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Just download a free antivirus livecd and scan your system with that.

Options include but are not limited to:

AVG:
https://www.avg.com/en-us/resc...
https://www.avg.com/en-us/down...

Avira:
https://www.avira.com/en/downl...

Bitdefender:
http://download.bitdefender.co...

Comodo:
https://www.comodo.com/busines...

Dr. Web:
https://free.drweb.com/aid_adm...

F-Secure:
ftp://ftp.f-secure.com/anti-vi...
https://www.f-secure.com/en/we...

Kaspersky:
http://support.kaspersky.com/v...
http://rescuedisk.kaspersky-la...

Just download a free antivirus livecd and scan your system with that.

Options include but are not limited to:

AVG:
https://www.avg.com/en-us/resc...
https://www.avg.com/en-us/down...

Avira:
https://www.avira.com/en/downl...

Bitdefender:
http://download.bitdefender.co...

Comodo:
https://www.comodo.com/busines...

Dr. Web:
https://free.drweb.com/aid_adm...

F-Secure:
ftp://ftp.f-secure.com/anti-vi...
https://www.f-secure.com/en/we...

Kaspersky:
http://support.kaspersky.com/v...
http://rescuedisk.kaspersky-la...

Intelligent people removed avg years ago, when they turned to the dark side.

So when did this happen?

When someone could not fathom the difference between crapware-enhanced installation bundles from CNET/DOWNLOAD.com and direct download from AVG.com? When someone got the (socialist) idea that default installs of any free product should include full functionality with a promise to collect and use no information?
Clueless (socialist) whiners.

When antivirus vendors started offering, and 'free' users started demanding, per-DNS-lookup and per-click protection that is based on continuous queries to a blacklist database maintained by the company, and uses significant Internet resources --- as opposed to the occasional virus signature updates?
Clueless (socialist) whiners.

I'll even wager that the latest AVG Free privacy faux-scandal consists of... the company making (sanitized, anonymized) use of data already being transmitted by its Web TuneUp browser plugin which YOU, the furiously clicking web user, have volunteered to install because YOU like the idea of constantly hitting up your free antivirus company with your searches and browsing traffic. You INSIST that it is THEIR JOB to load up their cloud constantly to return to you answers to the question, "Is this URL safe? Is that URL safe?"
Clueless (socialist) whiners.

I have purchased their product in the past, but currently use just the 'free' with basic Computer protection in part as a canary for the individual users' computers I've installed it on. AVG Free (and the company) has not let me down. I graciously accept their virus signature updates. As a freeloader I do not believe it is right for me to slam them with browser click traffic because it is simply not necessary to do so, would waste my own resources and theirs when common sense whitelisting and blocking delivers acceptable security.

The other day my computer restarted from a power outage while the DSL connection was down, which means my annoying AT&T/Uverse modem eats all port 80/www traffic to redirect t its 'DSL Failed to Connect' HTML page.

Imagine my astonished horror to see pieces of this modem-generated page in the AVG dialog (I put the red stuff in). The firewall 'button' on the product's main screen, and the dynamic ad it places on the bottom, also the notification it puts on the bottom-right of the screen on boot.

So AVG is doing unencrypted HTTP to get its advertisements and HTML on-screen widgets. Click here to see their fake 'button' for the firewall which was visible to Wireshark. I understand when shareware does this... but AVG? An actual button on their product screen? WTF!

I hope someone from AVG who knows security reads this because I let them know about this systemic problem it and they started asking me irrelevant questions about my setup.

Why is it so damned easy for malware to get root access, and so damned annoying for me to get it?

In this case, the phone must already be rooted, and the user must be willing to grant root permission to the application. In other words, this is essentially a surveillance app for your spouse/girlfriend/boyfriend/children, where you must have physical access to their device for you to be able to install the trojan.

After all, why else would the AVG vendor not give us the name of the app?? And why else does the AVG vendor vaguely says that the app "applies for the root permission" when it goes down to the absolute nitty-gritty details for everything else.

In that context, it makes sense that 10,000 people downloaded/installed this app from some Chinese app store. Finding jealous people that want to spy on their significant other is easy enough (especially around Valentines day, which was only four days before this article was written). And rooting a phone in China is easy also, even for people that wouldn't know how to do it themselves, there is an entire corner shop service industry that's dedicated to helping Chinese consumers getting rid of regional locks, copy-write restrictions, software locks on pirated software, etc.

Thank you.

Are you a Linux user by chance?

I found this:

http://www.bitdefender.com/bus...

And it appears to be 100% free with a free license.

I know - people say *nix doesn't need antivirus program(s)...but clamav isn't enough to satisfy my needs.

###

Avira continues with popups? What a shame. One would think popups to be a form of adware. I enjoyed the configuration options which Avast didn't provide [several years ago].

MSE makes me wonder if I have any protection at all.

Avast may be the winner here [for free options] if you turn off most of the non-virus related scanning modules.

I like Clamwin for a backup manual scanner, it's caught some trojans MSE couldn't find. I hear detection rate is poor and false positives are common but it's one more tool in my chest.

Here are some free antivirus LiveCDs:

+ AVG:
http://www.avg.com/us-en/avg-r...

+ AVG ARL: The latest release version of the AVG Rescue CD GNU/Linux (ARL) with daily updated virus database,
latest alpha or beta version of the ARL and all the resources needed to build the ARL from scratch. Releases are signed!
https://share.avg.com/arl

+ Avira:
https://www.avira.com/en/downl...

+ BitDefender:
http://download.bitdefender.co...

+ Comodo Rescue Disk (CRD):
https://www.comodo.com/busines...

+ Dr.Web LiveCD:
http://www.freedrweb.com/lived...

+ F-Secure:
https://www.f-secure.com/en/we...
https://www.f-secure.com/en/we...

+ Kaspersky:
http://support.kaspersky.com/f...
http://support.kaspersky.com/v...
http://forum.kaspersky.com/ind...

As with all antivirus products, please read the greedy EULAs before proceeding.

Thank you.

Are you a Linux user by chance?

I found this:

http://www.bitdefender.com/bus...

And it appears to be 100% free with a free license.

I know - people say *nix doesn't need antivirus program(s)...but clamav isn't enough to satisfy my needs.

###

Avira continues with popups? What a shame. One would think popups to be a form of adware. I enjoyed the configuration options which Avast didn't provide [several years ago].

MSE makes me wonder if I have any protection at all.

Avast may be the winner here [for free options] if you turn off most of the non-virus related scanning modules.

I like Clamwin for a backup manual scanner, it's caught some trojans MSE couldn't find. I hear detection rate is poor and false positives are common but it's one more tool in my chest.

Here are some free antivirus LiveCDs:

+ AVG:
http://www.avg.com/us-en/avg-r...

+ AVG ARL: The latest release version of the AVG Rescue CD GNU/Linux (ARL) with daily updated virus database,
latest alpha or beta version of the ARL and all the resources needed to build the ARL from scratch. Releases are signed!
https://share.avg.com/arl

+ Avira:
https://www.avira.com/en/downl...

+ BitDefender:
http://download.bitdefender.co...

+ Comodo Rescue Disk (CRD):
https://www.comodo.com/busines...

+ Dr.Web LiveCD:
http://www.freedrweb.com/lived...

+ F-Secure:
https://www.f-secure.com/en/we...
https://www.f-secure.com/en/we...

+ Kaspersky:
http://support.kaspersky.com/f...
http://support.kaspersky.com/v...
http://forum.kaspersky.com/ind...

As with all antivirus products, please read the greedy EULAs before proceeding.

+ AVG:
http://www.avg.com/us-en/avg-r...

+ AVG ARL: The latest release version of the AVG Rescue CD GNU/Linux (ARL) with daily updated virus database,
latest alpha or beta version of the ARL and all the resources needed to build the ARL from scratch.
Releases are signed!
https://share.avg.com/arl

+ Avira:
https://www.avira.com/en/downl...

+ BitDefender:
http://download.bitdefender.co...

+ Comodo Rescue Disk (CRD):
https://www.comodo.com/busines...

+ Dr.Web LiveCD & LiveUSB:
http://www.freedrweb.com/livec...
http://www.freedrweb.com/liveu...

+ F-Secure:
https://www.f-secure.com/en/we...
https://www.f-secure.com/en/we...

+ Kaspersky:
http://support.kaspersky.com/f...
http://support.kaspersky.com/v...
http://forum.kaspersky.com/ind...

+ AVG:
http://www.avg.com/us-en/avg-r...

+ AVG ARL: The latest release version of the AVG Rescue CD GNU/Linux (ARL) with daily updated virus database,
latest alpha or beta version of the ARL and all the resources needed to build the ARL from scratch.
Releases are signed!
https://share.avg.com/arl

+ Avira:
https://www.avira.com/en/downl...

+ BitDefender:
http://download.bitdefender.co...

+ Comodo Rescue Disk (CRD):
https://www.comodo.com/busines...

+ Dr.Web LiveCD & LiveUSB:
http://www.freedrweb.com/livec...
http://www.freedrweb.com/liveu...

+ F-Secure:
https://www.f-secure.com/en/we...
https://www.f-secure.com/en/we...

+ Kaspersky:
http://support.kaspersky.com/f...
http://support.kaspersky.com/v...
http://forum.kaspersky.com/ind...

AVG: http://www.avg.com/us-en/avg-r...
Bitdefender: http://download.bitdefender.co...

I stopped using AVG when they changed their license terms to unilaterally audit the location where the software is being used and gave themselves the right to unilaterally share my information with whomever they choose. - no thanks. See sections 9b and 12 of their license: - http://www.avg.com/us-en/eula-avg-2013-all-1-0

AVG Antivirus for Linux â" Official Free LiveCD, DVD, USB â" daily updated virus database, latest development version, GPG sigs, includes TrueCrypt!
11 October, 2012

You may have heard about AVG Antivirus for Linux:

http://free.avg.com/ww-en/download.prd-alf.tpl-stdfull

And you may know of AVGâ(TM)s Antivirus for Linux bootable LiveCD:

http://www.avg.com/us-en/avg-rescue-cd-download

â"â"â"â"â"â"â"â"â"â"-

But did you know they also have a Live CD/DVD/USB with a daily updated virus database and the latest development version?

Did you know each release is signed with a GPG signature?

That it comes with TrueCrypt?[1]

Did you also know they provide instructions for, âoeBuilding AVG Rescue CD GNU/Linux?â

From the site:

âoeAVG Technologies will provide for each AVG Rescue CD GNU/Linux release a makefile and a AVG Rescue CD GNU/Linux package with all resources allowing you to build and customize the AVG Rescue CD GNU/Linux.â

Amazing â" they provide this daily free resource and go so far as to provide instructions on how to build it yourself!

What are you waiting for? Go check it out:

https://share.avg.com/arl

â"â"â"â"â"â"â"â"â"â"-
[1] http://www.truecrypt.org/

AVG Antivirus for Linux â" Official Free LiveCD, DVD, USB â" daily updated virus database, latest development version, GPG sigs, includes TrueCrypt!
11 October, 2012

You may have heard about AVG Antivirus for Linux:

http://free.avg.com/ww-en/download.prd-alf.tpl-stdfull

And you may know of AVGâ(TM)s Antivirus for Linux bootable LiveCD:

http://www.avg.com/us-en/avg-rescue-cd-download

â"â"â"â"â"â"â"â"â"â"-

But did you know they also have a Live CD/DVD/USB with a daily updated virus database and the latest development version?

Did you know each release is signed with a GPG signature?

That it comes with TrueCrypt?[1]

Did you also know they provide instructions for, âoeBuilding AVG Rescue CD GNU/Linux?â

From the site:

âoeAVG Technologies will provide for each AVG Rescue CD GNU/Linux release a makefile and a AVG Rescue CD GNU/Linux package with all resources allowing you to build and customize the AVG Rescue CD GNU/Linux.â

Amazing â" they provide this daily free resource and go so far as to provide instructions on how to build it yourself!

What are you waiting for? Go check it out:

https://share.avg.com/arl

â"â"â"â"â"â"â"â"â"â"-
[1] http://www.truecrypt.org/

AVG Antivirus for Linux â" Official Free LiveCD, DVD, USB â" daily updated virus database, latest development version, GPG sigs, includes TrueCrypt!
11 October, 2012

You may have heard about AVG Antivirus for Linux:

http://free.avg.com/ww-en/download.prd-alf.tpl-stdfull

And you may know of AVGâ(TM)s Antivirus for Linux bootable LiveCD:

http://www.avg.com/us-en/avg-rescue-cd-download

â"â"â"â"â"â"â"â"â"â"-

But did you know they also have a Live CD/DVD/USB with a daily updated virus database and the latest development version?

Did you know each release is signed with a GPG signature?

That it comes with TrueCrypt?[1]

Did you also know they provide instructions for, âoeBuilding AVG Rescue CD GNU/Linux?â

From the site:

âoeAVG Technologies will provide for each AVG Rescue CD GNU/Linux release a makefile and a AVG Rescue CD GNU/Linux package with all resources allowing you to build and customize the AVG Rescue CD GNU/Linux.â

Amazing â" they provide this daily free resource and go so far as to provide instructions on how to build it yourself!

What are you waiting for? Go check it out:

https://share.avg.com/arl

â"â"â"â"â"â"â"â"â"â"-
[1] http://www.truecrypt.org/

My son and I (on my Windows partition) have been users of the free version of AVG since 2006. We are both currently running Windows XP, and am glad that AVG continues to support it along with newer flavors of Windows. Free AVG is the download site, and it also includes ad blocking and other features.

I've always found

AVG Free http://free.avg.com/us-en/homepage
or
Avira Free http://www.avira.com/en/avira-free-antivirus

To be good free solutions.

http://blogs.avg.com/news-threats/chatted-hacker-virus/

Well I would think AVG would since it is ripping them off. Same colors, same square design, just placed in different corners. http://aa-download.avg.com/filedir/promo/press/press_logo_avg.png

and you can find both the free and pro versions of their product here --> http://www.avg.com/ww-en/antivirus-for-android

No, I am not a paid (or unpaid) spokeperson for AVG. I do like their products and the fact the free version works very well on my Android is good enough for me to recommend them.

2) How to tell if you are infected

3) What to do about it if you are infected

This would probably be a good place to start.

avast hosts the download off their site too but you have to know where to look....
http://www.avast.com/en-us/free-antivirus-download#tab4

avg is the same way.. their offline installer is here...
http://free.avg.com/ww-en/download.prd-afh

(these are links for en-us)

Firebug worked the first day... OH NO! The horror of being down a few hours!
HTML Validator falls into the "small niche" category
FiddlerHook is rocking the same boat as HTML Validator
You should update AVG. http://free.avg.com/us-en/faq.num-4275#num-4275 (Why would you let AVG go unupdated IDK but hey to each their own)
LogMeIn gee another small niche, fixed the day after with an update.
Skype is now own by Microsoft if it works in something other than IE, well... I'm sure they'll that in the name of innovation.
Logitech Device Detection? Ok I'm sure that pisses off some 3 users somewhere. Your input devices will work fine without it, you're really stretching it on this one.

Overall it's not the HUGE OMG BREAKAGES THAT KILL ALL PUPPIES AND KITTENS EVERYWHERE that the vocal minority is making it out to be. There's little evidence that it is really a wide spread sky is falling problem. Most users don't have a problem. Most users are going to be using add-ons from the top of this list:
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/?browse=popular
All of which work fine.

I'm not even going to bother linking all of these...

http://www.mcafee.com/us/products/virusscan-enterprise-for-linux.aspx
http://us.trendmicro.com/us/products/enterprise/serverprotect-for-linux/
http://www.kaspersky.com/linux
http://www.eset.eu/products/nod32-for-linux
http://www.centralcommand.com/Products/VexiraforLinux/VexiraforLinuxFileserver.aspx http://www.centralcommand.com/Products/VexiraforLinux/VexiraforLinuxSambaServer.aspx
http://www.centralcommand.com/Products/VexiraforMailServers.aspx
http://www.f-prot.com/download/home_user/download_fplinux.html
http://www.avast.com/linux-home-edition
http://www.avast.com/linux-unix-edition
http://www.sophos.com/en-us/products/endpoint/endpoint-security-and-data-protection/components/anti-virus-protection/linux.aspx?utm_source=Non-campaign&utm_medium=AdWords&utm_campaign=NA-AW-Linux
http://www.ca.com/us/Support/gsa/Virus-Info/Virus-Signature-Updates/eTrust-Antivirus-7x-for-UNIX-and-Linux.aspx
http://www.pandasecurity.com/homeusers/downloads/desktopsecure/
http://www.pandasecurity.com/enterprise/solutions/
http://www.pandasecurity.com/enterprise/solutions/commandline/
http://free.avg.com/us-en/download.prd-alf
http://download.bitdefender.com/repos/

It's already here. There's also McAfee, AVG and various others available.

This is the same story as spam (though we'd be happy eliminating spam); it started out as a novelty ("look what I can do!") and slowly migrated into an extremely profitable (and largely criminal) business. The fact that it's so poorly policed (I'm not talking filters here) makes it a perfect vehicle for all sorts of criminal ventures that vastly pre-date email, the internet, and even the fax machine (though most of these scams were seen as faxes 40+ years ago). Specifically, drug peddling, advance-fee fraud (Nigerian 419 scams), fake charities, crap merchandise, and the list goes on.

Congratulations, BitTorrent pirate networks, you are now "mature" because the criminals have you in their cross-hairs.

As to whether this is "the end of" anything ... I strongly disagree. People forget that BitTorrent is a protocol. Piracy may be one of its more visible applications, but there is so very much more. Criminal spam destroyed joke spam and most bulk email, but email has remained (well, it might eventually be obsoleted by Facebook Messages, SMS, IM, etc, but that's not really spam's fault ... and is an entirely different debate).

This is really about the use of BitTorrent to transfer copyrighted material and not about the protocol itself. Malware will persist in pirated software and media and people will get better at detecting and eliminating it. There are invite-only BitTorrent communities that closely monitor their userbase and content library for this sort of thing. These will only get more popular. There in an increased volume of free anti-virus applications out there (Avira, AVG, and Avast, ClamAV, and more), and there is also an increased variety of platforms people use (Mac OS is on the rise, as are the various smartphones, not to mention the less-notable increases in F/OSS OSs). There is also the legal fight against the MPAA/RIAA (MAFIAA) conglomerates, which seems to be heading in a good (albeit slow) direction for fair use.

We're seeing legitimate software and media increasing its adoption of free distribution; upcoming artists are embracing Creative Commons licenses, Free Software is immensely popular and will get a major bump once China, Russia, and other governments start to make good on their promises to dump Windows, and mobile phones are entering the arena.

Phones' 4G technology symbolizes the marriage of high bandwidth with high computational power, which trivializes things like streaming TV over your phone. 4G also represents an IP telephony model (VoIP), which means any cellular carrier that offers TV (currently all of the major players) must offer it as IPTV. Even my cable connection is IPTV (I can see my router's downstream byte count add up while watching TV). Couple this with Netflix and its competitors having quickly adopted their paradigms to allow streaming their content to any computer connected to your TV (video game consoles, smarter TVs and DVD/BluRay players, specialty boxes) as well as other vendors like Boxee and Hulu and you have a streaming-TV revolution.

How will this play out with respect to "piracy" remains to be seen, but I think we can see hints of its hopeful outcome in looking at the past battle of music, won by iTunes and Grooveshark; why get a questionable copy when a legitimate one is so much easier to obtain?

What we don't have is people focused on finding, removing, and spouting a product yet like Norton/McAffee/AVG/whatever.

Oh we don't, do we?

If Viruses did not exist, it would be necessary for AV companies to create them.

The Joker exists because of Bat Man. Bat Man exists because of the crime in Gotham. Both Bat Man and The Joker can use their resources to fight or cause crime.
Darth Vader exists because of the Jedi, the Jedi Order exists because of crime in the Universe. The Force can be used for good and evil.

It's a Yen & Yang sort of thing. Good and Evil are relative terms, subject to interpretation.

Crackers exist because of Hackers. AV exists because of malware in CyberSpace. The Source can be used for good or evil.

Hackers hack on the hardware / environments that they have available. Hackers can turn bad, and become Crackers, and use their but first they must have a genuine interest and exposure to a platform in order to exploit it.

Some platforms cater more to the Hackers, and they are less frustrated with the platform; Thus, less become Crackers for such platforms. Other platforms shun the Hacker, frustration fuels the desire to become a Cracker, and more malware is released which exploits such platforms...

What we don't have is people focused on finding, removing, and spouting a product yet like Norton/McAffee/AVG/whatever.

Oh we don't, do we?

but AVG has taken to making it nearly impossible to locate the free version of their AV software

free.avg.com ? (free.grisoft.com works from almost 10 years now...)

http://free.avg.com/ doesn't seem to be that hard to find. :)

They also make it nigh on impossible to find the free version on their site (or it was hard last time I looked, which has been a while).

free.avg.com. You just have to watch for the free links, because they put the paid ones next to it and they're a whole lot flashier

AVG started going downhill at 8, and then nose-dived at 9 when they had the focus stealing issue and another that a coworker of mine reported regarding the Outlook/Exchange plugin failing to update and causing Outlook to crash on startup (this was also a widespread issue, but I don't believe it got as much press seeing as most organizations using Outlook or the Exchange plugin aren't using AVG). Worse was their response to the issue, which as I recall was initially lazy denial.

This now hardly surprises me. I've migrated from AVG to Avast, and not only is it far lighter, but it's also faster and has never once given me grief. It's one of the best overall AV's according to AV-Comparatives (AVG is, too), and next to Security Essentials for the less technically-minded, it's all I recommend.

That, or you could just start at http://free.avg.com/ which does include attention-grabbing links for the paid version but also very clear and easy-to-find links to the free version.

AVG has a "rescue CD" http://free.avg.com/ww-en/kb.pnuid-1267095510 it can be written on a USB flashdrive. Also SuperAntiSpyware has a protable scanner: http://www.superantispyware.com/portablescanner.html

Hasn't Avast needed to register once a year for years now?

AVG Free is easy to find if you point family/friends to http://free.avg.com/ not http://www.avg.com/

Personally, I'm considering scrapping an AV product altogether. How common are "viruses" these days anyway? It's all spyware/malware these days. Granted free and runs in the background don't come together often (Would you really give spybot to your grandmother?)

I'm just trying to ingrain Malwarebytes into people's heads.

Hasn't Avast needed to register once a year for years now?

AVG Free is easy to find if you point family/friends to http://free.avg.com/ not http://www.avg.com/

Personally, I'm considering scrapping an AV product altogether. How common are "viruses" these days anyway? It's all spyware/malware these days. Granted free and runs in the background don't come together often (Would you really give spybot to your grandmother?)

I'm just trying to ingrain Malwarebytes into people's heads.

"both are making it harder to actually find the free version"

Yeah, http://free.avg.com/ is really difficult.

I personally use MSE now because AVG started getting a little bloated before 9.0 came out.

I use AVG's free edition for on-access scanning, just for a little extra protection, because I am generally able to avoid getting infected with anything. (Even if something does slip by me, I can often track it down through a service it installs, entry in startup lists, or running processes.)
If I'm downloading something that has a big potential for being a virus (e.g. a no-CD crack), I'll scan it manually with AVG, and also upload it to a scanning service like virusscan.jotti.org or virustotal.com, which take a file and put it through a number of anti-virus products.

Natually, AVG has also been making it harder to find the free edition. They, of course, want you to buy the full AVG Internet Security package. (To find AVG Free, you have to go to free.avg.com, and look for the less-flashy, more hidden buttons.)

because all antivirus software is made by people who are governed by the laws of the united states...

http://forums.avg.com/ww.avg-free-forum?sec=thread&act=show&id=7965#post_7965

Confirmed false positive, corrected in next update.

I can't wait for the OSX version of AVG! :)

http://www.avg.com/business-security

I've installed in several environments of multiple WinXP Pro workstations.

Put the "server" part on one ocmputer; let it do the updating and provide for central configuration.

You still have to install clients on each computer. I like to use InstallRite (http://www.epsilonsquared.com/installrite.htm): Run the "before setup" part of InstallRite, do the full install and configuration, then run the "after startup" part of capture a single file "Install Kit" that you can then run on the rest of the computers to get it fully installed. It saves lots and lots of time.

In the AVG Network Edition, the "server" contacts AVG's update server, then acts as a local proxy for that update information to the clients.

I BAN Symantec and Norton products from all computers we maintain under contract: Great advertising, but lousy products that can't be uninstalled: There are lingering traces that require Unlocker (http://ccollomb.free.fr/unlocker/) and a high-quality registry cleaner (I like jv16 Power Tools, http://www.macecraft.com/jv16powertools2009/) to root out all of the junk Symantec leaves behind. Not worth the effort when I can install a better, cheaper and more-reliable product (AVG).

AVG Free Edition is pretty good too.

They still have a free version but they just don't advertise it.

That's right, they've outsourced their advertising to WHOOSH, a small, but persistently oblivious content-writing firm with members all over the world, most commonly found posting in this thread.

They still have a free version but they just don't advertise it.

This is unconscionable. AVG has also auto-renewed my subscription perpetually ever since I installed it. I want my bandwidth back!

Seriously though, "cost of business" is exactly right. If the return outweighs the risk*most-likely-consequence, no business would act ethically. It's like insurance companies randomly denying claims knowing that some denials will go unchallenged and they'll come out ahead. The punishment should outweigh the crime.

Some A/V companies make their A/V software (like AVG) available for free already. Should I pay the government for a copy?

Many ISPs (AOL, ATT and others) already provide A/V software for free. They determined that if they buy an Anti Virus (A/V) program for you and that stops you from getting infected then they save more than the cost of the A/V. Want a free one? Switch ISPs.

You want the government to MANDATE every computer has A/V? How about my servers that do not connect to the Internet? How about my Linux desktop? Should I be forced by the government to waste resources running A/V programs on an OS that for one reason or another does not need it?

Should I be required to run one on my set top box? How about my Tivo? My car? My phone? Next year, my refrigerator?

What will the government decide I need? The Lobbyist from one or more of the A/V companies will make sure that the specs are drawn in such a way that you can only use THEIR A/V solution. Who will lobby for OSS solutions like ClamAV?

If the government has already found the holy grail of A/V software what incentive so I have of advancing the art by creating a better one? Remember Ada?. It was to replace ALL programming languages used for government contracts.

If I do create a better A/V software, who would buy it? The government has already found the best ones and mandates you buy it or they supply it for free. Will your machine be slowed if it is running the one required by law AND my new improved one?

All in all, when the government solves computer related problems (and many others) like this, they do either too little too late or to much too late (see CAN-SPAM Act of 2003)

Many compromised computers have been compromised because they are running bootleg copies of Microsoft software and MS will not allow them to be updated. Should MS be forced to allow illegal copies to be upgraded?

Keep the government out of my bedroom and off my computer!

http://www.avast.com/eng/avast_4_home.html
http://free.avg.com/

You aren't supposed to use AVG Free in *any* work environment, even non-profit. Copy and paste from http://free.avg.com/download-avg-anti-virus-free-edition

Licensing details

        * AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition is for private, non-commercial, single computer use only. The use of AVG Free within any organization or for commercial purposes is prohibited.

It's the AVG logo rotated 90 degrees CCW with a G on it without the 3D light and shadow.

http://www.avg.com/

Still, I like the old favicon. The new one isn't that great.

I've used both Avast and AVG freeware products with good results. Zero infections over the last couple of years.

As a consumer, it sure would be nice to have the OS actually ship with something that keeps the naughty people out, but there are a number of freely available alternatives already.

http://www.avast.com/eng/download-avast-home.html
http://free.avg.com/

'course, if you use Linux then you can probably safely ignore the threat for now.

Cheers,

• Good interface with all the bells and whistles a modern app needs
• Easier for end users to use than Avast (according to my mom and girlfriend)
• Finds more spyware and tracking cookies (I experienced Avast miss a real life spyware once, for about 22 hours until it was updated)
• Easy to install, even for end users

AVG bad stuff

• Users (including myself) experienced multiple browser crashes and computer stability issues. Problem first arrived with installation of AVG and disappeared when AVG was uninstalled. Coincidence? Not likely :-/ Acceptable? Not in a million years!
• The URL malware detection browser plugin is crap. It reads ahead every single URL on a homepage, and displays a little GIF icon with a checkmark when the URL is good and clean. Nice in theory BUT it makes your bandwidth usage explode, and makes browsing a drag - to say nothing of what the result must be for the owners of homepages you visit. Magically "all pages are now visited" by all users?
• Virus engine can not be stopped easily if desired. I sometimes play games, and being behind a NAT gateway I don't want my antivirus running alongside Day of Defeat, Natural Selection and Team Fortress 2. AVG is hard to disable, and clicking on the tray icon will only let you disable the management interface (and thereby the tray icon) while the scanning engine continues to run.
• Too many tricks and attempts to lure the user into buying the paid-for version. Almost resembles "legal phising" on occasion, which is kinda sad. Key information screens are supplied with "warnings" that you are using the free product.

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Avast good stuff:

• Uses less resources
• Gets the job done without tons of bloatware and fancy extra browser plugins (easier to install without tons of fancy plugins and extra features which have nothing to do with basic virus protection)
• Can be disabled easily if desired, with right-click on tray icon. Good for gamers in their mid 30's who know what they are doing!
• No crashes and instability like AVG

Avast bad stuff:

• Interface less intuitive, says mother + girlfriend.
• Installation requires slightly more finesse as the installer is a little more confusing.
• Perhaps (?) slightly slower on updates. My mom had a malware file sent to her by mail, and it remained undetected by Avast 22 hours longer than an identical file on my girlfriends PC which had AVG.

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At the end of the day, I went with Avast. Stability and low performance impact is more important to me than a fancy GUI. Clueless end-users disagree though, and actually want AVG back inspite of the stability issues. So the GUI really made a difference for them. They simply felt more "at home" with AVG.

Direct links for both products:
AVG Antivirus Free Version Download and Wikipedia Description.
Avast Antivirus Free version download and Wikipedia description.

brgds

- Jesper


(Experience is from: 3x Vista computers with reasonable hardware specs, and 2 older Windows XP computers)