Security Part 1: Windows Free AntiVirus Software

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Windows AntiVirus Software

I had Symantec AntiVirus but it stopped updated since due to end of life support.  Exact problem can be seen here.  (Yes, I did not use my PC for that long).   I decided to look for other free antivirus software.

I found the following link from PC Magazine explaining the best free antivirus software:

Here are the steps I followed, with some explanation of the decisions I made.
I ended up installing Avast and AVG.

I was also considering McFee that comes free with Bell Internet subscription.   It was rated pretty high in this article by PC Magazine.   It does not seem to be covering windows XP, more on this soon

Installing Avast:

It suggest for me to uninstall Symantec which I accepted, having a software that does not work properly just gave me false security.   Bonus was that it deleted 450 MB of old data from my PC.

Note:
My Windows XP started complaining that no firewall was turned on.
I turned on the default one, but Avast does not come with one without a paid subscription.

When I logged in my browser for the first time, I noticed an Add-on was installed called Avast Online Security.  From the settings I have left everything as default except removed Data Sharing and Search Engine Results.  I already use Web Of Trust for that, and found the Search Engine Results to be a bit intrusive.

My First Scan:

Outdated Software: (Really Cool Feature) I got 5 outdated software that I use.  I have decided to update Skype and VLC and 7-Zip file Manger.  I have fully removed DivX WebPlayer (have not used it in a very long time) and remove Flash Player ActiveX.
Interesting: when I ran it the second time I got JRE 6 needs to be updated as well.  I decided to uninstall it completely and install JRE 8 when the time is needed.

Bad Reputation Browser Add-ons: Uninstall Java Plug in 1.6.  (2/5 Star rating)  I have removed it as java 8 is the latest version now.

Network Issues: Found an issue for my network router password being weak and suggested I change it.  I changed it.

Performance Issues: I got 3 issues:
- Junk Files (250 MG)
- System Settings (30 issues)
- Unnecessary apps (30 issues)
It asked for updated version for this to be done.  It showed all the details, so you can still do it manually.

Weak Passwords: It suggested how to improve passwords and how to make them more unique.   I will follow up with another post on passwords later. 

Overall Review:

This is just from first impressions, I will do a better analysis later.

Pros: the features are pretty cool, great overall improvements of programs. Some of the features would require a bit more work if you decide not pay for them.  
It integrates pretty well with Chrome Browser, the networks...

Cons:

  • UI had some issues.  The first think I noticed was that the window cannot be made full screen.  The second thing after a scan is complete, it is hard to jump to certain parts and fix it.  
  • The other thing which I did not like, which is pretty big was the lack of firewall.
  • Could not install AVG while Avast was running.  See comments below.

Installing AVG:

On the first attempt installation failed.  I go the the following exception.

Error code: 0xE0010053
Description: Event exec_finished

Looking at this post: https://support.avg.com/answers?id=906b00000008sKwAAI I have disabled Avast (there is a nice feature to disable it for 10 minutes.)

I tried installing it again and it worked.

First Scan:

First scan found 1 error (unlocker program - which allows you to stop processes even if they are used by other resources...) This was a not very well document program so it makes sense that it was deleted.  The program got moved to Virus vault.  After finding the virus vault: Options > Virus Vault from the AVG Main Menu (not the AVG Zen menu) I emptied the vault.

I installed Performance PRO (It has 1 day free trial).  I decided to run it on a 7 year old PC and see what it came up with.  It found
  • 2036 registry issues 
    • Lots of old programs that I have deleted...
  • 808 broken shortcuts
    • Mostly recent files
  • 36 MB in System Cache and Logs
  • 1 GB in Browser Data
    • mostly Microsoft Internet Explorer (which I do not really use)
  • Startup and Shutdown 7 Issues
Performance PRO comes with 4 features:

  • Maintenance - described above
  • Speed Up 
    • Recommends which programs to disabled on start up...
  • Free Up Space 
    • Duplicate files.  I was disappointed this was a manual process, but I guess manual intervention is required for all of it, so it makes some sense
    • System Cache and Log 
      • I have removed all the previous backup version except the last
      • This is a super super slow process
  • Fix Problems
    • Did not accept network shared passwords on folders... (its a home pc)
    • Did though analysis of the disk


Nice Features: 
- connects to multiple devices.
- 1 Day free trial of Performance Pro
Cons:
- unable to make full screen the UI.
-

Overall Review:

If you have an old computer with lots of software that was installed/deleted... Go with AVG.  The 1 day free trial of Performance PRO is a worthy investment.  It should speed up your computer and get rid of GB of useless data.





I will update this blog with the review of:

Malwarebytes Anti-Malware 2.0:

It can be downloaded for free from the here.

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