Best virus protection for windows 8?

Not sure if this is in the right place or not mods please move if so, but what is the best virus protection that is free? I have always used Microsoft Security Essentials but it is not supported for windows 8. Right now I have Norton on what came with my computer and I do not like it at all. Also learning windows 8 is a bit different than my last computer had Vista so big change for me. TIA

 

This is what I use for all my security needs

http://www.avast.com/en-au/index
http://www.superantispyware.com/
http://www.malwarebytes.org/

All free and have kept me safe for years, all work with Windows 8

There is a review here, http://anti-virus-software-review.toptenreviews.com/best-antivirus-software-for-windows-8/ but you do not have to pay, all above are free for your information.

It's not just about the Security you have installed, it's also about being careful what you download and where you go on the Internet, common sense is another self made program I use, it's also free.

kind regards,

 

Yes - and if you have Acronis True Image, you can use the "Try and Decide" feature which allows you to try a program with your full installation and then decide whether to keep it or not.

 

Hmm so it has something built in I had no clue because I kept getting a your computer is at risk until I installed that Norton.. How do I find out if I have that? I do not use IE only chrome

 

Also I sure miss my start menu to find anything I am always going to that search thing on the side to find it in search. Hard to find a calculator in a pinch lol.. Nevermind i just read that link and it told me how to add that start menu omg thank you so much!!!

 

You do have it. It is part of Win 8. In the search box, type in Windows Defender.

 

Yep it is there and says it is turned off for some reason. Not sure where to turn it back on so I can get rid of Norton.

 

Dump Norton first. Then turn it back on. This must be a store bought PC like a Dell or HP that M$ allowed them to turn off Windows Defender so that they could put Norton or McCrappy or something else on. Below is a good article about it.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2020260/how-to-activate-windows-defender-in-windows-8.html

 

If you scroll down on this site it will tell you how to activate Windows Defender for Windows 8'.

kind regards,

There are several other ways to follow here

 

Thanks all. I did remove Norton well I guess it did I do not see it and it allowed the windows defender to show me the action center to turn on. So I turned it on. Only one thing was yellow it said some programs running on start should be disabled to go to taskbar to do it but I did not turn nothing off since well I was not sure what should be turned off. Thanks for helping everyone.

 

When you say removed, do you mean uninstalled? If so, How did you do it? Norton makes a uninstall utility for it's programs that you can use.

 

I went in to programs and uninstalled it there then it had me restart. I do not see Norton anywhere still and icon went away as well it was that Norton 360.

 

Tony it did not tell me what was needed to be un check to run on start up. So I had no clue what to un check in the task manager to not run on start up. I can add a screenshot of what is running on start up if you would like to see.

 

I`ve used Norton 360 (and uninstalled it) - Horrible program, - it crippled the computer until I got rid of it, -I`ve been using defender with no complaints ever since.

Edit:- I tried using the superantispyware program on my PC and it installed a T.S.R. without prompting and I found it difficult to uninstall - needed a reboot before it disappeared from my program list. Can`t say I`m happy with ANY program that behaves like that. or one that tries to change your search provider and browser. -I`m not fully convinced its all gone now - Norton was just as difficult to uninstall, I needed the removal tool to get shot of it.
More:-Yup! - just done a search and I found several left overs.

 

Thanks for that, guess I`m getting my TSRs and Services mixed up, - just don`t like programs that hang about even when you`ve uninstalled them though, -I did a search for "superantispyware AFTER I had uninstalled it and there were lots of files left on the drive and registry. Also I`m wary of any installer that trys to get you to install stuff you don`t want - this time it was Google and Chrome. Some installers are getting ridiculous, even places like C-Net are doing it now and you need a magnifying glass to see the opt-out boxes . You also have to read the (very) small print to be sure you ARE opting out.
Theres nothing worse than starting your browser and finding some cr@ppy Russian search engine and toolbar has dug its roots into your system.

 

Thanks for the info all this has been resolved forgot to put that in there.