Can Norton slow my pc down? I've had it now for almost 2 yrs now...........?

Question

and it hasnt given me any problems, the only thing is my internet is slow and some of my applications, I have ccleaner but it doesnt really make a difference........If so what other antivirus is good but free? Cheers in advance.

Answer 1

You need to install one firewall.The Windows firewall doesn't stop malware on your pc from dialling out.
http://www.comodogroup.com/ - Comodo firewall.

You need to install one anti virus;
http://free.grisoft.com/freeweb.php/doc/2/ -AVG anti virus or
http://www.avast.com - Avast Antivirus

http://www.bitdefender.co.uk/site/Main/view/Download-Free-Products.html - Bitdefender 8 doesn't run in the background and can be used as a second back up anti virus.

You need all these anti spyware programs;
http://www.ewido.net - Ewido anti trojan.
free.grisoft.com/doc/20/lng/us/tpl/v5 - AVG anti spyware
http://free.grisoft.com/freeweb.php/doc/20/lng/us/tpl/v5
http://www.safer-networking.org - Spybot Search and Destroy anti spyware. Use the Teatimer settings to protect Internet Explorer, and the Immuniser to stop malware getting on your pc.
Spywareblaster works with Internet Explorer and Firefox. It won't uninstall spyware that is already on your pc, but it will prevent hijacks and other malicious changes to your browser.
http://www.javacoolsoftware.com
Plus;
http://www.lavasoft.com - Ad-Aware SE Personal anti adware

And these are useful utilities;
http://www.mozilla.com/ - Firefox web browser.
https://addons.mozilla.org/search.php?q=ad+block&type=A&app=firefox - Adblock Plus
http://www.ccleaner.com - Cr*pcleaner Registry cleaner and privacy tool
Winpatrol is a handy utility that will manage your startup programs and cookies.
http://www.winpatrol.com
http://www.siteadvisor.com -MacAffee Site Advisor warns about malware on sites you are about to visit.

http://spywarewarrior.com/rogue_anti-spyware.htm - The Spyware Warrior site identifies fake anti spyware programs.

Remember, spyware will slow your pc as it uses your internet connection to dial out!

Answer 2

All anti-virus software requires resources so it will have an impact on your PC. Norton is loaded into memory at boot time and performs a quick scan at startup. It spends most of its time monitoring - on the look out for suspicious or known files that may harm your computer. It also updates itself from time to time acquiring new definitions.

It is not particularly resource hungry unless you are doing a full system scan.

If your system is slow then you may have to look to some other culprit. Check your processes using Task Manager to identify what is consuming your resources.

Press Ctrl + Alt + Delete to bring up Task Manager and look down the CPU column and see if some process has a value greater than zero.

Answer 3

Yes.

Norton is notorious for slowing PC's to a crawl. It is a memory hog, but I bet the main reason your machine is slow is it is clogged with malware. A 2 year old version of Norton stopped protecting your PC when it expired.

AVG and AVAST! are both free and very good. BTW, cCleaner is NOT an Anti-virus, but is a great Windows cleaning program.

Answer 4

I don't think you can hold Norton responsible for the speed of your internet.
However,i have noticed as many will agree that Norton,can be rather resourceful,especially if you are talking Systemworks.
There are many alternatives to Norton antivirus but, i have yet to find one as complete.
Sometimes i guess if you want the job done properly,you have to pay!
If you are using systemworks,try changing over to Norton internet suite 2007. It's miles better and much less taxing on the Pc.

Answer 5

Yes most definately - i've had resource sucking Norton problems for 2-3 versions now & have just got rid of all Norton products for the same reason (especially as i've upgraded to Vista). Now that there are more capable Internet Security products out there, i'd definately recommend changing (speaking from experience).

Kaspersky Internet Security works extremely well.

Answer 6

2 answers.

1. Yes, IF you have TONS of stuff in Quareteen. If it is old- dump it. If you needed it to be used, you'd know it by now.

2. Are you dumping temp files. If not do so.

also- you need more than 1 single antivirus product. My self, I have adaware, Spybot, Xsoft(SE). Yo pay not much, and it is well worth the price. Yousee, 1 single antivirus noes not "pick up" all viruses and all. You REALLY need more than one. I'd guess that is your problem(s). I also have Reg cure- I will tell you once that was used, lately, my speed went up dramatically. You can down load all these and pay via credit card on line. Secure sites, and lots of good customer trchnical support. I swear, your problems will change in an instant if these products are downloaded and used. Good luck.

Answer 7

Yes there's plenty of free anti-virus software that's just as good as Norton. Go to http://www.filehippo.com and have a look there. AVG from Grisoft is very good, free and updatable.

Answer 8

Norton is horrendous - it really does slow your system down

AVG from www.grisoft.com

It's free and works just as well if not better than most and it doesn't hog system resources like McAfee or Norton

Answer 9

AVG is a good free one.

I'd also recomend McAfee. It's not free, but it is very good, and its alot less taxing on your computer than Norton is.

Answer 10

Yes definitely i had it + took it off. Go to a site www.filehippo.com , you will get all the free anti-virus,anti-spyware etc you need to protect your PC.Just make sure and turn Windows Firewall back on.