Free Antivirus Help Blog

Windows 7 has just been released and the big question breaks down to whether previous antivirus software designed for Windows Vista and Windows XP will work.  Unfortunately, most of the legacy antivirus software, especially those with Windows services, will have some problems with Windows 7.  I know this because I ran Windows 7 beta for a few months.  While the antivirus software might not have been completely non functional, I ran into a lot of graphical interface problems and auto protect problems.  Therefore, for those of you who have just upgraded to Windows 7,  I offer a list of free antivirus that are compatible so you do have to go out to the store and buy a new copy.

1) Windows Security Essentials - I reviewed this software a few weeks ago here.  Security Essentials was released especially for Windows 7 users.  It's free and provides great protection.  A very important feature of this antivirus is the fact that it natively supports 64bit operating systems.  Very few antivirus have this functionality*

2) AVG free Edition 9.0 -  This antivirus software was also just released just prior to the Windows 7 launch. It offers full compatibility with Windows 7. You can get the software here.

3) Avast Free Edition 4.8 - The features page of the software here, states that the software is compatible with Windows 7.  However, 4.8 is relatively old so you might want to check out the full version.  The full version comes with the "Windows 7 Certified" logo stating that software has been tested by Microsoft. 

4) McAfee Beta Total Protection for Windows 7 -  this is a new antivirus program offered by McAfee.  The software is free but it is in beta so it still may have some bugs.  Get it here.

5) McAfee Internet Security - I saw this the other day when I was logging in.  McAfee is offering 12 free months of security for Bank of America online users.  Get it here

Finally, most antivirus vendors have made sure their products are compatible with the latest verison of Windows. The thing that consumers need to look for are the "Certified for Windows 7" logos.  This will ensure that the software is completely compatible with Windows 7. Good Luck with making your version of Windows 7 more secure from viruses!

Review Summary  

     I just installed IObit Security 360. The software is not aimed at replacing a main antivirus software but augmenting a PC’s security.  On the main menu, there is a check your pc’s security option.  Basically, it includes a cookie and track deletion utility.  The program has a quick scanning feature; however, the scanning will stop when you leave the scanning page.  Security 360 uses about 62 megabytes when scanning for viruses and malware and about 17 megabytes when idle.  The memory usage is significantly higher than competing antivirus products.  The virus scan found mostly cookies on my machine.  The virus scan also found “Hijack.DisplayProperties.”  Interestingly, this is identical to what MalwareBytes Antispyware finds and is not a result of malicious modification hence a false positive.  (Update 11/03 This issue is explained on this thread here and here and is very common among Windows Vista 64bit Operating systems. It is not malicious.  BTW Malwarebytes was originally the only antispyware program to alert me to this problem) I have posted below a picture of the malwarebytes detection and the iObit detection. Notice the same name and location.

MalwareBytes Hijack.DisplayProperties Photo

Here it is clearer...

Iobit Hijack.DisplayProperties Photo

You can read a more indepth analysis into this issue at http://www.wilderssecurity.com/showpost.php?p=1568991&postcount=133

Original Review continued...

The real-time protection isn’t completely enabled and excludes zero day virus protection.  However, this can be enabled by simply going to the real time protection menu and selecting the button.  It seems like the trial works as if it is freeware only automatic updates and scheduling scans are disabled. However, you can still update the program by clicking update.  The program also offers virus tools which basically are rebranded versions of Spyware Blaster and Hijackthis but with more user friendly menus. 

Conclusion

   The only problem I have with Security 360 is that it isn’t a mature product.  The program only has about 200,000 security fingerprints. This is in contrast to other competing software with millions of detection definitions.  The Security Holes scanning utility is also not available for 64bit O/S yet.  It comes with a currently "not supported message" instead of a functional utility.

Download

   While IObit Security 360 is far from perfect, you can get Security 360 full for free during the promotional period. Goto the website below to download.

http://db.iobit.com/license-free/win7-special-offer.php

Spyware Doctor 10.0 has just been released and has recieved a significant amount of fanfare.   The software was awarded PC magazines highest rating ever of 95% for an antivirus / antispyware product.  I definitely tend to agree with this award as it's been a featured product on this website for over 2 years.  Unfortunately, the latest version of spyware doctor must be purchased.  While this may seem like a downside, if you want the latest in PC protection definetly think about picking up the full product. However, most of the readers of this website want a free verison.  Therefore,  there are many free offerings that people are unaware of made by PC tools.  In addition to Free Spyware Doctor starter edition, PC tools offers a free antivirus software, free firewall, and threat fire to protect against undiscovered malware threats.

PC tools Antivirus 6.1:

PC tools antivirus is an excellent free antivirus software. The program uses very little resources and is certified by Westcoast and ICSA labs (the main antivirus reviewing companies.) The updates are very fast and the software includes a realtime scanning agent. I'am not quite sure why PC tools doesn't charge money for this antivirus software. 

PC tools Firewall Plus:

The company has an excellent free firewall that works with all versions of Windows including, Windows 7.  The default Windows firewall only includes an inbound firewall.  PC tools firewall will also give a PC inbound protection in addition to out bound protection.  I really like the included support for IPV6 which will soon become the standard on the internet.  Most current firewalls omit IPV6 protection and only protect IPV4 creating a lot of vulnerabilities.

ThreatFire 4.5:

ThreatFire is an antivirus addon that uses behavorial technology to detect viruses even before they are released. ThreatFire has already scanned more than 100 billion programs and counting. 

In conclusion, if you install all of these free programs you are practically ensuring that your PC will be secure even in some of the most mission critical situations.  So head over to the PC tools website and happy downloading :).

  I just downloaded and installed the newest Adaware Free version on my Vista 64 bit edition laptop.  The software has really come a long way from the original free ad-aware software in multiple ways.  The first is that the free version now includes "Ad-watch" Live real time protection. The scanner works like an antivirus shield constantly scanning for spyware and Trojans. However, the real watch only includes process protection.  Registry and Network real time protection are omitted and are only available in the paid version.  Still, the inclusion of real-time protection is still better than not having it at all.

     Adware is going the trend of most antivirus programs and now includes the ability to switch between simple and advanced modes. The latter gives more options such as statistics on what spyware items are detected, additional settings to be tweaked, and the ability to schedule scans.  However, it appears that you cannot click the schedule scans button; it simply says "Upcoming Scheduled Scans." I assume this means that the feature will be included in latter versions.  Adaware 8.1 also includes a new smart scan feature in addition to the full and customized scans.  The smart scan took about 5 minutes to complete and appeared to look in the windows directory, active processes, registry, and many other areas that malware like to hide. The myriad of malware detection capabilities are amazing with the Full scan. I really like how all of the detection technologies are shown highlighted depending on which type of scan is selected. Ad-Aware also includes a track sweep privacy protector tab.  Unfortunately, the sweeper only sweeps Firefox, Internet Explorer, and Opera tracks (available in the paid version.) 

     Adware Free 8.1 was a pretty big download, 73.53 mb to be exact.  I figured a program of this size would already include a lot of updated spyware signatures.  However, upon updating the software, Adware wanted to download additional updates. Therefore, I think it’s safe to say the total download size is about 100mb.  Finally, I think the interface could be better.  It feels kind of cheap to me with unnecessary transparent windows and unclear text.  Regardless of the minor faults, everyone should have antispyware software in addition to antivirus software. Adaware is one of the oldest on the block and offers a lot of protection.

Download Adaware 8.1 Free

    Grisoft has just released a new version of their antivirus software AVG 9.0.  The software improves upon the previous AVG 8.0 in several ways.  The first is faster scanning.  The AVG site states that scanning capability has increased with a new and improved scanning engine. Grisoft has stated that the scanning time has decreased by as much as 50%.  Grisoft has also stated that AVG 9.0 features improvements in boot times, memory consumption, and installation time. Unfortunately, after testing the software some review sites have stated that the scanning has not really improved and the software produces false positives.  In addition to the new scanning features, the internet security package includes a new phishing scanner and a firewall. 
    I think the most important fact about this announcement is its timing.  Microsoft just released their Security Essentials product and the antivirus industry has to be really nervous. I recall that antivirus companies have even stated that they'll take legal action against Microsoft if they release a free antivirus program. AVG probably felt it needed to release an updated product to combat Microsoft's free antivirus public relations frenzy. While users will have to pay for AVG 9.0, I think one can make a sure bet that the technology will be siphoned down to the Free AVG product line shortly. Watch out for a new free AVG version

    Microsoft Security Essentials is finally out of beta and we're here to give you a sneak peak.  The first thing that is excellent about this free antivirus software is it’s always on protection.  This is notable because previous versions of Windows Defender did not have an auto protect capability.  The next thing that has improved since Windows Defender is the slick GUI or graphical interface.  This is where Security Essentials really shines.  The GUI makes it easy to know what threats have been detected and explains the threats clearly. When a virus is detected familiar colors used in Windows Security Center will alert the user to a malware threat.
    Security Essentials is also a very lightweight program. The program uses only about 13 megabytes of hard drive space.  This makes security essentials perfect for older computers and netbooks.  In fact, the software only needs a 500 MHz CPU to operate under a Windows XP computer. Security Essentials also loads only the required definition files into memory saving computer memory at all times.
    Finally, Windows Security Essentials includes a new feature tokened as Dynamic Signature Service or DSS. DSS is very similar to heuristic based detection found in other free antivirus but it takes the technology one step further.  DSS will monitor suspicious file activity and in addtion, also monitor network connections and downloaded files.  This is unprecedented in simple antivirus software and intrudes on the realm of IPS or Intrusion Prevention Systems found in business grade firewalls.  Microsoft Security Essentials is available for Windows XP, Vista 32 bit and 64 bit, and Windows 7. I encourage you to download it for free today.

Download Microsoft Security Essentials Here