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Virus Protection
Do you download e-mail, music, games, software programs or other files? If you download anything - you need an anti-virus solution to protect your computer from viruses, spyware, malware, and "crimeware".
Crimeware is a relatively new threat and does not yet have an official definition. Technically, crimeware is not the same threat as phishing scams, where the victim is usually duped into voluntarily exposing confidential information.
Crimeware is malicious software used to collect and transmit information back to the attacker to profit from illegally obtained financial account data. A typical example of crimeware is a backdoor keylogger Trojan that collects keystroke information, such as a bank login ID and password. During the past year, crimeware attacks have increased at a far greater rate than viruses written by pimple-faced teenage hackers...
Are you scared now? You should be! There are very serious threats seeking to exploit your privacy. You need serious, frequently updated protection!
Free Online Virus Scanners
Use your favorite search engine to search "free online virus scanner" and you will find at least a half-dozen online virus scan services from the most popular anti-virus developers. We recommend Panda ActiveScan. Panda scans and disinfects over 185,000 viruses, worms and Trojans from all system devices, hard disks, compressed file and e-mail.
Some of the online virus scanners will identify viruses on your computer but not remove the virus. You must purchase the software before you can disinfect your computer. Others may offer a limited time free trial, usually 15 to 30 days, after which you must purchase the software to continue using it.
Please be aware you need much more protection than an occasional online virus scan. You should have an anti-virus program installed on your computer to detect new threats every time you download from the Internet.
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Top 12 Anti-Virus Products
| PRODUCT | ANNUAL COST* |
| AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition | Free |
| avast! 4 Home Edition | Free |
| Avira AntiVir® PE Classic | Free |
| ZoneAlarm Antivirus | $19.95 |
| AVG Anti-Virus Professional | $29.95 |
| McAfee VirusScan Plus | $39.95 |
| Panda Antivirus 2008 | $39.95 |
| Trend Micro AntiVirus + AntiSpyware 2008 | $39.95 |
| Norton AntiVirus™ 2007 | $39.99 |
| ZoneAlarm Internet Security Suite | Was $ Now $39.95 |
| CA
Anti-Virus 2008 |
$39.95 |
| Kaspersky Anti-Virus 6.0 | $49.95 |
| *Prices current as of September 26, 2007. Subject to correction. |
We picked 7 anti-virus products for our list, featured below. Our selections are based on 3 simple criteria:
- Product Value (features vs. cost)
- Ease of Use
- Impact on System Resources
ISP Bargains does not sell software products directly from our site. Links will take you to the product's site, where you can learn more about the software for a fully informed purchase.
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GRISOFT AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition
AVG is our favorite FREE anti-virus solution.
AVG
Anti-Virus Free Edition is a totally free anti-virus protection
tool developed by GRISOFT for home use. We invite you to join the millions
of satisfied customers worldwide. Download your copy and use it without
any limitations for the life of the product. You can also automatically
download free updates to get the latest virus databases. Features include:
AVG Resident Protection, AVG e-mail Scanner, AVG on-Demand Scanner, Basic
Scheduled Tests, Free Virus Database Updates, Automatic Update feature,
Easy-To-Use Interface, Automatic Healing of infected files, AVG Virus Vault
for safe handling of infected files.
AVG Free Edition is fully featured anti-virus software with the following restrictions:
- Basic user interface only
- Disabled advanced scheduling of tests
- Disabled creating your own tests
- NO TECHNICAL SUPPORT
AVG
Anti-Virus Free Edition
Free Download
Editor's Note: This may not be the right product for inexperienced computer
users since AVG Free Edition does not provide technical support. We've included
it in our list because it is an excellent FREE anti-virus solution for EXPERIENCED
computer users.
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avast! 4 Home Edition
avast!
4 Home Edition is a full-featured antivirus package. It is
now free of charge for HOME users for NONCOMMERCIAL use. New version of
avast! features outstanding detection abilities, together with high performance.
You can expect 100% detection of In-the-Wild viruses and very good detection
of trojan horses, all that with only a minimum number of false alarms. avast!
includes the Virus Cleaner, a tool designed for a complete removal of most
common infections from already-infected computers. So now avast! is able
to reliably heal (not only detect) the most common malware.
Web Shield is a unique feature of avast! that enables it to monitor and filter all HTTP traffic coming from Web sites on the Internet. Since an increasing number of viruses (and other malware, such as adware, spyware and dialers) are being distributed via the Web, the need for effective countermeasures has also increased. The Web Shield acts as a transparent HTTP proxy and is compatible with all major web browsers, including Microsoft Internet Explorer, FireFox, Mozilla and Opera.
avast! offers online FAQ pages and forum support.
avast!
4 Home Edition
Free Download
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ZoneAlarm Antivirus Plus Firewall
ZoneAlarm
Antivirus is the most recent combination product from Zone
Labs. It includes their basic firewall, not the Pro version which features
advanced firewall protection. The antivirus solution includes one year of
automatic updates and support. Plus e-mail security, wireless PC protection,
SmartDefense™ service.
Editor's Note: Zone Labs has earned a trusted reputation. Any product offered
by Zone Labs may be considered a worthwhile purchase. However, this product
does not include the full protection features offered in
ZoneAlarm Security Suite
(scroll down to find product info on this page).
ZoneAlarm Antivirus
$19.95 One Year Subscription
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AVG Anti-Virus Professional
AVG
Anti-Virus Professional provides easy to use protection – install and forget.
New program versions and updates, for free, throughout the license duration.
Quality proven by all major antivirus certifications (VB100%, ICSA, West
Coast Labs Checkmark). 24/7 technical support provided at no extra cost.
Features include improved virus detection based on better heuristics and
NTFS data streams scanning, smaller installation and update files. Improved
user interface.
FEATURES
- 100% virus detection — AVG’s scanning engine has received numerous awards for its excellent detection of “in the wild” viruses, including the VB100% award. Its unique combination of detection methods provides full protection against viruses, worms and trojans.
- Full on-access protection — The powerful AVG Resident Shield provides maximum protection by scanning every file opened, executed, or saved. It also prevents the opening or executing of infected files.
- Flexible intelligent scanning — The AVG Resident Shield can include/exclude files from being scanned based on individual file extensions and can handle exceptions for potentially unwanted programs such as adware.
- Full e-mail protection — AVG checks every e-mail sent or received, providing full protection from e-mail-borne threats. AVG supports all leading e-mail clients, including MS Outlook, The bat!, Eudora, and all other SMTP/POP3-based e-mail clients, such as Outlook Express. Encrypted connections using SSL are also supported.
- Automatic threat handling — AVG can automatically heal or remove infected files and other threats such as trojans and worms.
- Powerful scheduling — AVG automatically provides recommended daily schedules for scanning and updating, and also allows you to create custom-scheduled events.
- Multiple language support — No need to buy a special language version.
AVG
Anti-Virus Professional
$29.95 One Year Subscription
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CA Anti-Virus 2008
CA
Anti-Virus 2008 provides complete protection against viruses,
worms and Trojan horse programs. The easy-to-use interface and frequent
automatic updates make it effortless to stay protected, and with quick scan
times and efficient use of system resources, it won't bog down your PC.
NEW! Up to $1,500 Protection Against Damage caused by Computer Viruses*.
If your PC fails due to a virus infection after CA Anti-Virus is properly
installed, you can receive up to $1,500 in technical service and hardware
replacement. Program administered by Warranty Corporation of America (WaCA),
a full service administration company. Only available to US residents.
KEY FEATURES:
CA Anti-Virus 2008 protects up to three PCs with a single subscription. You no longer need to buy three separate subscriptions to protect your household PC's.
Daily automatic updates easily and effectively address the #1 reason PC users suffer attacks: out-of-date signature files.
Automatic e-mail scanning protects against viruses that arrive via e-mail, before they can cause damage.
Scheduled and on-demand scanning allow you to run a scan at any time, or schedule scans at preselected intervals to meet your needs.
Real-time scanning proactively stops viruses by scanning files when they are opened, closed or saved to your PC.
Advanced heuristic scanning detects new threats even before virus protection updates are created.
*Covers up to 3 PCs or laptops, combined limit of $1,500.
CA Anti-Virus 2008
$39.95 One Year Subscription
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McAfee VirusScan Plus
McAfee
VirusScan Plus
offers 3 in 1 PC protection from viruses, hackers and spyware so you can
surf the Web safely. Prevents multi-pronged attacks by integrating anti-virus,
firewall, and anti-spyware technologies. Simplifies security with the new
and improved McAfee SecurityCenter. Shields your PC around the clock: always
on, always updating, always protecting. Warns you about sites which send
spam, install adware, or attempt online scams. Automatically scans your
e-mail, attachments and downloads, then immediately starts to clean infections.
Easy to download, install and use, McAfee VirusScan also automatically checks
for virus updates (included FREE with your one-year coverage) whenever you
go online, so your protection stays up-to-date against the latest Internet
threats.
- E-mail Scanning
- Instant Message Scanning
- ScriptStopper™
- WormStopper™
- Detects Spyware
- Windows Explorer Integration
- AutoClean
- MS Outlook Scanning
- Silent Updating
- Submit Files to AVERT™
- Virus Map & Information Library
30-DAY SATISFACTION GUARANTEE
McAfee Security will make your computer more secure or your money
back. If for any reason you are not 100% satisfied, just let them
know within 30 days of purchase and get a full refund.
McAfee
VirusScan Plus
$29.95 One Year Subscription
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ZoneAlarm Internet Security Suite
ZoneAlarm Security Suite
provides "Set and Forget" antivirus protection. Automatically scans emails
and files for viruses and removes them for you. Automatic updates protect
you from the latest known security threats without you needing to remember
to update your antivirus solution. Award-winning antivirus technology secures
your PC against known viruses, worm, Trojans and identity-theft tools such
as keystroke logging programs. Sophisticated logic detects unknown, emerging
viruses even before they've been defined — so you're protected at the very
beginning of a new virus outbreak.
COMPLETE INTERNET SECURITY
- Award-Winning Firewall
Easy to use firewall blocks hackers and other unknown threats. Stealth Mode hides you and your PC from anyone on the Internet.
- Comprehensive Antivirus Protection
Stops viruses and worms, and protects against emerging viruses before they attack. - Powerful
Identity and Privacy Protection
Keeps personal data private and secure, deletes adware cookies, blocks pop-up ads, and more. - Content
and Communication Protection
Shields you from Instant Messaging spammers, thieves, and online predators. Encrypts conversations to protect against monitoring. Web Site Filtering blocks access to offensive Internet content.
- Essential E-mail Security
Quarantines suspicious e-mail attachments and blocks outbound messages containing potential viruses.
ZoneAlarm Internet Security Suite
$39.95 One Year Subscription
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