Which antiviruses/ Internet security is worth paying for these days?

[carl fish]

I was wondering which antiviruses/internet security are worth paying money for?

Are there some worth paying for more than others?

Has much changed in the way paid security over the last ten years?

 

[NullByte]

I would buy Emsisoft Internet Security because I love the product and it's really good (overall).
On the other hand if you don't wanna pay for any security product you can use Comodo Internet Security or Qihoo 360 Total Security Essential.

 

[hjlbx]

There are differing opinions regarding paid versus free anti-virus. Everyone has their own thoughts - and there is little agreement.

A lot of it depends upon what a person thinks is the best protection model: signature-based, system lock down, etc.

It also depends upon what features people think are important; some have more features than others.

Personally, I think a lifetime license for Sandboxie, lifetime license for Shadow Defender, or an annual subscription to AppGuard are worth the money.

As far as antivirus, I think it is not worth the cost - because Windows Defender, Windows Firewall and Windows Smart Screen on W10 do a very good job. Plus, Comodo Internet Security can be had for zero cost.

You won't necessarily get better overall security by paying for an internet security suite. What you are actually paying for is support.

If you need good support, then I would recommend Emsisoft Internet Security (support.emsisoft.com).

With some time and effort to developing your IT security knowledge, you can craft a freeware security config that is every bit as strong as or stronger than what many paid security softs provide.

 

[Captain Awesome]

ESET SS and WinAntiRansom is worth paying for these days.

 

[Ink]

Most consumers can get away with using a Free Antivirus or Suite security software, and better of by investing in external storage and backup/recovery software.

Benefits of regularly backing up your system and data files can is cost-effective against a compromised system, with the ability to swiftly recover lost files and restore a system back to a working condition.

Of course it's not to say no security is worth buying, for example, I recently purchased a license for Avast Premier (£5). but perhaps most won't see the benefits. Each person's decision are their own, and we cannot persuade you to buy a product that you do not want.

 

[Noxx]

The best money you can spend is by getting a solid backup solution [Acronis True Image] and an anti-executable [APPGUARD]. You can't buy a brain, so you're going to have to figure that out for yourself.

 

[jamescv7]

Many antivirus like Norton, Kaspersky, ESET, Bitdefender and even Trend Micro have maximize the advertising through different regions so people will influence immediately with those offers.

But....

In my experience for such typical user who will really pay for AV then go to:

Norton Security

The simplicity of that product definitely a must go for any users; a product of install and forget since the cloud functionality alongside of SONAR have optimized for long run.

Next goes to ESET and Bitdefender for next choice.

Some may say that the two mentioned are just good only for advertising, however it's wrong. They mitigate good protection and blends with secondary components (HIPS, IDS, BB) that can act alone itself when traditional techniques failed.

Lastly Kaspersky: You cannot blame this product because of massive features and effectiveness through protection that can be a good investment to any typical user who wants to spend.

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Many mentioned backup and virtualization. I must say that for better aspect, then go to backup since many users are not fully aware on virtualization due to complexity concept.

With backup, they ensure valuable files that can retrieve anytime.

 

[DardiM]

External storage and backup/recovery software are good, but to be almost sure you don't backup malware / virus files, a security software is important (even if he could have left some one). Kaspesrsky Total Security and Crystal Security (.js extension added in 'custom') scans before files /System image backups with Acronis True Image 2016, are a good combo (2 paid software / 3)

 

[Deleted member 2913]

Kaspersky Internet Security - Effective protection with default settings. I would suggest to enable PUP protection. I am running KIS 2016 on Win 10 64. Its light on my system. Easy enough to use with default settings + PUP enabled.

Emsisoft Internet Security - Effective protection with default settings. I have tried the latest version on the mentioned Win 10 64. It was little heavy on my system i.e system boot was little longer & on reaching the desktop settling down took little time. User input required i.e Occasional popups.

Eset Smart Security - Effective protection with default settings, not as effective as the 2 above IMO. I would suggest to enable PUP detection during install & Potentially Unsafe after install in the settings. I have tried the latest version on the mentioned Win 10 64. It was light on my system. Easiest to use compared to the above 2 with default settings + PUP enabled + Potentially Unsafe enabled.

My laptop Win 10 64 Pro with 6 GB RAM.