This digital dinosaur needs a new one. MacAfee is going away soon and I never felt it did much. I say this because it never seemed to find anything bad. Past programs ran scans, found this or that, made recs etc.. I pay bills, do emails and surf, so use is low level. Appreciate input.
If your using Windows , the built in anti-virus Windows Defender does a pretty decent job. Add something to deal with malware and your good to go. You can find free versions .
I agree with those mentioned above. As long as you're no doing anything sketchy or visiting certain websites, Windows Defender is sufficient. However, if you want something more for peace of mind, I have always recommended ESET Nod32 Antivirus. It is extremely lightweight as won't slow your PC. Most top-reviewed are just paid ads.
Yeah there's no good definition of sketchy but if you're not going down nutty rabbit holes a lot, or getting tons of spam email, the built in Windows stuff is pretty good now. Maybe get a freeware version of Malwarebytes if it still exists, just in case. I wouldn't pay for something additional. My computer is 10 years old now, upgraded from Windows 7 to Windows 10 a couple of years ago and I haven't had any problems with browser hijacking or anything else in years, I can't even remember ever having an issue with this box. Maybe it's because the protection is better, but it feels like going after individual "civilian" PCs isn't much of a thing anymore. At least not via stuff embedded in websites. You may get the occasional popup that says "WE TOOK CONTROL OF YOUR COMPUTER" but actually they didn't, it's just a window you can't get rid of without going into Task Manager to kill it, or rebooting.
I've had Webroot for years on my ancient (15 years old) HP pc with Windows 7. I have just purchased a "new" ("repurposed") Dell pc with Windows 10 (from 2022). Good to read that 'Defender' is adequate these days. Webroot's one-year renewal price is $55. I have MalwareBytes (free version), and my Nord VPN is about to run out (& I will not renew at their prices!). So, I'm considering a two-year sub to Surfshark VPN with antivirus. It costs less than either Webroot or Nord by themselves for just 1 year. Any opinions? I'm thinking Surfshark with MalwareBytes would be sufficient, but I'd certainly be interested in other opinions.
Anecdotal Non-Recommendation: Webroot was installed on the other laptop some years ago, and subscription maintained and updated as necessary. Then, for some reason, the laptop took forever to boot but would not boot the Windows OS. Don't recall the specific error message, but it had something to do with Webroot. I figured that this was not a death sentence issue for the laptop, so I took it to Geek Squad at Best Buy. They removed Webroot and the laptop runs fine. There was a conflict between Webroot and the recently installed updated Windows, ultimately think of the anti-virus software seeing the OS as a virus. In talking to the techs, their advice was pretty much on par with this thread, that if you're behaving in a responsible manner, Windows Defender is sufficient. That laptop stays inside the corral, so there's no risky exposure. On the other laptop, I have Windows Defender & McAfee but can't guarantee I'll be renewing McAfee next time around.
If you have Xfinity internet, and rent the modem, the modem has native protection that keeps all connected devices protected. If you use the computer outside your home, you would need other protection. I can't speak for other ISPs.
I have been getting messages from Microsoft that they will stop support for Windows 10 in October, 2025.
When I had McAfee previously, I periodically I got scan reports showing X number of threats and whether I wanted them deleted. This time around all scans showed no threats. As I said, I know nothing, but two years and zero threats doesn't make sense to me. I'm going to give the Defender/MalwareBytes combo a try.
I have used Webroot Secure Anywhere for years and it's flawless. Constantly updates itself and runs its own unobtrusive scans in the background.