Anti virus protection

[lesj]

My anti virus requires renewing in 30 days.

I have been using Kaspersky for years of which I have been very happy with.

BUT with this Ukraine war and more and more rumours that it is siding with the Russian government,

I do not feel like renewing with them.

I have looked at the pros & cons of other AV's but would be interested in other peoples unbiased views

[Tom Shaw's Fist of Rage]

Unless you're doing dodgy stuff the one that comes with windows is more than good enough.

[Sandypants]

TSFOR is right. If you're on Windows 7 or above, Microsoft Defender should be all you need. A routine scan with something like Malwarebytes can give you an extra layer of defence, but the McAfee, Kaspersky, AVG, Norton etc security suites don't perform well, and in many instances conflict with the better defence provided by default.

The best defence, however, is education. Don't click random links or open random files sent to your email address; if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is; check urls, email addresses, and certificates if anything raises a red flag; be sensible with or abstain from pirating.

[foolhandy]

Agreed. I stopped using anything other than Windows' built in Microsoft Defender a while back, and have had no problems at all. It'll do the job for you too. If you get caught with a virus etc. whilst using it you'd have most likely been caught with the same virus using a third-party AV too. Use Defender and be sensible!

[lesj]

Many thanks for your replies and help, It's much appreciated,

I will certainly be looking into Microsoft when my Kaspersky expires.

[foolhandy]

When you uninstall Kaspersky, Microsoft Defender will kick in automatically. It's sat there in the background, only not working because it detects a third-party alternative.

[lesj]

Thanks , I have already had a look and I did think that was the case.

Just have to make sure that I completely uninstall Kaspersky, although that should be straight forward through

control panel/uninstall or change programme

I expect I will have to re-boot afterwards

[foolhandy]

Yup, that's all. 👍