used Avast free for the past 10 years but always have Malwarebytes in case one nasty rootkit gets past it..
In my opinion AVG has become close to spyware. It is always trying to make you buy stuff and sends you messages that your computer could be compromised when in fact it hasn’t.
On the other hand, I've been extremely satisfied with their VPN (paid)... The only problem there is that the anti=virus AVG keeps telling me that I need vpn protection... It's like one hand doesn't know what the other hand is doing...
As a result, I've decided to dump AVG anti virus when the subscription runs out next fall...Will need to find something else to start testing before that...
I stand corrected. It did a lot better than Bitdefender those months and ties with Kaspersky.
Nothing was better than those two for catching everything while having the least false positives.
MacOS v. 10.15
I run Microsoft Security Essentials on my Win 7 laptop and desktop.
Other programs either became bloatware or had compatibility issues.
MS still updates the definitions file.
Clam AV
Linux Ubuntu/Mint
$ sudo apt-get install clamav
$ sudo freshclam
GUI interface:
$ sudo apt-get install clamtk
If you’re running Windows 10, the built in Microsoft Security package works well enough in my opinion. I used to run a free version of Avast, but eventually there were conflicts with software I was trying to load, so I thought I’d give MSFT’s package a try. That was several years ago, and I’m happy with the results.
A few false alarms, not many. But nothing has messed my system up over the past few years.
Also, a nuisance scan with something like Malwarebytes for malware is a good thing to do every few months.
At the end of each day I run an Advanced care system scan which eliminates trackers and then I run CClean to clean up remaining trackers. Zone Alarm runs in the background and detects bugs.
All at no cost.
We’ve been using the antivirus that comes with Windows 10 for the past year. Works fine, doesn’t slow down our computers, and doesn’t cost anything extra.
Read recently that “Eset” catches the most malware....Bitdefender has the least “overhead”.
I use -
https://www.eset.com/us/home/internet-security/download/
Not really a recommendation, just mentioning it because no one else did.
By subscription.
I have used Avast in the past but testing out Avira on my new machine. Basically free rivals though Avast has a pay option with more functions. I also have used Norton in the past but it was pay and was outdated.
P.S. I also added other programs including CCleaner, Malwarebytes, Spybot Search and Destroy, Advanced System Care, Iobit uninstaller and software updater and Defraggler, defragging program.
I have not messed with firewalls, I think windows 10 comes with its own, But if not found Comdo Firewall and Zone Alarm but I don’t need anything draconian to where other programs won’t run due to extreme security.