Which security software should I go with for my laptop?

Posted by admin on March 20, 2010 at 9:07 pm · Under answer

I’m currently in the process of building a laptop through Dell. It is an Inspiron 15.

Here is the summary of the laptop

MY COMPONENTS

Intel® Pentium® Dual Core T4200 (2.0GHz/800Mhz FSB/1MB cache)
Genuine Windows Vista® Home Basic Edition SP1
Jet Black
Microsoft® Office Home and Student 2007 – Word, Excel + PowerPoint
2Yr Ltd Hardware Warranty, InHome Service after Remote Diagnosis
Glossy, widescreen 15.6 inch display (1366×768)
4GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 at 800MHz
320GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)
Intel Graphics Media Accelerator X4500HD
8X CD / DVD Burner (Dual Layer DVD+/-R Drive)
Intel WiFi Link 5100 802.11 Wireless-N Mini Card
No Webcam Option
6-cell battery
High Definition Audio 2.0

MY ACCESSORIES

McAfee SecurityCenter with anti-virus, anti-spyware, firewall, 30-Days
Norton 360 – All-in-One Security Solution

MY SOFTWARE & ACCESSORIES

WildTangent Games

MY SERVICE

Dell Remote Access, free basic service
Dell Online Backup 2GB for 1 year

ALSO INCLUDES

Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 9.0
Integrated 10/100 Network Card
Intel® Pentium® Dual-Core Processor
Windows Vista™ Basic
No ISP requested

I’m trying to decide which software to go with for security. McAfee offers a 36 month plan for $99. Norton doesn’t seem to have an expiration date and it is $80. I would appreciate any intelligent reasons for why to choose either. Also if you think McAfee is better but not $20 and in need of a renewal better please tell me.

All input is greatly appreciated. If you have any other advice on other aspects of the computer I would be very grateful. Please keep in mind that I am building this computer to use as a college student.

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2 Comments

  1. Mike said,

    March 20, 2010 @ 9:20 pm

    Norton Internet Security 2009 is the best security program at the moment, it is the fastes and best performance money can buy.

  2. tempo1 said,

    March 20, 2010 @ 10:05 pm

    McAfee has slipped badly in the past few years and now has horrible virus detection rates. McAfee must be avoided.

    To continuing receiving updates you will always need to renew Norton also. Norton won’t update for free. And update s are extremely important, its why we have to pay yearly.

    For an unbiased test report of virus detection capabilities, go here:http://www.av-comparatives.org/
    and click “Comparatives” on the left, then choose #19 and #20.
    ______________________________

    But do you really want to spend a lot of money in this bad ecomomy?

    Very good security can be had for free, its just not in a neat all-in-one “security suite”

    For good computer security on a Windows computer, and to prevent virus and other malware you need to do a minimum of 4 things.

    1. Run a firewall.

    2. Use a good anti-virus with real-time protection.

    3. Do a regular scan with a dedicated anti-spyware,

    4. Keep Windows and all your other installed software, 100% updated and patched with all important and security updates.
    ______________________________________________

    My recommendations:

    1. For the typical home user of XP or Vista, Windows Firewall is adequate, even more so if one is using a router, which is a very good firewall in itself. Make sure your Windows Firewall is turned “on”.

    2. For your Anti-Virus……I would suggest Avast, the newest version 4.8. Avast now includes anti-virus, some anti-spyware capability and anti-rootkit components. And all for the low low price of free. You can get it here:
    http://www.avast.com/eng/avast_4_home.html

    (Always use only 1 A-V…You must NEVER use more than one anti-virus, Even an expired anti-virus can cause a major conflict…did I mention that you MUST uninstall any and all, old anti-virus products?)

    3. For your Anti-Adware and Anti-Spyware needs…
    SUPERAntiSpyware:
    http://www.superantispyware.com/

    They have a free version.

    4. Use Secunia PSI to insure that all your software is kept always updated and patched against vulnerabilities that are often exploited to compromise computers. Very important, unfortunately often overlooked by the user, but not the black-hats that code the malware! They know exactly where the weak points are.

    http://secunia.com/vulnerability_scanning/personal/

    Its free as is everything else here.

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