Thinking of going naked

It's been a while since I've last had a virus living on my PC. And playing in linux without an AV is fun, which led me to think, I should go naked.

I still wish to have a scanner (on demand), one which doesn't run in the background (no services). I just manually scan when I feel like.

My question is, which do you recommend I use? I'm not very knowledgable in the stand alone category :/

 

There are a few online AV scanners that are available. Bitdefender has a free on-demand program (version 10) for those that don't want a resident AV program.

http://www.bitdefender.com/site/Downloads/browseEvaluationVersion/1/42/

I've used several of the online scanners listed in my signature area, but can't say which is better.

 

BitDefender caught my eye, but last time I remember from using the on demand, doesn't it sit in the background anyway (as a service) ?

 

Bitdefender Does have the free on demand scanner,although not real time it still runs for the auto updates there for does use some resources.

 

Going naked, huh. Yeah, Linux will do that to you. And the weather IS getting warmer so....sure, why not. . I've been going naked for a while now, too. Yeah, a former/part-time Linux user here as well. Good luck.

 

Thanks . Linux has grown on me in some ways. It's a good thing I believe.
I'll give Bitdefender a go, and maybe a few others (not sure which yet).


EDIT:
So I tried bit defender 10 free, and didn't like it. If only they made it as light as BD AV 2008. I also had some issues with a file it was trying to install (getting the vista error for compatibility).



Are there any that only run when called on via right click context menu?

 

Download and run Dr. Web CureIt when you feel like running a scan. It's updated on a regular basis so you will need to download a new version each time you want to run a scan, especially if the scans are more than a few days apart. Otherwise you can use the NOD32 & F-Secure online scanners.

 

Dr web looks like a good option. I like that Av

 

Dr. Web CureIt is great. Since I don't normally run an antivirus on my system Dr. Web CureIt is always my choice when I get a little paranoid and wish to do a scan. Again, it's a great choice. I do wish they (Dr. Web developers)would allow it to update the database without having to download a new version each time, though.

Later...

 

I wouldn't mind downloading the update when needed. It gives me the feeling they are keeping on track with their products.

EDIT:
What about Microworld Escan? They seem to have an on demand, and it uses the Kaspersky engine? The detections seem pretty good on AV-Comp.

 

Its not so important whether a service is running, the issue is what is that service doing. There are a bunch of AV's that can be set up with the on access scanner disabled, or you could use Clam AV, a free open source scanner that is on demand only.

I guess you have old slow hardware and want to have it run a bit more quickly. Try Avira free, or AVG free without installing the web scanner (if that is possible).

 

I have a fairly new Laptop , pretty powerful, rather I like running the system as lean and fast as possible especially with vista.

My reasoning for on demand and the service issue is strictly personal preference. I thought of clam but the detections aren't so great.

My choices have been narrowed to Dr Web Cureit or Escan

 

If those are the constraints, my personal preference would be Dr Web CureIt. No overwhelming reason. It's solid. It works.

Blue

 

Okay then, choice is made!
Thanks everyone

 

I always recommend to use at least some active free antivirus. On-demand scans wont do you any good when half of your system is infected with Virut or PGP coder... I'm not a high risk user and i know quiet some about malware and i still wouldn't take chances with such malware. A bit performance overhead is nothing compared to lost data and countless hours attempting to recover it.

 

I have to agree with Rejzor actually. About the only way I would go without at least SOME active protection is if I were using maybe Returnil, where whatever happens goes away after a reboot. Linux is great, lol, I loved not having any security programs running, but, when you have to step back into Windows you're quickly tossed right back into reality.

I personally think if you pick 1 security tool and 1 only, it should be an active antivirus. On today's internet, you no longer have to go looking for trouble to find it. Just my opinion of course

 

I think depending on your combo, there are times when going without an actIve AV will work.

 

Why are you making it sound like users are forced to choose from only two available options: a bit of performance overhead, and losing time and data?

It never ceases to amaze me how people think that an antivirus is THE tool for fighting malware, and other software are just essentially there to back up the antivirus.

Relatively speaking, antivirus software have since fallen hopelessly behind other defensive measures. They're doomed to be forever inferior to sandboxes, HIPS, behavior blockers, access policies etc simply by the nature of how the technologies work. Antivirus software still have their role to play, but for those people who still cling to the archaic mindset that antivirus = protection, and no antivirus = no protection, you're missing out on the variety of possibilities beyond that very narrow and confined view.

 

While I agree in general and do not tend to run without an active AV myself, there are so many other factors that are germane to the general question that it is basically impossible to provide an all encompassing response.

If the plan is to run without a realtime monitoring AV, but to employ a demand only AV, there are a number of demand-only options available and suitable for the task at hand, which the responses above have covered. There are others as well.

There are also a number of OS level configuration/implementation strategies that would significantly aid in overall protection for this type of system and they are well discussed here and elsewhere. Obviously, any user has to perform some level of due diligence as to risk when they step outside of what would reasonably be described as the broadly recommended approach. That would include making a learned assessment of potential downside scenarios and planning accordingly.

Blue

 

Well I decieded to go naked myself........
Oh yeah, dropped the AV too.
We'll see how well I like the new setup, weather or not I keep it this way.

 

you will be fine loneWolf. I cant even remember the last time something hit me.... Most of the Sandbox, Virtual Software and the restore softwares are really one needs. I mean in my case it is only SS guarding the net and email. I may periodacally scan with Cure it, and if I did fine something just a simple reboot to roll back to another snap shot is all that is required. I can still test stuff.

No, AVs still have their place, but it sure as hell isnt at the top of the food chain.

 

That's the thing with me. I haven't been infected, or even close to infected in such a long time. This means no alerts from any real time scanners, nor from a manual scan, with viruses and malware etc.

Malware I expect once and a while, and have been doing on demand scans and has worked fine.

The issue I'm finding is I have that locked mindset that no av = no protection. I've noticed it today I know I'll be fine and can manage, but ive used an av for so long that I got the idea stuck in my head that I need to.

If I am going AV-less especially to gain back performance without it, i would also not use any other real time security app because that would be the same as running the AV itself.

 

I am somewhat of the opposite opinion I guess.. For me, performance is paramount. If I don't have good fast browsing and snappy overall system performance, then I am annoyed with the whole PC. On the other hand, I don't mind reformatting and spending a few hours setting up fresh if and when necessary, that's no big deal to me. So I'd rather go ahead and take my chances without an AV or HIPS, and probably do fine for months or years with good performance, and if disaster strikes, then start over. Any valuable data I always have stored on CD or DVD or backup anyway.

 

I think the performance gains stated are a little over rated. For me, it is nice not to hear that ever churning noise, of my files having their repetitive colonoscopy performed.

 

As a home user I see the biggest threat as the web browser.