Advice Request Stay with EAM or switch to G-Data?

[cardinal]

Hey guys,

long time lurker here needs some advice.

I did use Emsisoft Anti Malware Home for the past years and even tho I am not dissatisfied with it I am kind of annoyed with the FPs. For example I do have to whitelist EVERY update of the Tor Browser because of its BB.

So I am thinking about switching to G-Data Antivirus but cannot decide if that's the right decision. The GUI seems very old and the software appears to be kind of buggy (I did read some comments about that). But the protection seems very good. EAM seems to miss some samples here an there in some tests. But I do like the web console for management and additional information.

So would you guys switch to G-Data or stay with Emsisoft?

Thanks in advance!

 

[ErzCrz]

Emsisoft when I've used it runs quite well. It uses around 450mb of ram constantly but doesn't have any affect on my 16 gig of ram system. The Silent Mode is automatically activated for full screen things such as watching videos or playing full screen games. It doesn't include Firewall but blocks connections from malware via integration with Microsoft Defender Firewall. I like that updates are regular and I've been toying with the idea of maybe renewing the license which I won in last year's giveaway draw.

EDIT: They are, like so many AV companies these days more focused on Enterprise solutions but I read somewhere they are still also focused on the anti-malware home protection and you can compare the two on their website: Emsisoft protection

 

[struppigel]

Not going to suggest any particular AV, I just want to give some context information that might not be clear.

sidenote to this good discussion, sometimes when you install a new AV to your system, it can seem slow because some AV need to "learn" your computer and new AV can speed up over the span of several days. I did experience this with TrendMicro, although that was several years ago. Perhaps not the same now with today's NGAV? dunno, and I have never used G-Data. Also important to get a clean and complete uninstall of your previous AV.

This is correct. Files that have not changed don't need to be scanned again.

Bitdefender's engine is used in both products, but the engine is only one slice of the protection. So having this engine does not automatically mean that the protection is similar. Even allowlisting can be done separately. Both products have their own engine for anything that is missing as well as non-engine related protections (BEAST, DeepRay, File Cloud, Anti-Ransomware, Exploitprotection in case of GDATA)

 

[cardinal]

Thanks for all the replies!
I just want to give you guys a short feedback.

Most of you recommended that i stay with Emsisoft but i did test G-Data Internet Security for some time (since there is a huge discount atm) ;P
G-Data is way cheaper than Emsisoft, so i favor G-Data in this regard.

The protection seems great BUT it hogs system ressources like nothing i have ever seen before. I do have a a pretty good gaming PC (32GB RAM), G-Data takes easily >1,2GB of RAM and for this client its no problem at all. I didnt notice any system slow downs, but what about a "normal" 8GB RAM laptop? That seems pretty excessive, does it not? For comparison i tested a fresh install of Emsisoft Business Security and it hovers around 500-700MB. Yes, AVs should use a certain amount of RAM but in G-Datas case it seems like bad programming (just my asumption). From what i have been reading it is intentional and it wont be changed. Overall it seems that Emsisoft is produced with way more "love" and is more frequently updated than G-Data (correct me if i am wrong here, i could not find some kind of changelog or anything).

One thing that wonders me is the Web protection of Emsisoft. Does it work? ;P
I dont have any logs for this part of the software, the browser plugin blocks malicious sites but it doesnt communicate with the software at all.

 

[Like a Western!]

Stay away from G-Data.
you don't want to get your support tickets get delayed because of their support agent being sickness. just unprofessional
like what they only have 1 agent and if he get sick your ticket delays for 2 weeks? what if it was an infection case..

 

[Oldie1950]

In my experience, Emsisoft support for the business version is definitely very fast thanks to the live chat option.

 

[ForgottenSeer 103564]

Both use Bitdefender engine, which is more than likely where the false positives are coming from.

It's best for the user to test each product to see which one conforms best to their machines hardware and uses of.

As for the false positives, you can either submit those to EAM or GData or directly to Bitdefender.

False positives: Why did Emsisoft quarantine a safe program?

Why did Emsisoft quarantine a safe program? Overview: Sometimes, applications as games, small customized apps or even business software are erroneously flagged as dangerous, even though they are safe to […]

www.emsisoft.com

Sample Upload

Incorrect Detection: Report a false positive or false negative to Bitdefender

Fill out this form to send a sample file or website for analysis to Bitdefender Labs to rule out a potential incorrect detection.

www.bitdefender.com

 

[Divine_Barakah]

Both use Bitdefender engine, which is more than likely where the false positives are coming from.

It's best for the user to test each product to see which one conforms best to their machines hardware and uses of.

As for the false positives, you can either submit those to EAM or GData or directly to Bitdefender.

False positives: Why did Emsisoft quarantine a safe program?

Why did Emsisoft quarantine a safe program? Overview: Sometimes, applications as games, small customized apps or even business software are erroneously flagged as dangerous, even though they are safe to […]

www.emsisoft.com

Sample Upload

Incorrect Detection: Report a false positive or false negative to Bitdefender

Fill out this form to send a sample file or website for analysis to Bitdefender Labs to rule out a potential incorrect detection.

www.bitdefender.com

FPs in Emsisoft are mostly caused by its aggressive BB not by signatures.

 

[simmerskool]

sidenote to this good discussion, sometimes when you install a new AV to your system, it can seem slow because some AV need to "learn" your computer and new AV can speed up over the span of several days. I did experience this with TrendMicro, although that was several years ago. Perhaps not the same now with today's NGAV? dunno, and I have never used G-Data. Also important to get a clean and complete uninstall of your previous AV.

UPDATE to my above Nov 2023 post, I have been running GData on one VM and Emsisoft on another VM. I like them both, but I'm finding no reason to switch from Emsi to GData. (now I have to go back and read all previous posts to see why switching was suggested)...