Virus protection software reviews 2011

Because the company has been in the news the past few years, let's talk about Kaspersky Lab -- specifically about the federal ban that blocks US government agencies from using Kaspersky Antivirus products. Based in Moscow, Kaspersky Lab has for years produced some of the best antivirus software for business antivirus needs and home customers. But in the US government prohibited Kaspersky security cloud software on federal government computers because of alleged ties between Kaspersky and the Russian government.

But as with China-based Huawei , the question remains: If the federal government doesn't think the products are safe enough for its own devices, should consumers avoid them as well? In a statement sent to CNET, the company said, "Kaspersky Lab has no ties to any government, and the company has never, nor will ever, engage in cyber offensive activities.

Kaspersky Lab maintains that no public evidence of any wrongdoing has been presented by the US government, and that the US government's actions against Kaspersky Lab were unconstitutional. In Kaspersky's favor, it continues to earn top scores and awards for virus and malware detection and endpoint protection from independent testing labs.

And it's reasonably priced. In the end, even though no one has ever publicly produced a "smoking gun" linking the company to Russian intrigue, we think any of the options listed above are a safer bet. And if you are a US government employee or work with the federal government, you'll want to steer clear of Kaspersky internet security products -- and perhaps use one of the antivirus software products mentioned here instead.

Picking the best antivirus software for Windows means finding one that keeps your PC safe, doesn't take up a lot of system resources, is easy to use and stays out of the way till you need it. Here's what to look for. Antivirus software runs virus scans for known viruses and malware, of course, and can offer real-time protection. And it watches for shady websites and suspicious links to keep you out of trouble.

It can also offer ransomware protection and monitor unexpected behavior that may be a sign of new and not-yet-identified viruses and malware. You want antivirus software that can successfully identify these unknown online threats without flagging too many false positives.

Light on system resources. You don't want antivirus software that taxes your PC's resources. If after you install the program, websites open slowly, apps download or open sluggishly or file copies take longer than expected, you may want to try another service. The good news is, all our picks offer a free trial to let you try out the antivirus program, so if your system feels sluggish after installation, you may want to keep looking. Cost and discounts. Don't just pay the sticker price for antivirus protection.

Before you buy, check for discounts on a company's website. Another way to save: The prices we list above are for 10 devices -- if the company offered that package -- but you can trim your cost with antivirus packages if you need to cover three or five devices. You may also find discounts on an app's Amazon page. To be effective, antivirus software needs to monitor what's going on with your PC, check in with company servers about unusual behavior and should provide sound banking protection. The companies say they anonymize this technical data as much as possible to protect your privacy.

But if you want to know more, the security companies on our list post privacy policies on their websites, so read their privacy statements to learn what the companies do with the information you share. Protection for other platforms. Microsoft is by far the biggest target for viruses and malware. While the Mac does come under attack via side-loaded apps, it's rare, and if you download apps only from the Mac and iOS app stores and keep your guard up when clicking links and download files, you should be OK without an antivirus app on Apple devices.

CNET editors pick the products and services we write about. When you buy through our links, we may get a commission. Best free Windows antivirus Microsoft Defender. Jump to details. See at Microsoft. See at NortonLifeLock. See at Bitdefender. Best on-demand Windows malware removal Malwarebytes. See at Malwarebytes. Solid subscription antivirus alternative McAfee Total Protection.

See at McAfee. Another good subscription option Trend Micro Maximum Security. Antivirus software detects and eradicates viruses and other types of malware that can enter your computer or your network. There are different filtering abilities that antivirus software has to do this.

One of the most used is manual scanning of files and programs on your computer. It should be able to keep a database of these virus signatures so that when a specific signature is detected, the software can conclude that it is unsafe.

One way cybercriminals can invade your computer is by selling your information to organizations that can exploit your data. They can also use your bank account details to make unauthorized transactions, or even hold them hostage so you have to buy it back from them.

Even safe websites have viruses as part mainly of marketing strategies to monitor your activity and sell the right products to you. You need antivirus software to protect you from all these threats and guard you against any Internet activity that tries to get your info without your permission.

Antivirus and other antimalware software can be downloaded and installed for free as a trialware, freeware, or a bundled feature within another security software. Trialware versions of antivirus and other antimalware products like anti-spyware, anti-Trojan, and Internet security software applications can remain active for a period of time.

Upon the end of the trial period, you will be given a choice to uninstall or continue using the software the antivirus through a fee-based subscription.

Meanwhile, antivirus software may also come as a standalone freeware or as part of another free security software solution. These free versions share similarities with their paid counterparts, being equipped with cutting-edge features that can block and remove viruses and other forms of malware like spyware, Trojans, and worms.

Free antivirus software offerings provide you with the benefits of convenience and real-time protection from Internet threats with automatic updates and anti-phishing features. They can work well with your computer or mobile device without making it run slow and hogging its resources.

If you need to know more about these free antivirus software that you may download from the Internet and run on your device, read our review of some of the best free antivirus this If you suspect that your computer has an infection, you can perform preliminary steps by working in safe mode, disconnecting from the Internet, and performing a Disk Cleanup before running the antivirus scanner. Through the years, cybercriminals and even unwary programmers have intentionally and unintentionally created different computer viruses with varying impacts on systems across the globe.

Here are some of the most common types that are affecting computers today. This virus infects floppy disks and spreads through removable media. It often requires you to reformat the drive to get rid of the virus. This non-resident virus stays hidden in the computer memory infecting. This virus alters its signature whenever it replicates, making it difficult to identify with signature searches.

This virus gets installed on the computer and lives in the RAM. This virus overwrites the content of the file causing you to lose the original content. You will also have to delete the file to get rid of the virus. This virus lives in executable programs and once you run these programs, the virus gets activated causing your computer to slow down.

This virus appears like a normal file or a program. This virus uses codes making them hard to detect and the only way to track them is during replication and decryption.

Encrypted viruses badly affect PC performance. This virus brings you to different infected websites infecting your web browser. Most trusted browsers have tools to block these types of viruses. Some of the most dangerous and widespread computer viruses were not intentionally made to cause harm.

However, their rapid spread caused panic among companies, resulting in operational disruption that valued millions of dollars spent to control them. They named code Red as two digital security employees were drinking Code Red Mountain Dew when they discovered the virus.

The worm runs on memory and has only 3, bytes, leaving very little trace but can double itself with a bug in the programming. It affected a whopping two million servers out of six million ISS servers. Cryptolocker is a Trojan horse ransomware that spreads itself in different ways and encrypts files on the hard drive. People who paid to get their files decrypted amounted to three million.

Eventually, they charged the creator Evgeniy Bogachec and made him release the encryption keys that affected the computers. They have successfully done so, ruining one-fifth of Iranian centrifuges. Sasser and Netsky were created by computer science student named Sven Jaschan.

These viruses took advantage of a buffer overflow in the Local Security Authority Subsystem Service on Windows, leading to millions of computer infections that affected airlines, news agencies, hospitals, public transport, etc.

Robert Morris, who at the time was a graduate student at Cornell, created the first worm that distributes via the Internet. He was also the first to get sued under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. The tennis player Anna Kournikova had nothing to do with the creation of this virus, but tennis sports and Kournikova were such a big hit and were the most searched term on the Internet.

Jan De Wit, a year-old Dutch, took advantage of this and created a virus joke. People click on anything that relates to the name. He eventually turned himself in.

But it can detect when the undisclosed vulnerability is used to install other nasty bits, like ransomware, on your machine. Anyone who actively uses email, clicks on links, and downloads programs will benefit from an antivirus suite. You can read about how we test antivirus suites below. There is a lot to like here, including a good price, good performance, and useful extra features.

See links to all of our antivirus reviews at the bottom of this article. The pricing now covers fewer devices, but you get a good number of extra features such as Dark Web Monitoring and VPN access, making for an overall excellent value. If Windows 10 is already working, why add anything else? If its built-in security suite, Windows Security, performs on par with the best of the free AV options—as we discovered in our roundup of the best free antivirus —why add the extra baggage of a third-party program?

To learn more, see our video on How to use Windows Security , or read our full review. This antivirus suite, which provides highly rated protection, strikes a nice balance between complexity and simplicity: Four category icons at the top let you dive deeper into the suite, but if all you need to do is a scan, that option is right there in the center of interface.

These days, many security suites come with extras such as a backup service for your most essential files, Android apps for mobile security, a more advanced firewall, family protection read: child restriction features, and the right to use the program on multiple PCs. Whether you need those extras depends on your personal situation. First, we take a look at the interface to determine how easy or complicated it is.