Renew McAfee or Not?

PCG

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Member
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I have one desktop and two laptops that are up for McAfee antivirus renewal soon. All three OS's were recently upgraded to Windows 8 Pro.

I'd be curios to hear what your opinions are on this topic:

1. Should I renew McAfee for these three computers for a grand total of $96.96 (USD incl taxes), or should I uninstall and convert to Windows Defender and free Malwarebytes?

2. If I convert, would the combination of WD and MWbytes provide sufficient protection?

Thanks in advance for your input.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Studio XPS 8100 in Corsair 200R Case
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-860 processor, (8MB Cache, 2.80GHz)
    Motherboard
    Dell (Chicony - DH57M01)
    Memory
    Corsair 16GB DDR3 SDRAM at 1333MHz-4x4GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    nVidia GeForce GTX 760, 2GB DDR5
    Sound Card
    OEM Integrated
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell ST2410, 24" Flat Panel Monitor
    Hard Drives
    256GB Samsung SSD 840 Pro-MZ-7PD256BW,
    Western Digital 1TB Caviar Blue-WD10EALX,
    2 Western Digital 2TB Black WD2003FZEX,
    1 Western Digital 6TB Green
    PSU
    Corsair CX600M (600 Watt)
    Case
    Corsair 200R mid-tower
    Cooling
    OEM
    Internet Speed
    Broadcom Netlink (TM) Gigabit Ethernet Card.
    Other Info
    This Dell XPS 8100 was transplanted in to a Corsair 200R mid-tower case in June 2015; The only Dell remnants are the motherboard and cpu, which will be upgraded some time in the future...
I would stay with WD and Malwarebytes offer adequate protection for your systems and they use fewer resources. Both have protected me well as I have had some attacks which both have prevented.

Should you wish to uninstall McAfee, use their removal tool from their website to completely remove all traces from your computer.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1 Update 1 Pro 64bit
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Pavillion H8-1202
    CPU
    I7-2600 @ 3.4 GHz
    Motherboard
    PEGATRON
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NIVDIA GeForce GT 520
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC656GR CODEC
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung SyncMaster S22B350
    Screen Resolution
    1920X1080 32 bit color
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 850 EVO SSD 500GB
    Keyboard
    Razer Blackwidow Ultimate 2013
    Mouse
    Logitech M510
I personally use Norton 360 for my Security Client. I have been using Symantec product since 2003 and it has been good at defending and blocking for me.

I would not depend on Windows Defender due to news of it not being able to detect new threats:
av-test microsoft - Bing News

Malwarebytes free does not provide Real time scanning but is useful for a second opinion.

You can check out the review of the major sites PC World, PC Mag, CNET, and check out AV-TEST
AV-TEST - The Independent IT-Security Institute: Home User

and here are the reports of McAfee from AV-Test
AV-TEST - The Independent IT-Security Institute: McAfee

The question to ask is how long you used the Vendor and did that Vendor help, block, and the UI is easy to use.
If you like happy with Vendor then renew.

All AV vendors don't block everything so use best security practices and do backups or images to restore from a serious system infection.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Pro (x64)
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Sony VAIO VPCF136FM
    CPU
    Intel i7 Q 740 Quad @ 1.73 GHz (Boast to 2.83 GHz)
    Memory
    8 GB DDR3
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce GT 425M
    Sound Card
    Sound System: Intel® High Definition Audio w/ Dolby® Home Theater® v3
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Laptop Screen Size: 16.4"
    Screen Resolution
    1600 x 900
    Hard Drives
    Seagate 1TB Solid State Hybrid Drive SATA 6Gbps 64MB Cache 2.5-Inch ST1000LM014; Type: Serial ATA-600; Speed: 5400 rpm
    Keyboard
    QWERTY, 103 keys with 2.0mm stroke and 19.05mm pitch; Backlit; 10 Key Numeric Pad
    Mouse
    Electro-static touchpad (Multi-Finger); Microsoft Sculpt Comfort Mouse
    Internet Speed
    105 Mbs Down/ 10 Mbs Up
    Browser
    Edge; Firefox; Chrome
    Antivirus
    Norton Security
    Other Info
    Sony Support Page:
    http://esupport.sony.com/US/p/model-home.pl?mdl=VPCF136FM
    Specs Doc:
    http://www.docs.sony.com/release/specs/VPCF136FMB_mksp.pdf
Thanks, I'll take a look at those reviews...
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Studio XPS 8100 in Corsair 200R Case
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-860 processor, (8MB Cache, 2.80GHz)
    Motherboard
    Dell (Chicony - DH57M01)
    Memory
    Corsair 16GB DDR3 SDRAM at 1333MHz-4x4GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    nVidia GeForce GTX 760, 2GB DDR5
    Sound Card
    OEM Integrated
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell ST2410, 24" Flat Panel Monitor
    Hard Drives
    256GB Samsung SSD 840 Pro-MZ-7PD256BW,
    Western Digital 1TB Caviar Blue-WD10EALX,
    2 Western Digital 2TB Black WD2003FZEX,
    1 Western Digital 6TB Green
    PSU
    Corsair CX600M (600 Watt)
    Case
    Corsair 200R mid-tower
    Cooling
    OEM
    Internet Speed
    Broadcom Netlink (TM) Gigabit Ethernet Card.
    Other Info
    This Dell XPS 8100 was transplanted in to a Corsair 200R mid-tower case in June 2015; The only Dell remnants are the motherboard and cpu, which will be upgraded some time in the future...
why pay for something when you can get it free? WD and Malwarebytes is more than enough. If you wanted to pay for something then get Malwarebytes Pro. It is much less than Mcafee and you get lifetimes upgrades with it so it only costs you a one time fee. You can set it to scan weekly, and you can set WD through Task Scheduler to scan weekly also. Just make sure you set them up to scan at different days and different times
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    4 Windows 7 Pro Sp1- 4 Win 8 Pro, 1- xp pro sp3
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 390, 380, 3 Vostro Laptops (7 computers in all)
    CPU
    desktop/laptop
    Memory
    4gigs
    Graphics Card(s)
    atm randioum
    Hard Drives
    350,250
Hello all,

I have seen many recommending the WD + Malwarebytes combo; however, I'm a bit tentative about removing my Avast Anti-virus and going with that combo because it is my (uneducated) understanding that WD + Malwarebytes doesn't do the best job of up-front (browser) warning and detection; however, it does a great job of detection and removal "after" the infected file has been placed on your PC/laptop.

In summary, I really like to be warned before the infected file is downloaded and that's where Avast did a great job (prior to Windows 8) of blocking the downloads and allowing me to exit the site (uninfected). However, I now am starting to question Avast's effectiveness in Windows 8 currently and I am waiting for them to come out with their new Windows 8 version.

I would really appreciate your thoughts on the methodology WD + Malwarebytes uses. Specifically, do they block the virus/infection from being downloaded or do they really do their best work after the file has become resident on your PC/laptop?

Thanks, in advance, for your responses.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
no antivirus/antispyware does it all, if avast works for you than keep it, because Avast is a good antivirius program also. I would just add Malwarebytes to the mix.
Everyone here will give you a different good opinion, you just need to use what you feel comfortable with
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    4 Windows 7 Pro Sp1- 4 Win 8 Pro, 1- xp pro sp3
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 390, 380, 3 Vostro Laptops (7 computers in all)
    CPU
    desktop/laptop
    Memory
    4gigs
    Graphics Card(s)
    atm randioum
    Hard Drives
    350,250
I personally use Norton 360 for my Security Client. I have been using Symantec product since 2003 and it has been good at defending and blocking for me.

I would not depend on Windows Defender due to news of it not being able to detect new threats:
av-test microsoft - Bing News

Malwarebytes free does not provide Real time scanning but is useful for a second opinion.

You can check out the review of the major sites PC World, PC Mag, CNET, and check out AV-TEST
AV-TEST - The Independent IT-Security Institute: Home User

and here are the reports of McAfee from AV-Test
AV-TEST - The Independent IT-Security Institute: McAfee

The question to ask is how long you used the Vendor and did that Vendor help, block, and the UI is easy to use.
If you like happy with Vendor then renew.

All AV vendors don't block everything so use best security practices and do backups or images to restore from a serious system infection.

maxknuxm,

I read through these and it seems that they are mostly testing Microsoft Security Essentials on Windows XP and 7 platforms. I did not see any WD tests on a Windows 8 machine. Isn't WD different from MS Security Essentials?

Your links did lead me to some additional research including a youtube video posting that I will add in a new reply in a couple of minutes, that in my opinion shows WD doing a pretty decent job.

Thanks for your reply.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Studio XPS 8100 in Corsair 200R Case
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-860 processor, (8MB Cache, 2.80GHz)
    Motherboard
    Dell (Chicony - DH57M01)
    Memory
    Corsair 16GB DDR3 SDRAM at 1333MHz-4x4GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    nVidia GeForce GTX 760, 2GB DDR5
    Sound Card
    OEM Integrated
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell ST2410, 24" Flat Panel Monitor
    Hard Drives
    256GB Samsung SSD 840 Pro-MZ-7PD256BW,
    Western Digital 1TB Caviar Blue-WD10EALX,
    2 Western Digital 2TB Black WD2003FZEX,
    1 Western Digital 6TB Green
    PSU
    Corsair CX600M (600 Watt)
    Case
    Corsair 200R mid-tower
    Cooling
    OEM
    Internet Speed
    Broadcom Netlink (TM) Gigabit Ethernet Card.
    Other Info
    This Dell XPS 8100 was transplanted in to a Corsair 200R mid-tower case in June 2015; The only Dell remnants are the motherboard and cpu, which will be upgraded some time in the future...
I bought a couple of PCs with free 1 year subscription for McAfee. This was the first thing I removed. On one I use NIS2013 and on the other I use MSE. No incidents yet.

And why did I remove McAfee - because of my bad experience with it in the past.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Vista and Win7
    System Manufacturer/Model
    2xHP, 2xGateway, 1xDell, 1xSony
    Hard Drives
    5 SSDs and 12 HDs
why pay for something when you can get it free? WD and Malwarebytes is more than enough. If you wanted to pay for something then get Malwarebytes Pro. It is much less than Mcafee and you get lifetimes upgrades with it so it only costs you a one time fee. You can set it to scan weekly, and you can set WD through Task Scheduler to scan weekly also. Just make sure you set them up to scan at different days and different times

Robin, this is exactly the way I'm leaning... as a matter of fact, I went ahead and purchased Malwarebytes Pro, removed Mcafee (from my desktop only at this point -- both laptops will follow), and have been testing and getting used to WD.

I'm not sure how this happened or how it got passed Mcafee, but when I performed my first MBAM scan, (before the Mcafee uninstall), it found three PUP FaceThemes in the registry keys. So, as you elude to in post #7, I think it is likely that all AVs and antispywares have their shortcomings and for me the missing piece so far has been the comfort level and a sense of confidence that WD can do the job.

That changed after I watched this youtube video titled Windows 8 Windows Defender Review and Test this evening. I do not know this guy Matt or any one affiliated with his blogs/websites or videos, I simply came across this as the result of a google search. The video is kind of long (nearly 44 minutes) but has exactly the kind of real live WD testing that I was looking for. In the end, the WD results when coupled with MBAM to me appear perfectly fine.

I'm going for it!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Studio XPS 8100 in Corsair 200R Case
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-860 processor, (8MB Cache, 2.80GHz)
    Motherboard
    Dell (Chicony - DH57M01)
    Memory
    Corsair 16GB DDR3 SDRAM at 1333MHz-4x4GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    nVidia GeForce GTX 760, 2GB DDR5
    Sound Card
    OEM Integrated
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell ST2410, 24" Flat Panel Monitor
    Hard Drives
    256GB Samsung SSD 840 Pro-MZ-7PD256BW,
    Western Digital 1TB Caviar Blue-WD10EALX,
    2 Western Digital 2TB Black WD2003FZEX,
    1 Western Digital 6TB Green
    PSU
    Corsair CX600M (600 Watt)
    Case
    Corsair 200R mid-tower
    Cooling
    OEM
    Internet Speed
    Broadcom Netlink (TM) Gigabit Ethernet Card.
    Other Info
    This Dell XPS 8100 was transplanted in to a Corsair 200R mid-tower case in June 2015; The only Dell remnants are the motherboard and cpu, which will be upgraded some time in the future...
Good for you!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    4 Windows 7 Pro Sp1- 4 Win 8 Pro, 1- xp pro sp3
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 390, 380, 3 Vostro Laptops (7 computers in all)
    CPU
    desktop/laptop
    Memory
    4gigs
    Graphics Card(s)
    atm randioum
    Hard Drives
    350,250
I bought a couple of PCs with free 1 year subscription for McAfee. This was the first thing I removed. On one I use NIS2013 and on the other I use MSE. No incidents yet.

And why did I remove McAfee - because of my bad experience with it in the past.

Hi whs, how have you been? Thanks for your input.

As you can see in my previous post, I'm gonna go with Windows Defender and Malwarebytes Pro. The last thing I need to do is cancel the Mcafee auto renew, which I will use to pay for WBAM and have some money leftover :party:
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Studio XPS 8100 in Corsair 200R Case
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-860 processor, (8MB Cache, 2.80GHz)
    Motherboard
    Dell (Chicony - DH57M01)
    Memory
    Corsair 16GB DDR3 SDRAM at 1333MHz-4x4GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    nVidia GeForce GTX 760, 2GB DDR5
    Sound Card
    OEM Integrated
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell ST2410, 24" Flat Panel Monitor
    Hard Drives
    256GB Samsung SSD 840 Pro-MZ-7PD256BW,
    Western Digital 1TB Caviar Blue-WD10EALX,
    2 Western Digital 2TB Black WD2003FZEX,
    1 Western Digital 6TB Green
    PSU
    Corsair CX600M (600 Watt)
    Case
    Corsair 200R mid-tower
    Cooling
    OEM
    Internet Speed
    Broadcom Netlink (TM) Gigabit Ethernet Card.
    Other Info
    This Dell XPS 8100 was transplanted in to a Corsair 200R mid-tower case in June 2015; The only Dell remnants are the motherboard and cpu, which will be upgraded some time in the future...
Yes, that's the tool I used after performing the normal uninstall from the control panel. It worked very well.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Studio XPS 8100 in Corsair 200R Case
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-860 processor, (8MB Cache, 2.80GHz)
    Motherboard
    Dell (Chicony - DH57M01)
    Memory
    Corsair 16GB DDR3 SDRAM at 1333MHz-4x4GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    nVidia GeForce GTX 760, 2GB DDR5
    Sound Card
    OEM Integrated
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell ST2410, 24" Flat Panel Monitor
    Hard Drives
    256GB Samsung SSD 840 Pro-MZ-7PD256BW,
    Western Digital 1TB Caviar Blue-WD10EALX,
    2 Western Digital 2TB Black WD2003FZEX,
    1 Western Digital 6TB Green
    PSU
    Corsair CX600M (600 Watt)
    Case
    Corsair 200R mid-tower
    Cooling
    OEM
    Internet Speed
    Broadcom Netlink (TM) Gigabit Ethernet Card.
    Other Info
    This Dell XPS 8100 was transplanted in to a Corsair 200R mid-tower case in June 2015; The only Dell remnants are the motherboard and cpu, which will be upgraded some time in the future...
Good, then you are OK. Because if you only used the Windows uninstaller, you get all kinds of problems.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Vista and Win7
    System Manufacturer/Model
    2xHP, 2xGateway, 1xDell, 1xSony
    Hard Drives
    5 SSDs and 12 HDs

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro WMC
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home built
    CPU
    Q9650 @ 4.05 GHz
    Motherboard
    Gforce 780i SLI FTW
    Memory
    8GB Gskill DDR2 1200Mhz
    Graphics Card(s)
    GTX-480
    Sound Card
    Asus D2 Xonar
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HannsG
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050
    Hard Drives
    Gskill 120GB SSD
    PSU
    Thermal Take 1000watts
    Case
    Thermal Take Xtreme
    Cooling
    9 fans air cooled
    Keyboard
    G15 logitech
    Mouse
    G9 logitech
    Internet Speed
    50mbps
Yep Chev, that's what I was going to post about. McAfee and Norton are notorious for blocking all internet connectivity completely till uninstalled.

Have been there too many times and won't install either on any system, nor do i recommend either.
Plus, it is far too often that viruses know how to kill Norton and McAfee both and infect your system anyway.

I also recommend people stay far away from AVG.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win 8.1 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Self Built
    CPU
    I7-3770K
    Motherboard
    ASUS SABERTOOTH Z77
    Memory
    CORSAIR 8GB 2X4 D3 1866
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA GTX680 4GB
    Monitor(s) Displays
    ASUS 24" LED VG248QE
    Hard Drives
    SAMSUNG E 256GB SSD 840 PRO -
    SAMSUNG E 120GB SSD840 -
    SEAGATE 1TB PIPELINE
    PSU
    CORSAIR GS800
    Case
    CORSAIR 600T
    Cooling
    CORSAIR HYDRO H100I LIQUID COOLER
    Keyboard
    THERMALTA CHALLENGER ULT GAME-KYBRD
    Mouse
    RAZER DEATHADDER GAME MS BLK-ED
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    APC 1000VA -
    LGELECOEM LG 14X SATA BD BURNER -
    CORSAIR SP120 Fans x 3 -
    NZXT 5.25 USB3 BAY CARD READER -
    HAUPPAUGE COLOSSUS
I also recommend people stay far away from AVG.
Excellent point. We had 6 systems heavily infected whilst free AVG was on the guard. But with Norton (NIS) I never had a problem. I still trust NIS more than any of the others.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Vista and Win7
    System Manufacturer/Model
    2xHP, 2xGateway, 1xDell, 1xSony
    Hard Drives
    5 SSDs and 12 HDs
Every single infected PC I've worked on since November (>100) have had McAfee on them and it did nothing to stop the infections...
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win 10 Pro 64bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home built Intel i7-3770k-based system
    CPU
    Intel i7-3770k, Overclocked to 4.6GHz (46x100) with Corsair H110i GT cooler
    Motherboard
    ASRock Z77 OC Formula 2.30 BIOS
    Memory
    32GB DDR3 2133 Corsair Vengeance Pro
    Graphics Card(s)
    GeForce GTX 980ti SC ACS 6GB DDR5 by EVGA
    Sound Card
    Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium HD, Corsair SP2500 speakers and subwoofer
    Monitor(s) Displays
    LG 27EA33 [Monitor] (27.2"vis) HDMI
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Samsung SSD 850 EVO 250GB (system drive)
    WD 6TB Red NAS hard drives x 2 in Storage Spaces (redundancy)
    PSU
    Corsair 750ax fully modular power supply with sleeved cables
    Case
    Corsair Air 540 with 7 x 140mm fans on front, rear and top panels
    Cooling
    Corsair H110i GT liquid cooled CPU with 4 x 140" Corsair SP "push-pull" and 3 x 140mm fans
    Keyboard
    Thermaltake Poseidon Z illuminated keyboard
    Mouse
    Corsair M65 wired
    Internet Speed
    85MBps DSL
    Browser
    Chrome and Edge
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender, MalwareBytes Pro and CCleaner Pro
    Other Info
    Client of Windows Server 2012 R2 10 PC's, laptops and smartphones on the WLAN.

    1GBps Ethernet ports
That is why I never recommend it either. Also it is quite complicated to use for the average user
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    4 Windows 7 Pro Sp1- 4 Win 8 Pro, 1- xp pro sp3
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 390, 380, 3 Vostro Laptops (7 computers in all)
    CPU
    desktop/laptop
    Memory
    4gigs
    Graphics Card(s)
    atm randioum
    Hard Drives
    350,250
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