Avast vs AVG

[Tosh McCaber]

I notice a recent thread noting problems with AVG.

I used to have Free AVG installed, with a regular scan taking place every night. No great problems. I heard that Kapersky was superior, and bought and tried it. However, it slowed that system greatly.

I then heard favourable reports about Avast, and loaded it up in place of AVG a few months ago. Even though it’s the free version of Avast, it has an ongoing virus/ malware scan, which often slows things considerably, as I wait for a scan to complete when I download or even open files already on the computer. Since it is supposed to constantly monitor, I don’t often carry out a manual scan.

I carried out a real time scan when I loaded up Avast. Yesterday, after Avast flagged up malware in an incoming email, I carried out another, and was taken aback to find that it found no less than 22 viruses and malware. Not only that, every time that it found an infected file, it refused to progress until I responded as to what to do with the malware- delete or send to the Avast Vault. All in all, a 15 hour scanning operation for three hard drives- a 200Gb, and two 400GB drives.

I’m seriously considering going back to Free AVG, since Avast does not have an automated regular scanning process, and even if it did, it would appear that I would have to constantly monitor it.

I wonder why infected files have not have been flagged up in the constant monitoring process?

[obgraham]

I also did not find Avast easy to work with. As you say, it hangs rather than eliminating threats. I'm sure there's a place to set it sifferently, but their setting page is likewise cryptic.

Went back to AVG.

Machine ground to a halt.

Replaced AVG with Microsoft SE. So far so good. And a very good interface.

[islander539]

I personally would back Avira against AVG or Avast. There is a free or paid version and I find that the free version works fine for me in Win 7 64 bit.

[Loose rivets]

Replaced AVG with Microsoft SE. So far so good. And a very good interface.


May I ask what site you downloaded from? I would prefer to get it from MS, but within the first page of Goog'l hits, all I got was Gecko and Fly. What an odd name...well, perhaps not.

[Tarq57]

Workaround info 1 (http://forum.avast.com/index.php?topic=51028.msg432264#msg432264) [edit](I prefer the first paragraph of this one over the second para/link below.)
Workaround info 2 (http://forum.avast.com/index.php?topic=3796.0)
Info and download for a test virus. (http://www.eicar.org/anti_virus_test_file.htm)

Other AV links:
I'm quite a fan of Avast. If I couldn't use it I would be almost as happy using Avira (http://www.free-av.de/en/trialpay_download/1/avira_antivir_personal__free_antivirus.html) or trying out Microsoft Security Essentials. (http://www.microsoft.com/security/products/mse.aspx) (Both homepage download links.)

Why Avast over the others?
Thing is with a lot of the freebies, some aspect of the free version is crippled in some way, so as to distinguish it from the pro version, else none of these companies would make any dosh, Tosh.

Most of them part-cripple the detection, cleaning, updating etc. Which makes them less effective when the bomb drops. Avast cripples the ability to schedule a scan. (And cripples what's called "push" updates, where critical updates for new detections are released to the pro clients as soon as they've been analysed and nerdified so the program will accept them. Gives a slight head start.)

Comparisons:
Probably the definitive site for AV performance comparisons, is Av-comparatives. (http://www.av-comparatives.org/) AFAIK there is no other site carrying out truly independent and comprehensive/relevant testing. (And nothing reputable for free AV's.) Avast always scores quite well or excellent. SO do Avira and (usually) AVG. Pertinent to remember, though, that only the pro AV's are tested. So the rankings, as regards the free versions of AVG and Avira, mean little for the users of those products. Whereas Avast has the same detection/cleaning ability in the Home or the Pro version. (A signification reason many users are very happy with it.)

Why files found on scan but not in realtime?
Without seeing the file names and paths, this is pretty much impossible to know. A likely scenario is that they are leftovers of something, (or actual full malware files) that Avast did not detect when they first appeared on the PC, for which definitions were later added. That the resident shield has not alerted to them before now suggests they are dormant/never run/never activated.
Or they (or some of them) are false positives. The word "gen" as part of the detection name indicates an increased possibility of this, if present.

Try uploading the files flagged as malware to VirusTotal - Free Online Virus and Malware Scan (http://www.virustotal.com/) for an online scan. Once the scan has completed, post back the URL to each results page. (not the permalink info, the actual URL.) Files can also be sent to Avast from inside the chest (quarantine). If they are suspect FP's, Alwil are pretty on to it about removing the detections. The files should periodically be re-scanned in the chest, to check status. Don't delete them. At least, not yet.

[obgraham]

May I ask what site you downloaded from? I would prefer to get it from MS, I got it right here on Microsoft.

http://www.microsoft.com/Security_Essentials/

But now when I look at it, maybe that site doesn't work the same outside USA.

[Bushfiva]

It works fine from (almost) anywhere.

[Tosh McCaber]

Thanks for all the replies. Unfortunately, I deleted the suspect files from the Vault already!! No doubt, I'll pick up more sometime, and I'll follow the advice above.

1) I was rather surprised to find that a free version would be less effective than a paying one- what's the point in putting one's reliance on an AV programme, if it ain't as near as dammit 100%?

2) Does AVG Free also scan in real-time, other than scheduled scanning?

[Tarq57]

1) I was rather surprised to find that a free version would be less effective than a paying one- what's the point in putting one's reliance on an AV programme, if it ain't as near as dammit 100%?

But why on earth would a manufacturer give away all the features for nothing? They'd be out of business in weeks. Or days. And leave a huge userbase with a great program that was rapidly becoming useless.

The trick is finding a free one that will do the job, in conjunction with other methods (browser hardening, immunizing, firewall, backups/imaging etc.) As far as I am concerned, none of them are "as near as dammit %100", nor can they be. The bad guys release the malware before the AV companies see it, analyse it, and release def's for it. They are reactive. That is the fact of life with any blacklist-based scanner.

Avast offers at least as good protection from a variety of different pests as any of them, free or paid. That's part of the point I was making in the post above. Most of the other free versions have the important stuff throttled. Avast doesn't.
Any of them will let one through, the wrong one, on the wrong day. I've seen it with AVG. With Norton. With McAfee. And with Avast. And a whole heap more. (I browse far too many malware logs on various forums.:8)
If you really want to get into serious protection, get yourself a HIPS. (White-list based blocker. Requires a fair amount of knowledge and interaction.)

Feature comparisons, free/paid:
Avast (http://www.avast.com/eng/avast-compare-home-professional.html) Avira (http://www.free-av.com/en/products/1/avira_antivir_personal__free_antivirus.html) AVG. (http://www.avg.com.au/home-office-security-comparison/)

2) Does AVG Free also scan in real-time, other than scheduled scanning?
Yes. That's the definition of "resident", "realtime", or "on access" scanning.
The other type is called a demand scanner. Which include such gems as Clam, and DrWeb Cureit. And a whole bevy of antispyware programs such as Spybot, MBAM, SAS etc.

[BRL]

Replaced AVG with Microsoft SE. So far so good. And a very good interface.

I have just loaded this and it freezes my laptop every time it starts up. I had to go into safe mode and do a system restore for yesterday to make my laptop work again.

[Tosh McCaber]

Thanks again Tarq57

[Bob Lenahan]

I'd used several different payware versions in the past, and had problems with each one- picked up most of the malware using Norton. Found out about free Avast a number of years ago and have used it since with excellent results, never had a problem with it. I know of many people and small companies that use it.
Bob.

[call100]

Not had any problems with Avast. I've just done a full scan and nothing found. Did an online scan and that was clear also.

[geoff1248]

I have been running AVF Free for a couple of years without any problems; then again until you get infected you don't know how good/bad your AV prog. is.
I was going to give the Microsoft Security a try out until I discovered in the small print that you give MS the right to obtain some details from your PC. Things like the names of your folders...etc
Now you may have nothing to hide but my hard drive is my business and no one elses.

[Tarq57]

I have just loaded this and it freezes my laptop every time it starts up. I had to go into safe mode and do a system restore for yesterday to make my laptop work again.
Did you uninstall AVG and run the appropriate AVG Remover (http://www.avg.com/ww-en/download-tools) and reboot before installing MSE?
What firewall (if any) do you use?

[Loose rivets]

obgraham Thanks, followed your link, and Bob's yer uncle. (just for the hell of it, I tried various wordings again and drew a blank!)


I loaded it on the spare drive, and all seemed very professional. However, with AVG, I can turn it off in an instant. In the few minutes I've played with the MS offering, I can see no way to click it off quickly other than Settings - Real-time protection. And un-tick the boxes.

[seanbean]

Update: Long awaited Avast 5 has now been released:

avast! Free Antivirus - Download Software for Virus Protection (http://www.avast.com/free-antivirus-download)

A much improved interface and capabilities. I have installed directly on top of previous version (Vista, 32-bit). I have been running it for 24hrs, no problems.

[Loose rivets]

Oh deary me. To quote myself. (about the MS anti-virus.)

I loaded it on the spare drive, and all seemed very professional.

This (secondary) drive fell over this morning. :( It had a bit of history, but was formatted, Partition Magic loaded, and had seemed good as the backup drive ever since. Booted it in XP a few times in the last few days, loaded Sp2, and the above, and this morning it won't get past the first few lines of any of the restore options. Not even command prompt.

So, a few possibilities, but I guess I'll never know.

First symptoms were CheckDisk. But I'll not drift too far on this thread. Any other users of this anti-virus finding that this happens, let us know.

[jimtherev]

Well here's a thing!
Had a call from a colleague the other day. "Jim, my laptop's gone all funny - it's getting slower and slower, and now it won't print."

In short, I lent him a lappy and got round to his this afternoon. (had enough of hospital visiting for one week - and it's only Wed...) Three av programs inc AVG - and Ad-aware on top of 'em... turns out it had been 'repaired' by son-in-law who 'knows about computers'.:ugh: Isolated the m/c, stripped out the lot and installed Avast! Four Trojans and five rootkits so far: I took it round to him, and left a full scan running.

I'm grateful to you lot for persuading me to instal Avast! (I had known that AVG hasn't a rootkit detector built in, and had the AVG anti-rootkit installed... but still.)