Please be careful when you download anti-virus

[sunsilk]

I had experienced this before when I was still naive, I was able to download a free antivirus, and that was like Avast, IIRC.

And then, all of a sudden, the computer became slower, and then a lot of pop-up ads came already. I think that I have downloaded a fake version.

If there are folks that are still using outdated windows operating system, they're more prone to these fake anti-virus which might contain malware.

[Bushdark]

Do people still use antivirus? This is new to me because I have noticed that people do not care a out antivirus again since antivirus am easily because a virus. I take my privacy very serious and that is one of the reasons why I have decided to stay away from using antivirus because they are majorly the problem most of us might be facing when using different gadgets.
We can always stay without using an antivirus if we can maintain our privacy.

[Lucius]

~snip~

You are making a connection between your online privacy and the use of AV, which has absolutely nothing to do with each other - because AV should protect you from viruses/malware/spyware and not protect your privacy. If you want to somewhat protect your privacy online, then use a VPN or even better Tor, and don't reveal your personal information unnecessarily.

I don't know what to say about your claim that AV can easily become a virus, but I guess you have your reasons for thinking so...

[Stalker22]

So now it begs the question that if we are in crypto space, we should really be alert on everything we click and downloaded, even anti-virus software because we could be trick by going into this kind of websites and we thought that we are safe.

Sometimes, when you browse blogs and websites, you may be directly redirected to phishing sites that appear as pop-ups in advertisements. You might also find that fake antivirus programs, Cleaner software, or programs containing Trojans have been automatically downloaded. Indeed, people can make a significant mistake by opening and installing these malicious programs on their main computer used for cryptocurrency investments after feeling reassured by reading that the downloaded program is legitimate software from companies like Avast or Bitdefender, etc.

It is worth noting that scammers pour poison into honey. They create their malicious programs to impersonate the names of protection/security and maintenance programs and the like so as not to raise any suspicion in the minds of their victims and then easily steal their computers. Anyone must add browser extensions to detect phishing sites and block advertisements, avoid using their main computer online, and purchase dedicated hardware for their long-term investments.

Yes. Phishing scams are scary, especially when they masquerade as something you trust.  I remember a time I almost clicked on a pop-up that looked exactly like my antivirus software update notification.  Luckily, something felt off, and I double-checked directly on the antivirus company's website.

Since then, Ive gotten super cautious about anything I download, especially when browsing crypto-related content.  Maybe its a bit paranoid, but I wouldd rather be safe than sorry. Definitely considering a dedicated hardware for all my crypto-related stuff too.  Security is no joke in this crypto world!

[serjent05]

~snip~

You are making a connection between your online privacy and the use of AV, which has absolutely nothing to do with each other - because AV should protect you from viruses/malware/spyware and not protect your privacy. If you want to somewhat protect your privacy online, then use a VPN or even better Tor, and don't reveal your personal information unnecessarily.

I believe they become related when the downloaded infected AV starts digging for the  important files on the infected computer.  I agree that AV should protect our unit from viruses or any unwanted files but if it comes from the unofficial sites then the worst thing can happen.

I don't know what to say about your claim that AV can easily become a virus, but I guess you have your reasons for thinking so...

AV can be easily an hacker application if they are downloaded from unofficial sites.  As far as I know, @OP give links of those AV injected by malware comes from the unofficial one tricking naive people who wanted free Antivirus.  So people must learn to verify whether an application comes from the official sites since any hacker can just modify any AV and upload it elsewhere.

Do people still use antivirus? This is new to me because I have noticed that people do not care a out antivirus again since antivirus am easily because a virus. I take my privacy very serious and that is one of the reasons why I have decided to stay away from using antivirus because they are majorly the problem most of us might be facing when using different gadgets.
We can always stay without using an antivirus if we can maintain our privacy.

Many people still use antivirus and internet security especially when there is a huge risk when browsing the internet.  Internet security can halt the access to a suspicious site when an AV can block the download or installation of any file that is infected by malware.  It serves as extra layer of security and it does not hurt if we deployed one.

[DarkState]

Oh my god. Why didn't I see this post earlier? I have Avast anti-virus already installed on my PC. As soon as I read the post I uninstalled it. What should I do now? Format everything and install the operating system again. Is there any way to get rid of them? Should I rely on any antivirus? I plan to use Kaspersky Anti-Virus. Can you tell me how it is? I saw many people using it. So I also want to use it or is there any other way to stay safe apart from using anti-virus?

[tabas]

Do people still use antivirus? This is new to me because I have noticed that people do not care a out antivirus again since antivirus am easily because a virus

Yes, people still use them. Individuals or corporations, they are using it. Windows has its own integrated antivirus and it's called Microsoft Defender but even with that, many don't like it and still purchase antiviruses that appears on their feed and ads.

I take my privacy very serious and that is one of the reasons why I have decided to stay away from using antivirus because they are majorly the problem most of us might be facing when using different gadgets.
We can always stay without using an antivirus if we can maintain our privacy.

Honestly, those that don't use antivirus doesn't have to use it because your computer probably is a Windows operating system and it has one on it already. But, the antivirus as they say is always yourself. You are not going to download anything odd and won't launch it on your computer and with your browsing activity, you're very careful so that you won't contain these spywares, malwares and other types of it and viruses.

[Maestro75]

It couldn't been said anything better, thanks to OP. In the pursuit to get cracked softwares or pro softwares for free, people often install malwares into their computers without even knowing. It's not just antivirus softwares but all other softwares that don't come free and cheap so people often look for alternatives in pirated software. In the coming days, I'll have a thread go out on Google Chrome extensions being another attack vector that is seemingly missed by a lot of people. Security needs to be at best level if we want to secure assets we currently have in pursuits for more.

This is most common among underdeveloped countries especially in Africa where computer users think that cheap pirated software does the same function as the genuine ones. That is a big lie. Software engineers know how to scam people by making low quality products or malware infested ones. I do not use anti virus because I do not trust using them and am very careful of sites I visit. Most people who worry about malware are those who visit "dirty" sites like porn sites and dating sites.

[Kristiyana]

Do people still use antivirus? This is new to me because I have noticed that people do not care a out antivirus again since antivirus am easily because a virus. I take my privacy very serious and that is one of the reasons why I have decided to stay away from using antivirus because they are majorly the problem most of us might be facing when using different gadgets.
We can always stay without using an antivirus if we can maintain our privacy.

Of course afterall there are some people out there who are not making use of anti virus but yet they're still maintaining their privacy, sometimes the reason why people get scammed is due to downloading different types of applications in their phone. I can't even remember when last I make use of this anti virus in my phone but  yet all my documents both my assets are intact, for me this anti virus is of no help to me but I don't know about those people who are making use of laptop.

[moneystery]

and therefore always make sure that the url you visit is correct and does not indicate anything suspicious, because nowadays many users are too careless to check whether the url they visit is correct or not.  because i've been using antivirus since i first got to know computers, and so far it hasn't caused me any harm, in fact the antivirus helps me to filter sites that are indicated as scammers or contain malware.  so users need to pay attention to the applications they download and install on their devices and ensure that the applications are not malware.

[robelneo]

Do people still use antivirus?

Why do you think people stop using it?

This is new to me because I have noticed that people do not care a out antivirus again since antivirus am easily because a virus.

Can you back this up with a good explanation based on facts.

I take my privacy very serious and that is one of the reasons why I have decided to stay away from using antivirus because they are majorly the problem most of us might be facing when using different gadgets.
We can always stay without using an antivirus if we can maintain our privacy.

So if you're using an anti-virus you are compromising your privacy sounds new to me please head to any reputable anti-virus site to get all the facts about anti-virus.

[Churchillvv]

and therefore always make sure that the url you visit is correct and does not indicate anything suspicious, because nowadays many users are too careless to check whether the url they visit is correct or not.  >edit<

One thing I do consider is remark before downloading an AV, because you will see from what people think or feel about an app from their remarks. it's a good area to look at when downloading AV, then we you see too much red flags or complains about an app then you should know it has a problem somewhere.

Most of this antivirus are good but sometimes I feel like this ame people who create this antivirus are also the same people who program the virus or bugs that spies on users, just using the antivirus as an opportunity to enter the space. this days no where is safe so whatever we do let's just do it with care.

[Essential10]

Although I didn't download anti-virus on my computer. A day when I was running a browser, anti-virus was downloaded and I accidentally added the software to my computer. When I did this I participated in this forum's bitcoin core challenge and then I ran into a problem when I saw that my computer became very slow, I was able to do 50% more work in bitcoin core challenge in 7 days. but later due to the antivirus software downloaded on the computer  It took me another 25-26 days longer to do the next 50%, though I was catching up much later. Later I reset my computer and now it is working very well, however we have to be careful about these things.