Virus Protection what do you use?

Crumbs, I use all kinds of stuff like this. I'm a resource hog. It's largely unnecessary but I tend to be unnecessarily paranoid.

SpyBot every so often for the safety net (not TeaTimer - crap)
AdAware every so often for safety's sake - although I find it's pretty much useless
AVG as AV (incoming files only - and I quite like the web integration)
and MSE

I ignored an MSE warning (it flagged when I ran a W7 activator ) and I got a virus. Whoops. Serves me right for trying to outsmart M$.

It took Malware Bytes in safe mode to remove it. Nothing else worked. So MB is definitely my remover of choice.

I have been running AVG for a while, which tends to flag things before MSE does. Usually dodgy software that I've downloaded from dodgy places. No idea if MSE would have flagged it anyway if AVG wasn't installed - I suspect it would.

So basically I don't know the answer but if you're looking to keep things simple I would suggest that MSE is generally fine, but if you're not careful you'll be screwed anyway. MSE is installed as standard on W7 so the chances are that someone else will get the problem before you and it'll be fixed in an update.

And then Malware Bytes to fix it when it does go wrong occasionally

Have used Avast for over 10 years, never a problem

av - none
malwarebytes and running programs that reach out, in a Sandbox....

I've been using Avast Free for a while now. But I'm wondering, is it really necessary on a HTPC to use antivirus software if you don't use it for anything else but streaming media from a NAS?

(2012-09-28 11:58)m1mi.dan0s Wrote:  I've been using Avast Free for a while now. But I'm wondering, is it really necessary on a HTPC to use antivirus software if you don't use it for anything else but streaming media from a NAS?

Not really.

That's what I thought. I don't download, and the media that I download and store on my nas only comes from "trusted" sources, such as NZB Matrix. No torrent, no p2p, etc. The only stuff that is directly downloaded to the HTPC is microsoft and ATI-driver updates - trusted sources - so, no AV on the HTPC then.

Other question, AV on a Nas in the above described scenario (I really only use NZBMatrix and NZBs R Us for downloading): necessary or not?

Depends on the NAS, but normally no. NASs don't have much of an OS and aren't really what virus writers would target. You're more at risk of a infected file being transferred from one system to another via a file stored on the NAS than the NAS becoming infected directly.

I use Avast and have for 10 years, but I have been hit once by a very virulent viri, wiped out 3 installs... but was guided by Avast support forums. It's one of the few free products and for the most part works and they're usually ahead of the game and I don't ignore warnings anymore.

(2012-09-29 18:37)TugboatBill Wrote:  Depends on the NAS, but normally no. NASs don't have much of an OS and aren't really what virus writers would target. You're more at risk of a infected file being transferred from one system to another via a file stored on the NAS than the NAS becoming infected directly.

It's a Synology. I believe it runs on a version of Linux.

^ if possible, you can install clam-av. it was designed to scan your email server for microsoft documents recieved as attachments (although they wont infect your server, it prevents you from passing them along to other ms pc's).