So I just bought my first new laptop in many years. Just like the title says what is the best virus protection software out now?
used to be Kaspersky but I think they were banned in the us …… Avast is known as good … and it still has a free version I think
I never heard of that one. Why would it be banned?
It’s a Russian company and shady ties have been alleged. I think the ban only extends to the federal government.
Kaspersky has ties to Russian government and is definitely shady. They’ve involved in some hacking, spyware on computers they were protecting, and other shenanigans. No one should use them.
Are you looking just for anti-virus software or are you looking for an internet security suite? If you want just anti-virus, McAfee, Norton, Bitdefender, and Webroot all tested well this year.
For internet security suites, Bitdefender and Norton are the top-rated this year.
I’ve recommended name brands with actual tests behind them, as opposed to a lot of the build your own suites that people like to throw together with free apps. Sometimes the free apps grow into robust software with actual tech support, and sometimes they don’t. I like to pay $20 and get top rated protection. YMMV
The best virus protection is your own mind.
I did a test of several of the top recommended AV suites a bit ago. For each one, after a short period testing I soon uninstalled it and tried the next one. Ugh.
At the end it was back to old Malwarebytes again.
Last week I grew tired of AVGs incessant pop-ups begging me to upgrade to premium.
I did a little research, removed AVG, and installed Avast (free). So far I’ve only encountered a couple of requests to upgrade. I assume the protection is at least as good as AVG, based on the reviews and comparisons I’ve read.
mmm
I use Bitdefender Free on all of our computers. You install it, and it sits there quietly doing its thing, and never bothers you about upgrading.
I scan with Malwarebytes, but even after spending money on a license it proved unworkable on my computer. Maybe it is because I have an old I7-860, maybe because it is still running Win7. But for whatever reason one day not long after I installed it( maybe after a bad update )it started slowing my computer to an absolute crawl, like there was a memory leak or something. So that was the end of that.
I’m surprised you’re having trouble with Malwarebytes, Tamerlane. I have it installed on all of our computers, including my desktop that I built over 10 years ago, running Win 7, with no problems. I get a couple of nag screens every session, but just close them. I also run AVG free on those same computers with no problems, and AVG doesn’t nag me at all. 
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Those two were top rated when I installed them and I just stayed with them.
Norton and Mcafee used to be very good before Symantic bought them. Then they went downhill. I don’t know how they are now.
I’ve been using Avast (free version) for years on multiple machines. Never a problem. It does periodically nudge you to upgrade, but not intrusively.
Best? Ditching Windows. Distant second, third, fourth, etc? What’s already been mentioned.
It is a very unfortunate “feature” of every real-time AV system out there that on certain computers the performance just goes down the tube. AV makers don’t really seem to have any sense that they should build in fail-safe systems where the software notes it’s lugging the system down and dials it back a couple notches.
Yeah, I turn off real-time protection in Malwarebytes and just run periodic scans. 
I like Avira.
State agencies in Arkansas were told to quit using it. I don’t know if that is federal or state law, or a state policy.
Just using Windows Defender is about as good as the others.
What you need to also do is use other techniques such as uBlock Origin ad blocker for your browser and systematic backup methods.
A duplicate computer not only helps when your virus protection fails but also hard disk crashes or other hardware problems.
I’ve used Kaspersky for years and still do. Of course, I’ve developed a taste for vodka and borscht.
AVG free version - AVG 2024 | FREE Antivirus, VPN & TuneUp for All Your Devices
ZoneAlarm free version for firewall - https://www.zonealarm.com/
I have been using these two for 8+years. No issues so far.
Security through obscurity works significantly less well than it used to.