Where does it stop

I have and keep up to date Eset Smart Security and never have any problems. I also run Ccleaner 45,000 time a day.
Now when I read here I need to spend at least another $60 to prevent intrusion on top of Esets SS. H.I.P.S. cost $30 and I suppose Sandboxie cost $30. I personally think Sandboxie would be a royal pain. The things I do write to the hard drive constantly. There is a whole plethora of other programs recommended here. Which would cost an additional how many $. Also all this would bog down the Puter.
It has been my experience that people use what they started with and recommend it to others without during an exhaustive study of other programs on the market.

 

You don't HAVE to use anything.
People recommend products because they are satisfied with it. I would recommend SBIE, but I would never say you NEED it.
Also, they are a lot of free alternatives, some of them VERY good.

It stops where you decide it should stop. And for determining that, you must know your infection chances, the possible infection vectors and understand how differente security works. This will make you able to build the best armor for you.

 

Most computer users fall into this category. The majority of PC users are not program or system testers and comparison users. Unless they experience a security breach or massive system slowdown, they most likely will stay put with what is already on the computer. That is why some systems are out of date and not updated as well.
If you become too inundated with every new program offering that comes out, you won't have any time to do anything else on the computer.

 

You don't need to spend another penny if you don't want to, you can get by just fine with freeware. I've set many of my friends up with free products and they do fine.

 

I'd just go with ESS and leave it at that. Personally I just have EAV 3.0 and my router after slimming down a few years ago. Keep in mind though that a lot of people just fart around with security products for fun.