- Feb 11, 2011
- 1,009
We hear many things about the dangers of not running Antivirus software on our system, but we also hear about how Antivirus software is just a waste of space on our PC and that all you need is your brain to keep you safe. So, who's right?
Let's start off by saying that I have never used a PC with no AV installed on it. This has been the case for many years and it's the approach that I've chosen to take. My thinking for me personally was always that there is no reason not to.
This couldn't be more true in 2011. We have basic computers today with specs that seemed unimaginable a few years ago. You may be thinking ok, so the hardware is quite capable, but surely that AV software is going to grind your PC to a crawl. This isn't the case, as alot of the standalone AV's at the moment use very little of your PC's resources.
Price is another thing that's often thrown around as another reason not to run any Antivirus, however with the vast majority of free choices around and the features which they include, the argument doesn't stand up to much anymore.
Many say they have backups of their PC made on a regular basis and that if anything happens, they can restore their PC back before an infection in a matter of minutes. My counter argument to that is that you could run the software in the first place and potentially avoid having to carry out this procedure.
False positives are also another concern for people, they're software may be detected by the AV as a malicious file and cause many problems. Don't get me wrong, I've had this happen to me many times over the years, but i'd rather suffer from this than risk having my PC infected.
Brainware
Can your brain keep you safe? to a certain extent it can. You may check files you download against an online scanner and/or on-demand scanner on your system. You might only visit a handful of websites everyday that are trusted and you know them to be safe, but what's to say that one day this isn't the case. Websites get compromised everyday and unless you have psychic abilities, you're not going to know if the website link you're about to click will lead you to a nasty piece of malware.
My opinions is that you need a two tiered approach. Keep your wits about you and be wise while online and you will avoid many, if not most online threats, however there are threats out there that you're not going to see coming and for those, you need software in order to keep yourself covered.
Software on it's own + Non cautious, irresponsible user = A compromised PC
Responsible, cautious, knowledgeable user + No AV software = Compromised PC
Both put together equals a perfect match.
It goes without saying that you should always keep your PC fully up to date and use a firewall. My above opinion relates only to Antivirus software.
Let's start off by saying that I have never used a PC with no AV installed on it. This has been the case for many years and it's the approach that I've chosen to take. My thinking for me personally was always that there is no reason not to.
This couldn't be more true in 2011. We have basic computers today with specs that seemed unimaginable a few years ago. You may be thinking ok, so the hardware is quite capable, but surely that AV software is going to grind your PC to a crawl. This isn't the case, as alot of the standalone AV's at the moment use very little of your PC's resources.
Price is another thing that's often thrown around as another reason not to run any Antivirus, however with the vast majority of free choices around and the features which they include, the argument doesn't stand up to much anymore.
Many say they have backups of their PC made on a regular basis and that if anything happens, they can restore their PC back before an infection in a matter of minutes. My counter argument to that is that you could run the software in the first place and potentially avoid having to carry out this procedure.
False positives are also another concern for people, they're software may be detected by the AV as a malicious file and cause many problems. Don't get me wrong, I've had this happen to me many times over the years, but i'd rather suffer from this than risk having my PC infected.
Brainware
Can your brain keep you safe? to a certain extent it can. You may check files you download against an online scanner and/or on-demand scanner on your system. You might only visit a handful of websites everyday that are trusted and you know them to be safe, but what's to say that one day this isn't the case. Websites get compromised everyday and unless you have psychic abilities, you're not going to know if the website link you're about to click will lead you to a nasty piece of malware.
My opinions is that you need a two tiered approach. Keep your wits about you and be wise while online and you will avoid many, if not most online threats, however there are threats out there that you're not going to see coming and for those, you need software in order to keep yourself covered.
Software on it's own + Non cautious, irresponsible user = A compromised PC
Responsible, cautious, knowledgeable user + No AV software = Compromised PC
Both put together equals a perfect match.
It goes without saying that you should always keep your PC fully up to date and use a firewall. My above opinion relates only to Antivirus software.