Malwarebytes Anti-malware (paid version), your opinions pro and con

I'm thinking about buying the commercial version of Malwarebytes and would like some help from people who are using it or have used it.

When I used the free version I seem to remember it made me download the entire definition database every time I used it. Does the paid version do that to or do you get them in increments?

Also, does the paid version have ads or other nags? I can't remember if the free version did or not.

Besides that, any other advice or opinions from your experience would be greatly appreciated.

 

Paid has no ads/nags that I noticed when I used it briefly. It's pretty effective for such a simple program.

I personally chose not to use it because I felt it wasn't necessary.

 

I don't believe it downloads the entire definition database each time. Every time I update mine its about 6.5 mb so it goes pretty fast.

I have the paid version but I don't run it real-time because I don't feel I need it. I do use it to scan the whole computer about once a month.

 

I am using the paid version with upfront protection. It works well with my other security apps. It has excellent website blocking.

 

I've used MBAM Pro alongside my resident, realtime av. I disabled the web site protection from MBAM and figure I will keep doing so as long as my av does an adequate job. MBAM Pro has caught malware that my av has missed (Avast, AVG then BD) verified by VT.

 

I ran it for a little bit along side AV it ran very well and it blocked a few things at times that my AV didn't but I prefer it as a OD scanner only and No other RT scanners,Just my trustie sandboxie and OD.

 

I use it most of the time on demand. Real time protection is actually lighter than Avira with web-guard on. The Pro version is also reasonably priced as for private use it is a one off payment. Detection is excellent: second best results at MRG Effitas http://malwareresearchgroup.com/malware-tests/flash-test-results/

 

As I don't use any Resident (i.e. Real-Time/On-Access) protection,
I only use the Free version (On-Demand).

 

One-time payment and you get scheduled scans or real-time protection with one of the best anti-malware programs available.

 

I'd sooner pay for the one-time licence for Malwarebyte's Anti-Malware Pro, than the yearly fee for an antivirus. The program is relatively light, and has improved quite a bit since I first got it years ago.

It's a great preventative, particularly the underrated IP Blocking which complements any DNS based blocks (e.g. hosts files or alternative DNS like Norton DNS). They are pretty quick at blocking malware servers, e.g. those hosting exploit kits.

The protection module is designed to block any malicious application that attempts to execute - it doesn't automatically scan folders like an AV does. In my own personal testing FWIW, the file guard stopped all malware samples from running that Panda missed (I didn't test with MBAM alone; I was only interested in my security setup as a whole). TBH I don't know how well MBAM would deal with an exploit kit that actually runs.

Personally I think security should be focused primarily on prevention, along with adequate detection - in this regard MBAM Pro is well worth the money and resources IMO.

You may wish to turn off the notifications for the IP blocker if you use P2P. Otherwise there are no 'nags' on free or pro.

 

How is it's RT resource usage when ran alongside of RT AV scanner?
Will it not bogdown the system further by having two RT scanners running?

 

It's designed to run alongside an AV. I generally advise people not to have too many resident guards running, but MBAM is fine.

The disk I/O is small, and even a netbook running MBAM and a light antivirus together (e.g. F-Secure, Avira or Panda) feels responsive enough. I like to use a netbook to test configurations, as it's more obvious when something is causing a slowdown (e.g. Noscript).

I found that Avast slowed the netbook noticeably when run alongside MBAM Pro, so I got rid of it quickly. I learnt in retrospect that it was a known conflict that was fixed in a later version of Avast, so YMMV.

Comodo was horribly slow on a netbook with MBAM Pro.

 

how about Nod32 v5 AV and MBAM?

 

I've never tested Nod32 myself, but I imagine it'll be fine given the quality of the program.

You could ask in the Eset forums, or you could try the MBAM Pro trial for 14 days to get an idea of it.

 

I'd suggest investing in Prevx as first choice if you are going to buy something.

 

Thats what I was running with MBAM,I just exluded each other and No problems at all.

 

The database update is consistently the same size regardless of how often it is run, so yes it seems like it downloads the whole thing each time. It doesn't do small incremental updating like Norton's Pulse Updates, but that said it's only around 7 megs at the moment. I can't comment on the real-time protection feature. They offer a free trial though so you can try before you buy.

 

They will add incremental update in the future

Pay mbam for support, use on demand for additional layer

 

People have been asking for it for years Sometimes easy to forget that people are still using dialup.

 

I have no complaints except for the website blocking feature. I find it far too aggressive myself. I do however still run it in real-time, but usually with the website blocking turned off.

 

+1

 

►

+1
it was no good between v2.7 v3 and v4 and slowed my system down (as pro)

info: v5 aint ready yet (my last information)

 

Mr.PC, can you tell more about how you get by without any resident protection? This is something I would desperately like to do but am afraid to. If there's a way to do it safely I'd love to know how.

Thanks everyone for your input. A lot of people seem to use it as a supplement to other software. I know Mb's ability to remove malware is legendary, but is the resident aspect lacking in some way?

 

Based on what?

 

Just over time learn the different security tools people use. Some on these forums use overkill when it comes to security, but that too is just part of the learning curve.

A good start IMO is Sandboxie. It'll take time to get used to it - I've been using it for months now, and I keep learning new ways to use it more effectively.

It's useful to learn the various ways you can become infected, and then just work from there. As long as you're not silly enough to fall for the various email scams or Facebook malware tricks, and can tell goodware from badware - then you're looking at ways to prevent things like network worms, drive-by downloads, etc.

It's also a good idea to have a failsafe, i.e. what happens in the worst case scenario. The worst case for me is that I would wipe my computer, and put a previously made 'clone image' of my system back on, so everything is back to normal. Afterwards access my backup drive, and change my passwords.