Helped an older friend recently with issues with his antivirus. Discovered he was paying $199 per year for Trend Micro which is obviously a rip off.
Discovered Bitdefender Total Security 3 devices for 12 months code for 78% off. $19.99 (USD) which turned out to be around $31 (AUD). Need to cancel before 12 months otherwise will get charged $149.00 but pretty sure you can sort out some deal code then.
I have older parents; no matter how much you tell them that
www. amazingsite .co/yourexactsearchterm isnt a real result, they're still clicking.
Avoiding dodgy sites is harder for genX and prior, since SEO is now putting malware as first hits.
Still, the free version is enough if youre just after a better heuristics engine.
I also have probably 3? Clients who were honest enough to say:
"So what do you use your PC for mainly?"
"Porn, gambling and banking"
And one 93yo who I can never convince to stop sending money to "sexy women" … "in Ukraine" (yes, I let his family know what's happening).
Still don't think its a deal. Free will acomplish what most need sorry.
What is a dodgy site these days? Websites are hacked on a regular basis. So trusted one day, bad the next.
All it takes is a JavaScript or redirect to be in place. I would rather have something top notch than just ok and Bitdefender is one of those top notch detection capabilities.
Otherwise Kaspersky is next.
Yep, malvertising is getting worse.
My older clients get a basic 'set and forget' package.
Firefox with uBlock (leaving Edge untouched, in case a site doesnt work)
Dns to 1.1.1.2
BitDefender free.
'User' account (admin i name 'computer', so if a popup says 'computer' you know its modifying your computer)
Massively cuts down on issues in my experience.
I do malware analysis as a pretty serious hobby; BitDefender does have a better heuristics engine than any of the other free options, so its a good choice.
But why did someone older need more than the free version?
Typically - making sure they use a 'user' not admin account, changing their DNS to 1.1.1.2 (cloudflares malware block dns) plus the free version of bitdefender is already overkill for the non-pirates out there.
What is wrong with Windows Security? If you have to pay, then Kaspersky is a much better option thanks to built-in Putin.
Nah its not a "you like pears, so you hate oranges" scenario.
Nothing at all is wrong with windows security.
BitDefender is just a little faster and has a more reliable heuristics engine.
If you arent the type to 'explore' the internet or download random things (like fun screensavers or free games, or email attachments) then its probably absolutely enough for you.
Otherwise, this is one of my favorite researchers if you wanted to see how many ways around Defender still exist.
https://m.youtube.com/@_JohnHammond
If someone in your life is less savvy and going to click 'yes' on warning prompts, defender can be made to entirely stand down scarily easily.
Its truly fine, some people just want better if they do more on the pc.
One of the less bloated AV, that’s mainly why it gets my recommendation for people who want it.
Personally, I'd go with ESET these days instead of BD or Kaspersky. They are the best these days.
Cheap 1 year license for ESET NOD32 https://www.stacksocial.com/sales/eset-nod32-antivirus-2024 add SAVE20 code to get it down to $8USD.
WD is enough but you need to supplement it with LOLbins blocking/Anti Exploit tool or a WDAC lockdown tool to be safe and sure.
LOLbins for Win 10 and Win 11 pre 24H2 = https://github.com/AndyFul/Hard_Configurator
W11 WDAC for 24H2= https://github.com/AndyFul/Hard_Configurator/tree/master/Win…
WDAC Lockdown = https://wdaclockdown.com/
CyberLock for anti exploit = https://cyberlock.global/
You can also go Whitelisting & ERD/NDR but they are more corperate and licenses expensive for home users.
Search and you will go far!
If i have an existing sub, does this top it up?
Or just use Microsoft defender and don't visit dodgy sites.