Should I stay with Emsisoft Anti-Malware or go back to Malwarebytes ?

[Deleted member 65228]

@crezz You're not missing anything here.

People say good things about Emsisoft because they clearly like it, they are fans... The same way that fans of a music artist will tell people they like them, or fans of a video game will say it is really good. This doesn't mean everyone who likes Emsisoft hates other vendors, I like Emsisoft but I also like Symantec (Norton), Kaspersky, ESET, Avast, etc.

It depends on your needs will depend on which product someone prefers. Someone might prefer Avast for their hardened mode, others might want Norton for their SONAR, others might want Emsisoft for the BB, and others might want VoodooShield for default deny, or AppGuard for SRP... But Emsisoft isn't a geek tool like it may have looked in the past, they did it up for increased automation so it is more appropriate for an average person with the BB now.

As for the labs, take it all with a grain of salt. Emsisoft also uses the BD engine alongside their own and the labs tend to love Bitdefender, so there's always that.

 

[Soulbound]

I have a lifetime license for Malwarebytes. Still I left long ago because of all the issues it was having with my imaging program. Yes I know really weird.

To be honest, I would not switch to Emsisoft unless you have a key/license.

You can still make use of MBAM with another free solution for example.

MBAM premium on its own has its good and bad points.

If you are looking for a free solution, then Avast might cater to your needs.

Emsisoft is ok but doesn't mean its the best despite their good Behaviour Blocker.

 

[ForgottenSeer 58943]

Alot of well informed people on this forum are Emsisoft fans.
I love the Kiwis, having lived in New Zealand for a number of years, but I must ask WHY is Emsisoft so popular ?
I've never seen anything bad written about Emsisoft. However, is there much evidence to show that they are a better choice than the larger players in the AV world- Symantec, Kaspersky etc. Those are the companies that the labs seem to like the best.
However, am I missing something here ?

I think the reason Emsisoft comes up a lot are;

1) Strong privacy protection. Emsisoft uses only the absolute minimum information it needs on your system to work. Unlike most products these days, the telemetry that exists your network from your AV is absolutely frightening - at time. Note - Fortinet, we've been REDUCING our telemetry on Forticlient, it was the second lowest on the AVC report a few years ago, and is probably still second, or tied with Emsisoft.
2) HTTPS checkbox for protection on all communications/updates. In the age of update channel compromises and update interceptions, this is a very good feature.
3) Bit Defender Sigs - solid sigs.
4) Strong BB.
5) Decentralized development. I've been told they don't really have a specific HQ with a jurisdiction to subpoena and hence, cannot/won't respond to intrusive govt. spying, whitelisting or national security letters. I assume this stance hasn't changed.
6) Reasonable stable, dependable.

While I don't think it's perfect, it's one of the few AV's I would consider running and on the short list of 2 AV's I recommend to friends/family. Given the potential downfalls of running something like Norton or Trend, and some peoples fear of Kaspersky, the bugs of Bit Defender proper, it's often the best solution for many, including many experts in the field.

 

[Faybert]

This choice is easy, at least for me, after it has become a complete av, I have never had a good experience with Malwarebytes, I always left my pc heavy, and many bug too, Zemana today is way above them, now Emsisoft is undoubtedly a of the best choices in today's times, never weighed in my system, excellent interface, in addition to its famous BB

 

[idaho]

I would stay with Emsisoft. This is great protection. P.S.: Hope Emsisoft one day bring back own firewall, what makes in my opinion Emsisoft best on market back again.

 

[Deleted Member 3a5v73x]

but I must ask WHY is Emsisoft so popular ?

I would say because of Emsisoft | Privacy Policy , not bundled with registry/browser cleaners, customer support, one of the best Behaviour Blockers on the market, simplicity, ransomware decryptors for free Download a free Emsisoft Decrypter for the latest file encryption ransomware .. the list could just go on.

 

[Deleted member 178]

I think people like us is for the simplicity and efficiency of EAM, it is a no-brainer; almost install & forget while doing very good job. This is what classic users love.

 

[Deleted member 178]

2) HTTPS checkbox for protection on all communications/updates. In the age of update channel compromises and update interceptions, this is a very good feature.

The box was removed, made no sense to have it, TLS 1.2 is implemented by default.

 

[509322]

I think the reason Emsisoft comes up a lot are;

1) Strong privacy protection. Emsisoft uses only the absolute minimum information it needs on your system to work. Unlike most products these days, the telemetry that exists your network from your AV is absolutely frightening - at time. Note - Fortinet, we've been REDUCING our telemetry on Forticlient, it was the second lowest on the AVC report a few years ago, and is probably still second, or tied with Emsisoft.
2) HTTPS checkbox for protection on all communications/updates. In the age of update channel compromises and update interceptions, this is a very good feature.
3) Bit Defender Sigs - solid sigs.
4) Strong BB.
5) Decentralized development. I've been told they don't really have a specific HQ with a jurisdiction to subpoena and hence, cannot/won't respond to intrusive govt. spying, whitelisting or national security letters. I assume this stance hasn't changed.
6) Reasonable stable, dependable.

While I don't think it's perfect, it's one of the few AV's I would consider running and on the short list of 2 AV's I recommend to friends/family. Given the potential downfalls of running something like Norton or Trend, and some peoples fear of Kaspersky, the bugs of Bit Defender proper, it's often the best solution for many, including many experts in the field.

These factors, but I think most of all because of Emsisoft support. You have a problem, contact support and it gets fixed. Peoples' reported general experiences with bugs and support tend to be better or much better than average than with all the other AVs and internet security suite publishers. Fixes for reported bugs are a rate that is much faster than the average antivirus\internet security suite publisher.

Emsisoft doesn't really have anything "hidden" or disabled by default - reserved for "advanced" users to get into, and tweak, and then in doing so the user exposes a ton of bugs and discovers there is a bunch of stuff that actually does not work in the soft - the user is disappointed, and quickly abandons the soft. Sound familiar ? It should. To a lot of MT members.

Above all else, people figure out how to use EAM - to the extent that most are satisfied - not security soft geek satisfied, but satisfied.

It's my own personal observation and experience.

 

[Deleted member 178]

The problem those days is that people believes that more features you have in a product, better you are protected...it is popular "mislead", knowledge of the soft used is primordial; so if the soft is easy to use and understand, then you are better protected.
I always kept stating that to users, if they want proper security, they must know the soft they use.

Using an analogy: a trained swordsman will be more lethal with an old stick than a noob with the best sword.

 

[shmu26]

Alot of well informed people on this forum are Emsisoft fans.
I love the Kiwis, having lived in New Zealand for a number of years, but I must ask WHY is Emsisoft so popular ?
I've never seen anything bad written about Emsisoft. However, is there much evidence to show that they are a better choice than the larger players in the AV world- Symantec, Kaspersky etc. Those are the companies that the labs seem to like the best.
However, am I missing something here ?

I was wondering exactly the same thing a few days ago, and after trying it out, I see that Emsi has
1 good protection for zero-days (security geeks like that),
2 it is generally an honest company that tries to do a good job and puts out a product that shows thought and consideration. It's not junky or fakey or misleading.

 

[ForgottenSeer 58943]

These factors, but I think most of all because of Emsisoft support. You have a problem, contact support and it gets fixed. Peoples' reported general experiences with bugs and support tend to be better or much better than average than with all the other AVs and internet security suite publishers. Fixes for reported bugs are a rate that is much faster than the average antivirus\internet security suite publisher.

Yes, the support is excellent. Second to none. I forgot that on my list.

 

[thewul]

These factors, but I think most of all because of Emsisoft support. You have a problem, contact support and it gets fixed. Peoples' reported general experiences with bugs and support tend to be better or much better than average than with all the other AVs and internet security suite publishers. Fixes for reported bugs are a rate that is much faster than the average antivirus\internet security suite publisher.

Their support is really outstanding. I have used a few other products, but they heavily depend on 'forum support'. Once you have a non-standard question, i.e. need direct support, it depends on the publisher. I've used Kaspersky many years, they never-never replied on a ticket, after some weeks they delete it. Period. And send you a questionnaire on their performance on solving the issue. Norton/Symantec does reply once in a while.
Emsisoft always replies. If necessary elaborate. Also even when you ask for their views on specific security matters, not directly related to their product. Obviously such mails should be limited to things that really matter. Emsisoft support folks are also replying on the forums threads.

That aside, there is a blog post on the Emsisoft site advising people not to run two AV products, see: Why it isn’t a good idea to run multiple full antivirus products at the same time
MBAM and Emsisoft were fine in the past, however, MBAM's new product (v3) became more or less a stand along AV product, whereas in the past it worked like an extra layer. As such right now, there -may, repeat may- be conflicts.
I have / am using EAM and MBAM Premium together for quite a while and never encountered issues.
(within EAM I excluded the MBAM folder from being monitored/scanned).
I've not noticed any performance impact, but I have a modern machine with a lot of RAM.
Gonna give it a try without MBAM on of these days.

 

[ForgottenSeer 55474]

Malwarebytes Premium just found 1 Trojan and 3 pups on my system that Zemana and Bitdefender have missed,so I would go for Malwarebytes it is just the best.
I use Heimdal Pro also never experienced any conflicts

 

[KevinYu0504]

Malwarebytes Premium just found 1 Trojan and 3 pups on my system that Zemana and Bitdefender have missed,so I would go for Malwarebytes it is just the best.
I use Heimdal Pro also never experienced any conflicts

I agree .

Malwarebytes did pretty well on anti adware or PUP/PUA ,
Also Malwarebytes had a zero-days attack defend ,
sometimes i saw the news on internet about someone discover a new zero-days attack ,
Malwarebytes always had a fast response .

Zemana is still be good to be a second security tool in system ,
because they using multiple engines and database to detected malware or Torjan ,
I had saw some other forum member report ,
that Zemana some time can found the adware or Torjan that Malwarebytes or tradition antivirus miss .
I also like Zemana AntiLogger's encryption function , it's useful ~



However , i do not like Heimdal ,
i even can't use for more than 14days in trial version ,
there is too many false alert in my area , and in the old version ,
Heimdal even do not have any exclude function ,
when Heimdal detected the false alert , i had to close Heimdal by manual ,
Too annoying for me .

 

[ForgottenSeer 55474]

I understand what you are saying(regarding Heimdal Pro)but I have not experienced any problems so far.

 

[dinosaur07]

EAM as this software is not buggy, has no slowdowns, doesn`t use huge resources and has very efficient protection and quality support.