The Transformer T100 Antivirus & Malware MEGA thread. ALL related posts here, please.

[rscheller]

I know the Win 8.1 OS on the T100 comes with Windows Defender active but is that enough?

What's everyones thoughts on using Windows Defender alone rather than a full featured AV program?

Could a virus be the cause of some users problems with their T100s?

Anyone using a full featured AV program on their T100?

Which AV program and how is it working?

[ASUSFAN0001]

I know the Win 8.1 OS on the T100 comes with Windows Defender active but is that enough?

What's everyones thoughts on using Windows Defender alone rather than a full featured AV program?

Could a virus be the cause of some users problems with their T100s?

Anyone using a full featured AV program on their T100?

Which AV program and how is it working?

Those are all valid and good questions.

However, most of those could be answered with the words - "it depends".

In many cases, Windows Defender (aka Microsoft Security Essentials in WIN7) does a very good job of protection 98-99% of the time. So depending on where and how much you browse...that will do the trick for most people.

For those who are highly Internet active...more protection might be required...however no antivirus software is 100% guaranteed protection.

[azjerry]

OTH, Microsoft has announced that MSE/Defender is only intended to provide a baseline level of security and that there other, better alternatives out there. While MSE has worked well for me, I've moved on to Bitdefender free edition.

[Martian]

I've had no issues with just the built in MS protection on all my computers but my family and I have pretty safe computer habits. I certainly don't like the idea on an antivirus program slowing down my T100.

The antivirus companies got pretty upset when MS started baking in antivirus protection. They need to create a perceived advantage to their products over base MS otherwise nobody would buy their stuff. MS plays along to keep their partners happy and not crying antitrust...

[rscheller]

Doing some research on this subject, I found this useful review of 25 free Antivirus software packages and their average memory usages at idle and running scans.

Memory Usage Test to See Which is the Lightest Antivirus Software ? Raymond.CC

I'll likely put an Antivirus program on my T100 soon and disable Windows Defender.

[Banise]

No anti-virus will detect zero-day exploits. Once a virus is detected by a single virus company, the signature will be published and all the leading anti-virus packages will quickly detect it.

Having anti-virus is a lot more important than having any particular brand of anti-virus, so long as its one of the top 20 or so. What's also very important is keeping it on auto-update and using safe browsing practices.

Safe browsing practices include never installing browser extensions, plug-ins, or add-ons, especially Java, unless you really need them. If you install add-ons, especially Java and Flash, keep them on auto-update or update them regularly. One basic tip that Brian Krebs is famous for, "If you didn't go looking for it, don't install it". He has a lot of other good tips here, those tips are actually more important than a good anti virus. Were users to follow those tips, most wouldn't even need an anti-virus.

Tools for a Safer PC ? Krebs on Security

[sando7]

edit: uninstalled Zone Alarm & now using Windows Defender.

[zeo]

There are various ways of protecting yourself... a browser from within a VM for example is pretty secure as anything happens it's usually trapped within the VM and can be cleared by just restarting the VM...

Once they fix the boot from USB issue, you could also opt for booting to a Live USB as another safe way to browse...

Mind, all this is separate from privacy... in which case something like Tor browsing would be required...

In any case, always keep a backup of the system... if anything does happen you can just restore to get out of it but does require you to keep regular updates or you'll end up doing a lot of re-installing anyway and you should keep multiple updates in case you accidentally backup an infected version and need to go back to a earlier point...

[vadimo]

avast for anti-virus and malwarebytes for anti-malware (if you can afford few dollars go for pro for real time protection)

[Asusbuyer]

Comodo Internet Security Premium 2013 is completely free and is very similar to Pro in terms of protection. It has Antivirus, firewall, its own secure web browser etc.