Antivirus Software- Are you really protected?

 Antivirus takes all shapes and styles in the PC world. The best ones are in my opinion: (In no particular order)

1. Trend Micro
2. Avast
3. CA
4. Kaspersky

If you have any of these antivirus engines, odds are you are quite safe if the downloaded definitions are up to date.
If you have any of the others, in my humble opinion, you are not as safe as you could be. This is especially true of older Norton product users.

However, if you have the FREE versions of these products, I am quite sure that you do not get the whole product for free. Nothing good is ever free.
Therefore, paying for the full version is better than using the free one.

There are users out there who may say "the free version has kept me secure for ages", but these are usually better than novice users who know a bad email/website better than most and how not open it/approach it.

Now to clarify, all PC users are not safe for a short time (astounding I know), because when a new virus is found, here is what needs to happen:

1. Get it to the labs at "insert antivirus company here"
2. Make an antivirus definition update
3. Put the update on the main download servers
4. Client computer downloads at next interval check
5. Client computer installs new definitions and is then ready to take on new threat

 All of these moves take time, and the time is different for all antivirus companies as well.

As we say in the IT trade, "you're only as good as your last update"
Another popular quote is "your only as good as your last backup" and you can read more about this in my other backup blogs.

Short answer:
Keep your antivirus up to date.

Also, if you have teenage boys (and sometimes some middle aged men) that are left alone near your computer, you better have bloody good antivirus protection for obvious reasons.
I won't go into it, but the most dangerous places to be on the internet ALL INVOLVE PORN, and like poker machines, these websites are built to lure these sections of the community in.


Also try to run a good Malware/Spyware scan manually every fortnight or monthly.
Just google:
"malwarebytes"
"spybot search and destroy"



http://www.pcfixcomputersolutions.com.au
http://www.pcfixcomputersolutions.com.au/news