Comments on: Which anti-virus software?

by: Simon Edwards

Tue, 03 Apr 2007 17:06:03 +0000

I would be a bit worried about running a Windows PC without anti-virus software if I used it to connect to the internet regularly. I agree that it is possible to stay safe without it, but not easy if you want to use the web casually.
In fact, I have just written a semi-serious piece called Five Free Ways To Protect Against Viruses And Spyware. I didn’t include your Use Linux option, but that’s a good one.
By the way, you can read the Computer Shopper anti-virus article in full on my site too.

by: Gareth J M Saunders

Sat, 17 Mar 2007 14:56:00 +0000

I quite agree, my PC has not been infected with a virus for about seven years. I scan everything that I download and don’t even open email attachments from sources I’m unsure about. However, I feel more secure having an AV application installed.

I always make sure that the auto-protect settings are switched off, however, so that it uses fewer system resources — because I know that I will manually scan files. And I always make sure that the e-mail scanning is on.

As for the old Windows vs Linux question, it’s that old chestnut, huh. If you can move your whole life to Linux then great, but for those who can’t (or won’t) then I think folks are probably safer moving to Linux or MacOS.

But then for some that’s a bit like saying: I don’t need an umbrella because I live in a predominantly sunny climate, so why don’t you move to where I live? For some that’s an option, for others it’s not. So I’m glad that there are companies that make umbrellas for those of us who live in the UK!

by: Mike Arthur

Sat, 17 Mar 2007 14:31:35 +0000

I’ve happily had a Windows XP machine running for years with no anti-virus.

The key thing is just not running applications from untrusted sources.
For instance, how many times has your virus checker actually found something in the last few years? If the answer is never, you don’t need to waste money on a virus checker.

Alternatively, even better you should use an operating system like Linux which has no known viruses and doesn’t rely on PAYING MONEY for an external product to fix Microsoft’s laziness.