Antivirus on Windows 10, is it really needed?

[PeopleKillGuns]

If your laptop can't handle multi-tasking then it's your choice of hardware that's at fault, not the OS'es fault. Let me remind you that Microsoft doesn't regulate the hardware that Windows gets pre-installed to. I have my main desktop PC and a cheap, 300 EURO Packard Bell laptop with 2GB of RAM and both of them work faster with Windows 10 than on any other OS.

Not really hardware's fault, I think it's the software I install on it, the laptop is meant to be a sort of tablet replacement as it's the Transformerbook T200, it's you know.. it has a tablet processor and 2 gb ram, it's not meant for multitasking, but I have installed so many programs on it that no wonder it's slow, if I kept the laptop clean of resource hogging programs it wouldn't chug like a fucking 19th century steam locomotive.

But hey, I made a choice, I'm sticking with it, it's good enough for porn and google drive, and if (and when) I install linux on it; I will have even more reasons to love it.

A nifty little device, brings headaches to me every few weeks, but not the worst thing I bought.

[Teddy]

You know... speaking on the original subject by the OP... you don't really need Windows Defender, I'd recommend switching that out with a more optimized AV.

You can always go without an AV if you don't connect to the Internet. If you are connected to the Internet, AV is required. Sure the easiest way to get a virus is by unsafe browsing habits... but it is also possible to get infected by malware on a site that has been infected despite being a normal site. A few weeks ago an advertisement network was infected by malware and thousands of PCs got infected as a result in only a few minutes. Additionally there is this thing called a worm, it attacks vulnerable devices without invoking by a user, meaning you simply need to be online and not even doing anything for it to spread.

[Huntsman]

You know... speaking on the original subject by the OP... you don't really need Windows Defender, I'd recommend switching that out with a more optimized AV.

You can always go without an AV if you don't connect to the Internet. If you are connected to the Internet, AV is required. Sure the easiest way to get a virus is by unsafe browsing habits... but it is also possible to get infected by malware on a site that has been infected despite being a normal site. A few weeks ago an advertisement network was infected by malware and thousands of PCs got infected as a result in only a few minutes. Additionally there is this thing called a worm, it attacks vulnerable devices without invoking by a user, meaning you simply need to be online and not even doing anything for it to spread.

I recommend MalwareBytes, the best AV I used in a while.

[PeopleKillGuns]

You know... speaking on the original subject by the OP... you don't really need Windows Defender, I'd recommend switching that out with a more optimized AV.

You can always go without an AV if you don't connect to the Internet. If you are connected to the Internet, AV is required. Sure the easiest way to get a virus is by unsafe browsing habits... but it is also possible to get infected by malware on a site that has been infected despite being a normal site. A few weeks ago an advertisement network was infected by malware and thousands of PCs got infected as a result in only a few minutes. Additionally there is this thing called a worm, it attacks vulnerable devices without invoking by a user, meaning you simply need to be online and not even doing anything for it to spread.

oh right.. the subject of the topic.. uhh..

I have personally had great experience using NOD32 as my antivirus, although you have to pay for it I did get a great discount as a student.

Around the internet there are tonnes of free antivirus programs, personally I've had bad experiences with most of them (especially AVG, a freaking week after installing it a report came out on reddit saying it's vulnerable)
You don't need a antivirus.. but you sort of do, it's just another form of protecting your PC, and rather safe than sorry, you might say "I don't have anything important to steal" until someone steals something important of yours. Always protect your data, just get a antivirus.

And if OP wants to check right now for viruses or worms, this is the combo I always use to clean my friends PCs;
https://toolslib.net/downloads/viewdownload/1-adwcleaner/
https://www.malwarebytes.org/

[Teddy]

You don't need a antivirus.. but you sort of do, it's just another form of protecting your PC, and rather safe than sorry, you might say "I don't have anything important to steal" until someone steals something important of yours. Always protect your data, just get a antivirus.

Yeah it kinda does depend on what you do. I have to have my devices secure because I use my credit cards online, and my banking details, plus I have client work, client details, and even client billing details stored so I kind of do need to legally take precautions to ensure the integrity of those.

If you use a system just for gaming and light reading or nothing "sensitive" then you can probably do without any potent AV that has a ton of different real-time monitoring tools.

[Mark]

@Teddy
Which Antivirus do you suggest?

[Teddy]

@Teddy
Which Antivirus do you suggest?

I have Avast Pro, had it for years and don't think I'll switch, the free version isn't bad either. I'd also recommend Kaspersky or NOD32.

[Huntsman]

Well, Windows defender has been quite a headache lately. It's been giving false positives a lot, such as detecting VC:MP as a virus :S