need a new antivirus and firewall...

that has good as norton internet security. before tegumi say some mean, i got a three year version free from my old job and since i have a lot of computers and it has no limit on how many, meh i'll use it, but the time was come and now need something good and isn't going to break me with my non money situation.

yes i know there a free program section but i never use the anti virus in there and i also need a good one and a firewall. just give the name and i will find it if you don't link it anyways.

i know that, but i work for the worst and hope for the best.

i like using AVG, seems to work for me. havnt had a single virus yet

Popular freeware antiviruses I know of include: Avast, AVG, Avira, and Comodo.

http://www.filehippo.com/software/antimalware/

Knock yourself out.

had it i was annoying but it the only one i know.

Fortunately I got McAfee for free since I have an AOL account.
ZoneAlarm is a good firewall, I use it as well.

I used to have Avast, but changed to McAfee since it was free.

No.

ok nice one one liner, but what do you suggest.

off topic:
you you the same tegumi from otaku usa magazine.

Read my first post in this thread?



No.

AVG, although you might run into false positives on occasion.

cool beans then

Could you recommend some alternatives Tegumi?

While Zone Alarm Basic Firewall has its detractors it does what it claims to. Still there were some problems with it over a Windows upgrade and recently there is some more funk... so I *won't* recommend it anymore.

https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Comparison_of_firewalls#Firewall_software

From what I read, Comodo Firewall Pro and Sygate and frequently recommended as an alternative.

I think a good firewall software is even more important than a virus scanner as it allows you to keep your hand on the pulse of your PC's communication. If something *does* crop up, you can detect it immediately as most virii and worms rely on communicating with the net. Therefore you can react right away instead only learning about it later on from secondary symptoms.

Personally, I use Adblock/NoScript, and exercise caution when visiting sites and downloading things. I utilize Windows Firewall, but merely as a backup.

My problem with ZoneAlarm is that blocking everything is hardly what I'd consider good or intelligent security. Additionally, the program tends to seat itself so deeply into your OS that more often than not users who become fed up with ZoneAlarm or have to remove it due to a license expiration end up having to reformat their system.
"You don't uninstall ZoneAlarm, ZoneAlarm uninstalls YOU."

I'm afraid in this case you're mistaken.
A firewall is not a virus scanner, but an essential tool to regulate what programs communicate through what channels by securing all ports then setting up "gates" (or toll-booth) to interrogate and negotiate passage. A firewall has to block *all* traffic by default. The tricky part is setting up how to allow necessary programs access as most people don't have the expertise to set this own their own. So a good firewall program has to give you a "crutch" and "guide" you through the process.

There are two ways to setup this "acces control":

One is a "red list" that only blocks certain content, programs or protocol from access. It is also a sure-fire way to have your system compromised.

The only sensible way to go about it is to use a "green list", that is give specific permissions on what to let through. Zone Alarm and any sensible firewall does exactly this. (I'd switched to COMODO lately).

Windows' own firewall does not. It uses a red list and is therefore worse than useless. (Well actually it doesn't, but it has a mechanism to auto-add stuff to its greenlist... a mechanism that any worm or trojan can exploit to covertly add itself to the list).

AdBlock/NoScript is no substitute for a firewall, as browsing and HTTP are not the only attack vectors of your PC. Unfortunately, windows still has a number of loose ports and various functions that are not permanently plugged up when not in use...
...plenty of ways to have your PC infected through run of the mill Windows networking functions (...that would only ever be needed if your PC was part of a LAN but are installed as part of TCP/IP support).

In fact I believe a firewall software is even *more* important than antivirus software, since it stops and prevents exploits you couldn't do anything about as they rely on background processes and components not in your control. In fact without a firewall you may be compromised without you taking *any* active action.

As for the Zone Alarm firewall itself:

While Zone Alarm does have its drawbacks (...and lately they've had way too much compatibility shit for me to put up with), it was a fine product as it was really easy to configure as you simply answered each issues as it cropped up and usually had it trained in a couple of days.

Your claim to "not being possible to remove" is false as I've done it several times, though yes, it does take a restart to do so. (If you've screwed up your installation by manually removing parts, Zone Labs even has a removal tool to purge left over bits and pieces).

...as to your claim that it seats itself too deep: a firewall is an essential security measure. To ensure it's not compromised it has to be a deep level part of your system, no way around that.

Finally about your "license" claim: They must have used Zone Alarm Pro. This shows that most people don't even fucking bother to read what they're doing. Zone Labs has always allowed you to download and use Zone Alarm Basic Firewall for free and it never stopped working. It's just that it does not have a big-flashing button on-site to tell you.

So why don't I use Zone Alarm? I can no longer install their product on my system as once again another compatibility issue cropped up. (With a Windows Update? My own settings? With my other software like VNC or DynDNS update? I don't care anymore as I don't have time to deal with it now). It's a fine product, but I won't recommend them until they have this straightened out.

While I understand and agree with certain parts of your argument, I disagree that this is a clear cut case of a "mistake" on my part. (If at all.) Additionally, I maintain my assertion that ZoneAlarm is a non-user-friendly equivalent of bashing-at-the-problem-with-a-club solution to internet security.



No, it doesn't. While I agree that blocking most services is beneficial, blocking *all* is hardly beneficial to the user. Things like blocking all traffic on port 80 is just stupid.



Indeed. You cannot block *all* services, such as basic internet functionality (browser use), and expect these users without expertise to figure out how to allow it on their own.



I agree that Windows Firewall is relatively useless. But it's there by default, there's no harm in leaving it on. It is still a firewall program, and can still perform as such. I also am utilizing Tomato's firewall on my router, so I'm not terribly worried about not having a third-party one on my Windows installation.



It's true, they're not the only attack vectors. However, there are a limited amount of other ways. P2P protocols/programs are one way, but the only real choices you have there are block it completely or don't, the latter being up to user discretion. As for a concentrated attack by another denizen of the web, there aren't too many things you can do about that.



Again, any active attack by a competent outsider is likely quite difficult to stop (aside from removing your ethernet cable). Firewalls are important, but they only hold you so far.



You can't dismiss something as "false" just because you haven't had the problem. Granted, problems can arise from user inexperience, but the widespread appearance of the problem should speak volumes for itself. Why else would Zone Labs have a removal tool? The answer is because there are common instances of being unable to remove their software cleanly.

My complaint about ZoneAlarm "seating itself too deep" is still pertinent nonetheless. If your software embeds itself into a system so thoroughly that it cannot remove itself, and this in turn affects functionality of the system, that is a bug, not a feature.



The license claim wasn't an issue I had with ZoneAlarm, it was conjecture as to why someone would want to remove it. As far as I know there aren't any issues with their licensing system. Although you would expect that ZoneAlarm Pro should be a superior product to the free alternative.



And I still disagree.

So port 80 has to be open by default?
That's madness. Then all a virus has to do is request a connection through it and it's home free.

Once again: A firewall should only allow a specific program, specific access and disallow everything else until the user confirms they need the access.

Both COMODO and Zone Alarm BTW give a heavy hand to the users as they help in setting up all their basic programs. Like the web-browser, e-mail client, ftp programs and yes, even bit-torrent clients as well. (Plus system components like svchost and the system process). This is done by default, so the users doesn't need a great expertise.

Later on if the user installed a new program that needs net access the programs typically ask: Do you want this program to access the net? Do you want this program to act as a server (accept requests from the net)? You answer "yes" and tick in "remember my choice" and the program's set up. Too hard? I digress.

Finally: antivirus software can't replace a firewall and it's madness to expect it to. They're different things. A firewall is passive protection and prevents infection or hijack to occur in the first place. A virus scanner is active protection and can only be used to fight infection already attacking the system.

That's not what I said.



Indeed, but as I said, there are certain things which should be enabled by default. To expect a non-literate user to enable this themselves would be folly.



I don't recall disagreeing with you on this?

My point stands; I assert that ZoneAlarm is overzealous in blocking (you say this is a feature, I say that it is only to a certain point), and its potential to screw up one's system (whether due to user mishandling or otherwise) make it a program I actively discourage others to use.

It does not by default close port 80 for everything.
...it by default detects what your web-browser is and sets it up automatically.
...it also prompts the user whenever something needs to be given permission, so all the knowledge the user needs to setup a program is to identify its name and click "Yes" (as well as "Remember my choice").