System Cleanup Series: Antivirus
In this blog post, I will talk about which antivirus programs I use and recommend. This post is part of my System Cleanup series.
Windows 10 and 11 come with a free and effective antivirus solution included. Unless you clearly need something more comprehensive and powerful, I recommend sticking with Windows Defender. Otherwise, I strongly recommend any products from ESET, which I have used and trusted for nearly 20 years.
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I have tried free and paid versions of many antivirus programs over the years. Around 2008, I became a huge fan of ESET Internet Security (formerly Smart Security), and their other products like ESET NOD32 Antivirus. Lightweight and very functional, ESET simply works well. Over the years, I have recommended and installed it on many client computers. You may ask yourself, "That sounds great, so what changed?”
Recently, they've become overzealous, including introducing features that cause frustration, particularly regarding the firewall.
A modern, correctly updated computer running stable operating systems like Windows 10 and 11, which have a built-in firewall and antivirus protection, referred to as Virus and Threat Protection, is often all the average user needs.
So, I don't recommend ESET or any other third-party antivirus or security software unless there are specific reasons to do so.
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