Choose the right Antivirus

• What is an Antivirus?
• How to know if your computer is infected?
• BitDefender
• Kaspersky
• ESET NOD32
• AVG Anti-Virus

What is an Antivirus?

An antivirus is a computer program designed to search, disable and remove viruses, Trojans, malware orworms from a computer system. Each antivirus program has its own features and some can remove only a particular kind of virus from a computer, while others are built to eliminate them all. Hence, you should be cautious while choosing which antivirus to install on your system and remember to make regular updates as at least 100 new viruses can be discovered each day.

How to know if your computer is infected?

Computers normally get infected very easily. The most common ways of getting viruses, Trojans and worms are:

• 1. from a software, program or file that you have recently downloaded
• 2. from a an infected removable drive that you have plugged into your PC
• 3. from pop ups from various websites
• 4. or simply from infected sharing folders on a network.

To know whether you computer has been infected or not, you should ensure that it has not:

• 1. been running too slowly lately
• 2. been displaying fatal error messages
• 3. prevented you from running or accessing some specific programs/files/programs.
• 4. automatically hidden or deleted some files/folders/programs from your system
• 5. renamed your programs/files/folders in an awkward way
• 6. allowed you to run your operating system properly
• 7. displayed weird symbols or signs while running your system
• 8. frozen or promptly interrupted any tasks
• 9. displayed infected files on your system while scanning your computer with an antivirus.

These are among the most common ways to know if your computer has been infected but the best method remains prevention. If you have a good antivirus installed, you will be warned each time a virus is trying to attack your system and if it should be either quarantined or removed.

Here's a list of the most effective antivirus programs currently available online:

BitDefender

BitDefender is an antivirus / Antispyware that protects againstphishing attacks.

Type: Commercial/Free

System Requirements:

• Windows 2000 with Service Pack 4
• Windows XP with Service Pack 2 (32/64 bit)
• Windows Vista (32/64 bit)

Download Link: http://en.kioskea.net/download/download-65-bitdefender-free

Kaspersky

Kaspersky antivirus protects against worms and Trojans.

Type: Commercial/Free

System Requirements:

Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional (Service Pack 4 or higher), Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition (Service Pack 2 or Higher), Microsoft Windows XP Professional (Service Pack 2 or higher), Microsoft Windows XP Professional x64 Edition, Microsoft Windows Vista, Microsoft Windows Vista x64.

Hardware and Software Requirements:
50 MB free space on the hard disk, CD-ROM (for installation), Internet connection (for activation and updates), Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 or higher (for updating signatures and the program), Microsoft Windows Installer 2.0.

Download Link: http://en.kioskea.net/download/download-899-kaspersky-antivirus

ESET NOD32

Eset NOD32 is an antivirus.

Type: Commercial

System Requirements:

• Processors supported: 32-bit (x86) and 64-bit (x64) Intel, AMD or 100% compatible
• Operating Systems: Microsoft Windows 2000, Microsoft Windows XP (32 and 64-bit editions), Microsoft Windows Vista (32 and 64-bit editions)
• Memory: 33 - 38 MB on average
• Disk Space (download): 16MB
• Disk Space (installation): 78MB

Download Link: http://en.kioskea.net/download/download-2190-eset-smart-security

AVG Anti-Virus

AVG is an antivirus
Type: Commercial/ Free

System Requirements:

• CPU Intel Pentium, 300 MHz
• 30 MB free hard drive space
• 256 MB RAM
• MS Windows 2000
• MS Windows XP
• MS Windows XP Pro x64 Edition
• MS Windows Vista
• MS Windows Vista x64 Edition

Download Link: http://en.kioskea.net/download/download-89-avast-4-home-edition