I have a question

[sasuke chan]

Will Norton stop Trojan virus? i need to know before i go out and buy the new Norton Antivirus 2013 from walmart.

/>http://www.walmart.com/ip/Norton-Antivirus-2013-3-Users/21862660

[DeathTheKid]

It should. Have you checked their website?

[sasuke chan]

I have checked the other web sites and about every one asking the same question. I could not find an answer plus the other sites was making me dizzy. That's why I came to this site for help I knew there could be some user's that could help me.

[lolrawr]

Wooooo man. You don't have to pay for antivirus software lol. Yeah I'm sure it will the trojans, but so will AVG. Also Malwaerbytes is good for the stuff AVG doesn't get.

[sasuke chan]

I had tried the free antivirus software they do not work. only antivirus program I have used is the Microsoft Safety Scanner only thing it does is partially removes them. then their right back on your computer and i rather of get something that actually works then something that is for free.... I'm not going to download AVG or Malwaerbytes antivirus software I do not know of, plus if I did download those two all they will ask for you to buy the software, I'm not going to waste my time on those two antivirus programs.

[DeathTheKid]

You can actually torrent a lot of good anti virus programs. I used to use AVG 2012 but since my new laptop came with 3 years of Kaspsersky so I don't need anything else. But if you do want to buy one then I suggest either Kaspersky or MalwareBytes.

[Dae314]

Short answer to your question:

yup.

Long answer:

Well it depends. All AV software is imperfect. It won't stop all trojans. However, there isn't any AV software that's so useless as to not stop ANY trojans . What you're looking for with AV software is protection, low system resource use overhead, low cost, and general usability.

On the protection side, you can split the idea up into two parts: prevention and detection/repair. Prevention usually means your AV software will scan your downloads and monitor your active connections to block any malicious content before it can be loaded on your computer. Detection/Repair refers to your AV software's ability to detect and successfully remove or quarantine malicious software if it's already been loaded. The overall protection a piece of AV software gives you varies over time due to the constant stream of new malware entering the world (or being discovered by security experts ^^).

However, you don't want your AV software to completely freeze your computer whenever it decides to run a system scan. That's why you should also look at the overhead caused by AV software. Large suites offered by big-name companies like Norton and Kaspersky will usually have more overhead than other programs that focus on one thing only (e.g. MSE doesn't give you a firewall, just AV protection, but it's very light-weight). Though there are inherit differences between the various programs that cause some to be more resource heavy than others.

Cost is also an issue, but it's fairly straight forward so I'll say no more about it.

Usability is one of those vague design terms that technical people don't really like. Basically it refers to how easily you're able to tell your AV software to execute the tasks you want it to execute. Maybe you want your scans to run on a schedule or only when you want it to. Perhaps you want it not to monitor a certain port since you plan to have something specific coming through there. Usability can also refer to a low number of annoying nag-screens and false alarms for programs that are not malicious. The easier the program is to use, the better you will think the program is generally.

I generally work with free antivirus software since cost is 0, and overhead for most is pretty low. Right now, I think the best AV software has to offer in the free realm is:

Avast

AVG

Panda Cloud Antivirus

MSE used to be awesome, but the recent round of tests run on it have revealed that it's beginning to lag behind the others.

Edited December 14, 2012 by Dae314

[sasuke chan]

I looked up Kaspersky at wal mart it said it takes out viruses, spyware, Trojans, rootkits and more. i think ill be getting Kaspersky

so thanks of your help ^__^

Edited December 14, 2012 by sasuke chan

[ZeroPenguins]

Kaspersky is good, I used to use it for a few years. I switched to Eset however, it's a lot better in terms of performance and uses lesser RAM.

[Hawkester]

Zonealarm Extreme Security for me! No problems here

And I find Norton to be one of the worst anti-virus security software

[Marc05]

If you want to go the free route, I suggest using a variety of tools such as Malwarebyte's Anti-Malware along with Spybot S&D and practicing safe surfing. If you're planning on buying something though, I recommend ESET Smart Security. This is the best software I've had the pleasure of having installed for many years now and it hasn't failed me yet. I'm so confident in it that I regularly download things that I know to be harmful just out of curiosity. It contains great real-time protection and an expansive firewall.

If you'd like something very secure and light-weight, I'd recommend Webroot SecureAnywhere. It's a cloud-based AV which should take care of any problems that you come across. The way that it detects viruses can be called revolutionary. The only downfall is that it requires an online connection to work properly. However, if you're not connected to the iternet, there's a very low risk of getting a virus anyway.

[RikuoAmero]

If you want to go the free route, I suggest using a variety of tools such as Malwarebyte's Anti-Malware along with Spybot S&D and practicing safe surfing. If you're planning on buying something though, I recommend ESET Smart Security. This is the best software I've had the pleasure of having installed for many years now and it hasn't failed me yet. I'm so confident in it that I regularly download things that I know to be harmful just out of curiosity. It contains great real-time protection and an expansive firewall.

If you'd like something very secure and light-weight, I'd recommend Webroot SecureAnywhere. It's a cloud-based AV which should take care of any problems that you come across. The way that it detects viruses can be called revolutionary. The only downfall is that it requires an online connection to work properly. However, if you're not connected to the iternet, there's a very low risk of getting a virus anyway.

I'd like to know how a cloud-based antivirus program is supposed to work. When I scan my computer with Avast, the program scans my files and compares them to virus definitions that it stores on my computer. How would Webroot work? Would you be constantly uploading copies of your files to their servers, to be compared, or is it just the hash of the file or something like that?

[Marc05]

I'd like to know how a cloud-based antivirus program is supposed to work. When I scan my computer with Avast, the program scans my files and compares them to virus definitions that it stores on my computer. How would Webroot work? Would you be constantly uploading copies of your files to their servers, to be compared, or is it just the hash of the file or something like that?

It doesn't work the same way as other AVs do (i.e. checks definitions), it checks the actions of the running process. If those actions are known to be harmful (checked on cloud), then it takes care of it. If the actions are suspicious, it keeps track of the running file for more info and gives you a warning I think. When offline, it uses a small local definition. The way I've described it is really... well, not very good. Check out this short video for a bit more information: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=clbfvlvrfTY

[Koby]

Norton is just fail bloat-ware.

Microsoft Security Essentials is free and works fine.

A good back up to run every once in a while is MalwareBytes and Hitman Pro.

[† ballard]

Going a long with what Koby said, Security Essentials does the job perfectly fine. I also use Malwarebytes and Superantispyware. Both of which are free. Some more decent free antivirus software is Avira and Avast. I would personally avoid AVG and Norton at all costs.

Edited January 1, 2013 by ballard

[Marc05]

Although Microsof Security Essentials is free and does a fair job, it's not something I would recomend for the average user. MSE lacks HIPS, Behavior Blocker, and even a Firewall. There is a price to pay for "free", in this case, it's lack of features (and you'll probably get better 0-day protection with a paid program in part due to likely more frequent definition updates).

Edited December 29, 2012 by Marc05

[lothy]

It shoulde, but IMO Nortan isnt a very good anti-virus program, i recommend kaspersky, has good reviews

[† ballard]

Although Microsof Security Essentials is free and does a fair job, it's not something I would recomend for the average user. MSE lacks HIPS, Behavior Blocker, and even a Firewall. There is a price to pay for "free", in this case, it's lack of features (and you'll probably get better 0-day protection with a paid program in part due to likely more frequent definition updates).

That may be the case. However, I've used Norton in the past and it was horrible. An AV like Avira did a much better job for me, and it's updated all the time. (I used the free version.) I'm currently using Security Essentials because it's very light on my system, and it doesn't constantly bother me with false positives. I haven't had a virus in about a year and a half. (When I did get one it was completely my fault. I knew what I was getting myself into. =P) If I were to ever buy another AV it would probably be the full version of Superantispyware even though the free version does an amazing job already. With that being said, it seems that he already got Kaspersky. Which will do a really good job for the money.

Edited December 29, 2012 by ballard

[Dark_Angel13]

Going a long with what Koby said, Security Essentials does the job perfectly fine. I also use Malwarebytes and Superantispyware. Both of which are free. Some more decent free anti virus software is Avira and Avast. I would personally avoid AVG and Norton at all costs.

Have to agree with this on AVG, it's absolute garbage as a program