7 ms·
Just finished uninstalling AVG...
by DinkyG 11y ago
Just finished uninstalling AVG...
- g0v 11y agoI recently switched from Bitdefender to AVG, and like you just uninstalled AVG. I'm not sure where to go from here.
- pdonis 11y ago> I'm not sure where to go from here. Linux.
- g0v 11y agoI work on an Ubuntu vm, the only reason I use Windows, really, is for games and likely just out of habit. I don't think it will be much longer until I actually make the switch.
- dijit 11y agoI wouldn't recommend pirating the games. if you don't, and you don't do webbrowsing from inside windows then I can't imagine the need for anti-virus. 90% of attacks are trojan horses (fake/embedded pirated software usually) and the remaining 9.9% is browser attacks. I doubt anyone is defeating your firewall/NAT box to get a direct connection to your windows machine, and even if they did they'd have to find a service they can exploit. :)
- jamiepenney 11y agoWhat are you using to run the VM? I've always had issues integrating the host and guest VM nicely in Windows - getting copy-paste working properly, resizing the window, etc.
- vetinari 11y agoBoth Vmware and VirtualBox work great - if you install the guest tools. For some extra polish when running Linux VMs under VirtualBox on Windows, set the virtualisation mode to kvm and use virtio network device.
- ams6110 11y agoNot a given. Where I work, most of the reports I get from security admins regarding compromised hosts (found to be port-scanning, attacking other hosts, etc.) are for Ubuntu systems. You still have to secure any services you're running and take basic common-sense precautions.
- pjmlp 11y agoFor the average Joe and Jane it would be exactly the same thing, as Android sideloading and jailbreak iOS prove the point. Security starts with the user.
- pdonis 11y ago> Android sideloading How is this the same as having to run anti-virus software because the system's (i.e., Windows's) security model is broken? > jailbreak iOS Not sure why iOS is even relevant to my comment, since it isn't built on Linux (or even Unix). > Security starts with the user. This is true; a user who is bound and determined to hose their system can do it no matter what protections are in place. But that's irrelevant to the point under discussion, which is how people who do not want to hose their system can keep it secure. On Windows, you have to run anti-virus software (and even the protection that provides is not foolproof), because the system's security model is broken. On Linux, the system's security model is functional to begin with, since unlike Windows, the system was designed that way from the ground up. So you don't need to run anti-virus software, and hence you don't have to worry about what information that software, which has a privileged position on your system, might be sending to others.
- pjmlp 11y agoWindows security is pretty good when running as a normal user and having UAC turned on on its full level and binaries validation. Yes, those things should be turned on by default. It is hard to educate generations used to work as root. When people discuss UNIX security they tend to forget that worms were first targeted at them. Also data matters more than system binaries, so it is enough to p0wn an application and suddenly $HOME is open to the world. Then new GNU/Linux generations also seem very found of "curl ... | sh". Again opening $HOME to the world. I also doubt everyone reads their emacs, vi, ..... packages. Again opening $HOME to the world. UNIX does have a better security model configuration out of the box, but is just as unsafe for the regular users that just dump stuff into their PCs.
- pdonis 11y ago> Windows security is pretty good when running as a normal user and having UAC turned on on its full level and binaries validation. Do you still need to run anti-virus software in this configuration? > UNIX does have a better security model configuration out of the box, but is just as unsafe for the regular users that just dump stuff into their PCs Again, I agree, if a user wants to hose their system, Unix won't prevent them. But anti-virus software won't prevent them either. My point is, what about the user that doesn't want to hose their system? On Linux, it's very simple: use your package manager to install software, and don't run anything that wasn't installed that way.
- newjersey 11y ago(Assuming you're using Windows) Are you using a recent version of Windows (8, 8.1, or 10)? Do you have automatic updates enabled? Do you have standard Windows features such as User Access Control enabled? Do you use the computer with a standard user account as opposed to an administrator (root access) user account? If the answers to all these questions are yes, I'd say you don't need an antivirus solution. Don't listen to the scaremongers. Microsoft has got you covered.
- ninkendo 11y agoHonestly, I haven't had antivirus in 10 years and I haven't had a problem (although my windows usage has declined over the years... I mainly just stick to steam now.) Run updates, don't use browser plugins, stick to applications you trust, and stay away from seedy looking sites when downloading common software. (Sourceforge comes to mind.)
- mtgx 11y agoDepends what you're doing. If you like to play with a lot of risky torrents, then Windows Defender may not suffice. I also don't think Windows Defender does a great job at protecting you against infected removable media either. Avira seems to be pretty good at all of that and light weight. For risky websites, a combination of Chrome, WOT, ublock origin, HTTPS Everywhere and Sandboxie and/or Malwarebytes Anti-Exploit (zero-day protection) should suffice. Using a Standard (non-Admin) Windows account and being up to date goes without saying.
- cortesoft 11y agoRisky torrents are what VMs are for.
- kmfrk 11y agoYou should still download EMET: https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/security/jj653751 https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/security/jj653751.
- deleted 11y ago[deleted]
- notatoad 11y agostop. don't use an antivirus. back up your data, and use a tool like acronis to take an image of your system state. If you get a virus, re-image. if you keep your OS and browser up to date, and don't open random sketchy EXEs, you'll be fine.
- pyr0m4n 11y agoWithout AV, you could be infected for months without ever knowing... :) so unless it's some stupid malware, what would trigger you to reimage?
- AnthonyMouse 11y agoWith AV you could be infected for months without ever knowing. All it takes is to get infected by anything that hasn't made it into the (often out of date anyway) definitions. The old school Unix method works very well: Keep a list of all changes made from the base install, then periodically swap the disk out for a blank one, follow your documentation and restore non-executable user data from backup. Also has the benefit of regularly validating your documentation and testing your backups, and allows easy rollback by following the same process for major OS updates or hardware upgrades.
- zo1 11y ago>"I'm not sure where to go from here." No where. I've been antivirus-free for the better part of a decade. 0 infections of malware of any kind. Have a look at this link, it explains things a whole lot better than I could: http://www.cnet.com/how-to/i-dont-use-anti-virus-software-am-i-nuts/ http://www.cnet.com/how-to/i-dont-use-anti-virus-software-am...
- vacri 11y agoIf you're on Windows 7, use Microsoft Security Essentials. It does the job, and isn't nagware.
- buffoon 11y agoAlso doesn't steal all your disk IO and CPU and is built in on Windows 8+.
- mtgx 11y agoAnd any malware maker and his dog know to bypass it before creating his new malware. How many stories have you heard of Windows Defender stopping ransomware? That's right - ZERO.
- buffoon 11y agoI really dont care to be honest. I have properly cycled backups that go back 12 months plus I'm not random clicky instally idiot.
- jaskerr 11y agoWhy did you switch from Bitdefender? I'm forced to "sysadmin" my family's Windows systems ... and last I looked, Bitdefender seemed to do a good job. Was I wrong to recommend?