Free Antivirus Addition to MBAM?

[Colonel Mortimer]

Hi

Firstly I just like to say what an astounding application Malware Bytes is . I had been using the free on demand scanner for some years and have recently upgraded to incorporate the real time protection module ( I would have done this a long time ago had I known that it was a one off fee rather than a rolling annual fee).

I just wondered if I could ask for some advice concerning AV options to use in conjunction with MBAM as my current ESET Smart Security subscription is due to expire in November. I haven't had any problems with ESET SS but thought that I would look at what else is available (preferably for free if possible) and I wanted to get some advice from people in the know as to what is best to use with MBAM as googling reviews and "top 10 lists" on the web has left me a little bewlidered

Some recommend using Micosoft Security Essentials - (my thoughts here are that as Security Essentials also carries out a lot of the same Malware prevention / scanning that MBAM does and that maybe it is better to look at something that just handles the antivirus side of things and leaves the handling of malware to MBAM. Others recommend using Comodo antivirus & firewall, Avast also crops up regularly.

My current system (not sure if you need this info or not?)

Processor : Intel Core 2 Duu E6400 @ 2.13 GHz

Memory: 3gb

Operating Sys: Windows XP Pro SP3

Hard Drives: 3: (2 internal / 1 portable)

My PC sits behind a router (as I'm sure most home PC's do these days) - Just thought I would mention this as I am also wondering if an additional firewall is needed or if I should rely on the firewall incorporated into Windows XP?

Apologies if I have prattled on aimlessly (many people tell me I do this) or if I have missed anything obviously relevant. Any advice or guidance greatly appreciated.

Many thanks in advance.

[Haider]

Hello Colonel Mortimer:

To opt for a Free Antivirus is completely a matter of Personal Choice, the only consideration should be Detection Rate with minimum False Positives. You'll see a lot of forum members are using (alphabetical order):

• AVAST
  
• Avira
  
• MSE
  

I am using MSE along with MBAM real-time protection (Oracle VM VirtualBox), same setup in another partition, and VIPRE Antivirus with MBAM real-time protection on one partition

You need to add following exclusions for MBAM in any AV of your choice

• C:\Program Files\Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware\mbam.exe
  
• C:\Program Files\Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware\mbamgui.exe
  
• C:\Program Files\Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware\mbamservice.exe
  
• C:\Program Files\Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware\zlib.dll
  
• C:\Program Files\Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware\mbam.dll
  
• C:\Program Files\Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware\mbamext.dll
  
• C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\Malwarebytes\Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware\rules.ref
  
• C:\Windows\System32\drivers\mbam.sys
  
• C:\Windows\System32\drivers\mbamswissarmy.sys
  

As long as your router has in-built firewall I think Windows firewall would be OK without eating resources. However, you'd need to exclude MBAM.EXE from hardware based firewall (router) too

Should you have any other question(s) please post back using button

[goldhound]

Hello Colonel Mortimer and welcome to the forum.

I expect you will get numerous suggestions

From my own personal experience i suggest Avira free, it works very well next to MBAM and has a sterling detection rate. I gave up on MSE due to the annoying process of adding exclusions for MBAM and still experiencing conflict issues between the two.

[Guest]

My preferance is for avast with malwarebytes free or pro, being that avast has a few extra shield's than avira and less false positive's but there scanning speed and detections are very similar.

[Guest garybear]

Hi! I go along with goldhound. I have Avira Free- Online Armor free- and MBAM running in real time. No conflicks. To me this is a dream team. MBAM is 26$ and good for life. I have no renewal fees for all this protection and I'm loving it. I do a lot of prattling myself. I use WOT to warn me of unsafe sites and try to surf safely.

Garybear

[YoKenny1]

I'm with craigb and I do not use a software firewall as my ISP that provides my DSL connection includes a modem that has a very strong firewall.

I use Finjan SecureBrowsing that provides safety ratings of URLs showing in your browser that is provided by M86 Security and not user bias like WOT.

http://securebrowsing.finjan.com/index.html

[DarkSnakeKobra]

All the previously mentioned ones do very well. I would recommend ether Microsoft Security Essentials or Avira Personal Edition(Free).

Edit: Missed the firewall part. For a free and good one try Privatefirewall by Privacyware.

[mountaintree16]

@Colonel Mortimer

I like Avira as an excellent free option or MSE. Avast! would also be a good choice.

The following are my recommendations for antivirus protection along with links to downloads for them.

• Avira Antivir (free for home use) The official support forum for this product can be found here
  
• Microsoft Security Essentials (free for home use) The official support forum for this product can be found here
  
• Avast! (free for home use) The official support forum for this product can be found here
  

Note: If you decide to use one of the trial versions of one of the paid antiviruses then you will either need to purchase it or uninstall it completely and install a replacement antivirus before the trial expires so that your PC is not left unprotected.

MSE Downloads:

• MSE for XP 32 bit
  
• MSE for Vista and Windows 7 32 bit
  
• MSE for Vista and Windows 7 64 bit
  

Definitions Installers:

Note: if installing the definitions in Windows Vista or Windows 7 you MUST right click the definitions installer and select Run as administrator and click Continue at the User Account Control prompt.

• 32 bit Definitions Installer
  
• 64 bit Definitions Installer
  

Instructions for adding exclusions to MSE for Mbam:

http://forums.malwarebytes.org/index.php?a...&pid=181018

Exclusions should be added to Avast! for Mbam as well if you go with that one.

http://forums.malwarebytes.org/index.php?s...ost&p=49525

Avira shouldn't need any exclusions - they typically get along beautifully without any, but again, it doesn't hurt.

[Colonel Mortimer]

Thank you all for the warm welcome and invaluable advice - it certainly has given me a sound and tried base to form a shortlist. As with all things I find it more reassuring to base a decision on user experience rather than professional review / evaluation which I believe in my paranoid mind can be swayed / biased.

It looks like Avira free may be the smoothest switch although I will probably demo both Avira and Avast - not at the same time

You know it sounds kinda daft and obvious now but the best bet is to try a number of options out (after all they are free) as all users machines vary in someway whether it be the spec of processor, memory, drive(s), the operating system, software / apps running on. Equally users bias of protection will vary as some prefer ease of use, speed of scan, frequency of update.

Thanks again

Mortimer

[mountaintree16]

You're most welcome!

We're always happy to help.

If you need anything else, or have any other questions feel free to post!

Good luck and I hope you find something that works very well for you!

[swagger]

@Colonel Mortimer,

You hit the nail on the head. Trying these products out on your own will give you the best idea of what you are looking for in a security program or any program for that matter.

No one knows what is easier to use or best suited for you than yourself. We can offer advice based on detection rates and system usage but if it isn't intuitive enough to easily configure, then it won't matter.

Regards,

Keith

[Colonel Mortimer]

Just n quick update. I tried Avira for several days and found it ok but still wanted to test Avast. I have to say that I am not disappointed by either product but have found that the added features of Avast give it the edge - I particularly like the boot scan option - this found 2 possible Trojans which have been missed by a number of AV / malware products inc ESET Smart Security, Avira and Malwarebytes - I have attached a jpeg of the offending items in the chest below, I have also submitted these files to Avast. Can anyone shed any light on whether they are genuine threats or not please?

Many thanks

Keith

[Haider]

Hello Colonel Mortimer:

The first one is from system restore, which may or may not be a real threat, however, the second one likely to be FP, you can zip it and upload to VirusTotal, ThreatExpert, NoVirusThanks to check it

Please post back using button

[Colonel Mortimer]

Thanks for the advice Haider. I've done as you advised and I have attached pdf's of the reports obtained although I must confess to not being too knowledgeable concerning malware and virus, so the reports were as useful as a poke in the eye to me Hopefully someone more savvy than myself may understand?

Thanks again - your esteemed insight and wisdom is very much appreciated.

Multi_Engine_Antivirus_Scan..pdf

ThreatExpert_Report.pdf

VirusTotal___Free_Online_Vi..pdf