Genealogy Chat

Can somebody advise me please, see below.

I currently use Norton, which will expire tomorrow. I don't want to renew it as I have ordered Sky broadband, and they send McAffee for free.

For the few days in between, will Norton still work? I had a pop-up saying if I don't renew I won't receive security updates, but will receive another type of update - I can't remember exactly what it said.

Will I still be safe to use the internet if I don't open any emails with attachments? Or even ignore all emails if I have to? Or should I just avoid the internet for a few days? Or should I go for something like AGV for a few days?

Sorry but I'm a bit of a numbskull with this sort of thing, I'll be grateful for any help.

Thanks

Duncan

I've used AVG for years with no problems. You can download it here: http://free.grisoft.com/ I've never been a fan of Norton, so can't really comment, but it would be wise to use another AV program in the meantime.

Thank you both, sorry for the delay saying it.

I'll have a look at what I can download when I've had a nose at the message board, thanks again.

Duncan

Check out http://www.filehippo.com/

It is a very useful site from where you can download programs for free.

Don't forget that you need Anti-Virus and Anyi-Spyware programs installed, as each protects from different types of problem.

You also need to install a firewall, you can use the one supplied with Windows Defender.

Finally, make sure that you regularly upload Windows updates, as many of these contain security patches.

Not all Anti-virus programs will automatically check incoming emails before you open them, in fact some that do can be troublesome to manage, but programs such as AVG, which also run in the background should catch anything nasty. Unless you receive large numbers of unsolicited emails, the risk of infection from attachments, whilst ever present, is slight. The best advice is not to open anything that you don't recognise.

Most infections come from visiting dodgy sites or being taken in by messages telling you you are infected and should load so-and-so software.

Also check out the mcaffee deal - you may find its just for a limited period and then they charge you heftily for it.

I dumped my paid for mcaffee for the free avg when my puter was infected by a virus that ate some files - mcafee failed to find or delete it. avg found it plus 3 others so I installed that instead.

Hi All, thanks for all your replies.

By the time I had looked I had already downloaded the free McAfee trial, but I will bear AGV in mind - you seem impressed with it.

Heather, Sky provide McAfee, the whole works, for a year - but thanks for the suggestion.

If anyone else is thinking of changing their ISP, Sky has to be worth a look. 2mb broadband is free (yes, free), if your phone line can handle it then you can have 8mb for £5 a month, or 16mb for £10. And unlimited phone calls for a fiver a month. They send a wireless router and a years McAfee, all for a one-off payment of £30. Thoroughly recommended, hope their service is as good as their promises.

Duncan

Thank you Lost for, that sounds like good advice. The only problem is I haven't got a clue how to do that! Is it simple? (It needs to be really simple if I'm doing it)

Duncan

Thank you Lost for, that sounds like good advice. The only problem is I haven't got a clue how to do that! Is it simple? (It needs to be really simple if I'm doing it)

Duncan

That's very kind of you Lostfor, thank you very much.

I am still waiting for my MAC code before they issue it, so it'll probably be a couple of weeks yet. I will try to do it on my own, I'll let you know how I get on.

Thanks again

Duncan

Duncan


When it comes to being a PC numpty...I am the queen!...but I ask alot of questions...

AVG (free edition) is better than the one you pay for!

Ditch NORTON...it's rubbish!


Gerri x

Thanks Gerri, yes Norton has gone. I must admit though, I've had it 4 years and had no problems with it at all.

Queen Gerri - that's got a nice ring to it!!!!!

Duncan

You can have as many Anti-virus programs as you want on your PC. I have Avast, AVG and Antivir.

There are two parts to most anti-virus programs. The resident part, which is designed to run on startup and is intended to cash the little nasties at the point they hit your machine, and the scanning part, which you run periodically to check your files have not been infected.

I run them all in scan mode from time to time as they all work slightly differently and can find different problems.

When it comes to the resident part of the software this is where you can have difficulties if you have more than one anti-virus program running at once. However I find that Avast and AVG are happy to run side by side, although I normally only have AVG running.

As I said earlier, don't forget Anti-spyware, for many it is more important that anti-virus. Whilst spyware can be less damaging, it ie easy to get it on your machine and can be a fiend to get rid of.

AVG also have a spyware program which is not the same as their Anti-virus, so don't confuse the two.. The other most popular ones are Spybot Search and Destroy and Ad-Aware.

Anti-spyware up to now has only been able to operate in scanning mode, but the latest version of Spybot also runs in resident mode. This is very useful as it warns you if something is trying to alter your system, especially the registry.