Norton anti virus outrage

[dennis thompson]

I have Norton anti virus, my computer got infected with a virus anyway & Norton wants $99 to fix it? What am I missing here? I thought that's what I paid for already. Can anyone recommend an anti virus program that works? (free would be nice but not absolutely required)
Thanks
Dennis

[Doug Shepard]

Thanks for helping me out with a decision. I had McAfee on my previous laptop but the hard drive went belly up on that right before Christmas and I ended up getting a new laptop. The new one came with a 60 day trial version of Norton and I've been getting prompted for the last couple weeks that I only have xxx days left. I wasn't crazy about McAfee either but it worked OK and I never got a virus using it. I haven't been all that impressed with the general user interface of the Norton, but hadn't really made up my mind yet whether to go with it or renew my McAfee again on the new PC. I think you just helped me decide to stay away from Norton.

[Dan Mages]

I use AVG's free version with no complaints.

Dan

[Matt Meiser]

AVG Free on the home computers, AVG paid version for the work PC. I lost a whole day of billable time at work to Norton 360 while their tech's remote controlled my PC and tried to get things working. In the end the they just refunded my purchase. Then just a couple weeks ago my mom's PC was acting up--Norton was using 100% CPU for about 20 minutes after each startup. Uninstalled using the downloadable Norton Removal Tool and installed AVG Free and its like new again.

From what I've read, McAfee has gotten just as bad and personally I've decided its not even worth the risk to try it.

[Jim Tobias]

I have used Bit Defender for 3 years and have liked it a lot. I used to have McAfee and before that Norton, did not like either one.
Bitdefender is around $50 and it covers everything. great support also.

Jim

[Chuck Wintle]

Another vote for AVG free or the paid version. Norton , for years now, have been releasing buggy software on the unsuspecting public often resulting in an unbootable system repairable only with a complete reinstall of the OS. And the charge a handsome fee for the privilege!!
Dennis,
There are programs that allow you to make a boot disk containing some AV programs so you can scan your system without booting into it. One is UBCD4Win which, I thought, worked well.

[Kevin Arceneaux]

Another AVG user.

Norton and McAfee have got so bloated that they just kill your computer.

[Joe Suelter]

Norton does absolutely no good unless updated on a regular basis. Remember, all an anti-virus does is keep you from getting a virus. Once infected, that is it. It probably won't fix it once that takes place. I have had Norton for 8 years (different versions), and it updates EVERY DAY at 2 in the morning. Thankfully, I have never had a virus. But, like I said, it updates it's definitions daily on its own.

[Scott Shepherd]

One vote for ESET's products. NOD32 is their anti-virus and they also have an entire security package. It's benchmarked as being the least intrusive resource package out there if I recall correctly. It's also rated very high in it's detection. I believe it rates better than both Norton and McAfee. I notice a big difference with it in performance. I can actually log into my computer and not have to wait 5 minutes before I can use it because of all the resource hogging the others do.

It's a very highly rated program by all the tech heads. Worth a look if you are considering a new package.

eset.com

[Ken Fitzgerald]

I used to be a huge fan of Norton...until I had problems. Trying to get Norton removed was a nightmare. I have used ZoneAlarm firewall free version for some years and the last few years I bought the ZoneAlarm PRo which has a anti-virus and spyblocker and spyremover. I've run without any problems.

[Chris Kennedy]

I've run Norton and McAfee, and I prefer Norton. McAfee did little to stem the tide, and it itself got corrupted at one point (I would open McAfee, and it had been taken over by adware!). By far the best thing has been a firewall in my wireless router.

Cheers,

Chris

[David G Baker]

I use Zone Alarm Security Suite but have done a lot of reading about AVG, AVG is very well thought of and from my research it rates much higher than Norton and McAfee. If I ever have a problem with Zone Alarm I will give AVG a try.

[Stephan Postmus]

I also have the NOD32 package from ESET and it has worked well for 1.5 years. I did get a virus on my home PC, but I brought it away and the computur guys got it removed. I asked them how it happen and they said virus protection can't stop everything. There are new virus' made everyday. I learned my lesson, I real watch what I click on now. This system updates itself everytime you log on to the internet. YMMV.

Stephan

[Jim Becker]

I switched to the ZoneAlarm suite two years ago for the convenience of one solution (and it covers 3 machines with one license), but was quite happy with the AVG paid product for a long time. Previous to that I used McAfee, but it was way too much of a pig. Norton has a similar reputation...and beware, it's also very hard to uninstall.

[roman fedyk]

One of the best in the Industry is Kaspersky. You can get it on Amazon for as little as $15. It works and works well. Updates everyday automatically and catches everything. It also fixes as well. I highly recommend this one. (In the computer/electronics industry for 20 years, and build all my own equipment. So I feel comfortable making this recommendation.)

Take care,

[Rob Russell]

Norton does absolutely no good unless updated on a regular basis. Remember, all an anti-virus does is keep you from getting a virus. Once infected, that is it. It probably won't fix it once that takes place. I have had Norton for 8 years (different versions), and it updates EVERY DAY at 2 in the morning. Thankfully, I have never had a virus. But, like I said, it updates it's definitions daily on its own.

Norton will remove viruses.

Our home PC got infected by that new downloader. Where - we don't have a clue. My guess is one of the banner ads from an otherwise "safe" site.

Anyway, it took a couple of weeks - but Norton finally updated their software and one day a Norton message popped up saying that a malware had been removed and we needed to reboot to complete the removal.

Still - I am considering moving to AVG when our Norton subscription runs out this spring.

[Mike Henderson]

I use ESET's Nod32. Seems to work well but I didn't do a full study on all the alternatives (other virus programs).

However, I did have the "Norton" (or whatever name it goes by today) product and it was a hog. Really slowed down the computer. Nod32 is not noticeable on the computer.

Mike

[Don Wurscher]

AVG and Zone here

[Dennis Thornton]

Another vote for Eset's nod32. Use it at home and at work. I also use Zone Alarm for a firewall, more so for notification when something tries to get out.

There's something everyone should be aware of. NO anti virus will 100% protect your PC. New virus/spyware variants come out all the time. It takes a little time before the new variant is recognized as such, the databases are updated, and those updates roll out to your PC. If you happen to get an infected email or go to the wrong web site before your PC is updated, it will be infected. What can you do?
1. Stay away from shady web sites as much as possible.
2. DO NOT open any attachments on any email unless you know who it's from and what it is. Even then it's best to wait a day before you open it (give some additional time for the av updates).
3. Have your PC set up to download & apply updates from Microsoft/Apple/whoever. Keep it updated and current.
4. Cross your fingers. Even if you're a careful and savvy user, you may still get caught. If it happens often the best solution is to reformat and reload the OS.
5. Have a plan to reload your OS.
6. Back up your data. Many virus/spywares mess the system up so badly a backup of your data is impossible afterwards.
7. Back up your data.
8. Did you read 6 & 7? If not, back up your data. ;)

[Craig D Peltier]

My Unlce whos big into computers and my cousin who works for Geek squad and is a computer guru , both hate Norton do to all the memory it takes to run it. They both recommend Trend Micro.

[Scott Shepherd]

A system that looks pretty good is using the plug-in for the Firefox browser called "WOT" (Web of Trust, I think is what it stands for).

When it's installed and you Google search something, it shows a little ring to the right of it. Green means it's reported as being safer, yellow, caution, and red means there is a problem with that site. It's not by any means all inclusive, but I find it helps in quick searches. For instance, if you Google "AntiVirus Software" several of the paid ads show as Red, which means they are not user friendly sites to go to. That could mean a virus, or that could mean they are placing tracking cookies on your system. McAfee and Dell websites both show up as Red.

Again, not a perfect system, but it does help when you are searching for things. It gives a quick visual reference on something that might be bad, where as without that visual, you'd probably click right on it.

[John Keeton]

I have had similar issues with Norton, as well as the memory hog. On my business computers I have run Trend Micro for years with NO issues. I tried Kaspersky at home for a year, and while I think it did OK on viruses, it caused some real hardware compatibility issues that it took a good bit of work from my computer guy to fix.

[Paul Atkins]

AVG on three PCs and nothing on my iMac. Both working great.

[Lee Schierer]

I use F-prot for virus protection. It seems to do a pretty good job and it also doesn't load up the processor like Norton or Macafee. It isn't free, but home users can load it into multple computers if you want. The annual subscription covers all updates including newer versions of the program as they become available.

[glenn bradley]

Norton does absolutely no good unless updated on a regular basis. Remember, all an anti-virus does is keep you from getting a virus. Once infected, that is it. It probably won't fix it once that takes place. I have had Norton for 8 years (different versions), and it updates EVERY DAY at 2 in the morning. Thankfully, I have never had a virus. But, like I said, it updates it's definitions daily on its own.

+1 with Joe. I have run Norton for a decade with no problems. It has no perceptible impact on your machine if setup properly. I have it on LOML's machine and her daughter will sometimes 'My Space' me a good virus between updates but that's about it. Most of my co-workers have banned My Space at their homes and I think I'm next . .. but, I digress.

I think the last virus I had was about 6 years ago and that's on a Windows machine . . . not bad, but you do have to stay current. If you shut your machine down, it can't update. I do shut my machine down for security purposes but, I update at least every day manually; that's just my preference. You don't have to do this but, you do need to allow your machine to auto-update if you aren't going to do it yourself.

[Lance Norris]

CA antivirus here. One fee, covers 3 machines. I had Norton, but never again. I have a HP desktop that had a copy of the OS behind a partition, instead of a backup disc. I was having a couple of little problems and decided to do a clean reinstall of the OS. Norton never protected the area behind the partition. The computer shop said they had never seen such a mess. Over 300 viruses. Thanks Norton.

[David G Baker]

With all of the negative information about Norton and McAfee on different sites that I visit you would think that the two virus software companies would get the message. The negative stuff has been going around for the past several years as has the the problems that folks have with the software.

[Rory Talkington]

I have Norton anti virus, my computer got infected with a virus anyway & Norton wants $99 to fix it? What am I missing here? I thought that's what I paid for already. Can anyone recommend an anti virus program that works? (free would be nice but not absolutely required)
Thanks
Dennis

Same happened to me:mad:. Ended up on the phone with someone in the Phillipines:mad:. Rip off scam!

Norton is a virus

I have been using Trend Micro with good results.

[Tim Morton]

I run OSX....best virus software out there!!!:D

[Curt Harms]

I run OSX....best virus software out there!!!:D

I've been playing with Linux off & on for a couple years. I downloaded Ubuntu 8.10 recently and burned a live CD. Booted off the CD and it found the wireless networks in my neighborhood. Mine is WPA encrypted. Entered the key and got connected no muss no fuss. This has been my problem with Linux--wireless encrypted networking. I went to install a networked printer. I downloaded the directions from the manufacturer's web site and couldn't get it to work and didn't spend much time at all on it. On a whim tried printers from the administration menu. Found the printer on the network and downloaded and installed the proper software with no user intervention. Pretty impressive. The Linux installer kept the Windows partition intact so I have a choice on bootup of Windows or Linux. Firefox, Thunderbird and Open Office work pretty much the same in either Operating System. I think running Linux for web surfing might be a nice option. Flash and Acrobat seem to function fine. ActiveX won't of course but no loss there for me.

[Jim W. White]

WAS a long time Norton fan but gave it up a few years back when it got so bloated I couldn't stand it anymore. Been using Kaspersky since. Not cheap ...but very effective

Jim in Idaho

[David Freed]

I have AVG free. A few months ago my computer got a virus, and avg didn't even recognize it, let alone stop it. I had a few people recommend Malwarebytes to clean things up. It was a free download. I had to run it 3 times for it to clean everything out, but it worked. Now I have both of them running and haven't had any trouble.

[John Meyer]

Another vote for Trend Micro. Have had good luck with it for the past few years.
John

[Joe Suelter]

Coke, Pepsi...Chevy, Ford...it really doesn't make much difference what you use, as long as you use one. They all pretty much do the same thing, when set up right. Everybody has their own preferences, brands and features vary. As I mentioned earlier, just make sure that which ever you use, update, update, update. Should be every day....new viruses are created every single day. For those unfortunate to get virused, they were probably running an out of date set of virus definitions...no anti-virus software has a chance at preventing that if it doesn't know what viruses to look for. I work on customers computers every day, 8-10 each day...you would be suprised at how many anti-virus software are 30-90 days out of date, or more. Then, when I tell them their machine is toast, they gripe and complain about Norton, Macafee, AVG...much like some of you here. The only anti-virus that I can not stand is Norton 360. Hard to work with, and bogs down your machine. Other than that, I have worked with just about everything else, and I really can't complain about any of them. Just use one, and set it up to update daily, or you are asking for trouble.

[Rich Lightfoot]

5 years ago we had so many issues with both McAfee and Norton they were costing us high dollar clients. The boss called in all the techs to figure out what to do and the pro/con arguments and hissy fits were apparently ridiculous. Everybody was yelling and screaming but nobody wanted to step up and take responsibility for keeping our OS images updated and handle quarterly deployments. I was out on the road actually working and ended up being 'volunteered' for the job. I said to heck with it and sent out rfp's for anti-virus and firewall for 300 rental computers. Computer Associates practically gave me 300 licenses (less than $5.00 a machine) so I chose it. Ticked off every tech in the company and I thought I'd never hear the end of it but surprisingly we've only had a handful of incidents since and they eventually shut up.

[Larry Heflin]

Been using the free version of Avast for several years now on all of my computers. Several friends have likewise been happy with it.

[Neal Clayton]

AVG on my home computers, if you do get a virus that it can't clean, reboot in safe mode and run a scan/clean from http://housecall.antivirus.com

all of the above are, of course, free.