Is Windows Defender enough? 02/11/2014
Microsoft claims that Defender with Windows 8 is all you need. Check this article out. In the article they say that Defender will protect you from Virus, Malware and Spyware. It is true the software is a all in one like most AV software. However, one of the issues I currently am having is that it seems to no longer show an icon in the tool bar indicating that it is running, also scheduling scans is not very intuitive.
As you can see here 
there is no indicator that it is running.
As seen in this next image it is actually turned on.
To me this is a big issue as I usually tell my support clients that if the icon is gone most of the time so is there AV or security software.
As stated the other issue is there is no schedule feature built in to the Defender interface. It appears that you have to be a little more tech savvy and understand how task scheduler works and command line parameter for Defender. See Microsoft Community article “Windows 8 Windows Defender Scheduling Options and More “. In the article they explain how do create a batch file you can use to manually drop files or folders for scanning, or even add it to the context menu of windows.
In the Windows 8 Forum the article ” How to Set Up Windows Defender to Scan on a Schedule in Windows 8 and 8.1” shows step by step how to create a scheduled item and lists the parameter options that you can use.
My only question is what was Microsoft Thinking? Trust software that you don’t know is running and then make it almost impossible for the average user to know what it is doing this just seems silly to me and my support team.
It’s is to see why people are constantly turning to the internet to search for virus removers and finding all sorts of crap out there because they are becoming to trusting that the software will just protect them.
A few more comments about Antivirus software in general, none of them seem to work all the time, but that does not mean not to try to protect yourself. Virus, Malware and Spyware are constantly changing and so the developers of the protection software are almost always on the wrong side of that curve. But no protection is insane too. So do the best and use what you are comfortable with.
E2 Computers is a proud supporter / reseller of GFI and ThreatTrack products so our choice for most clients is Vipre. They have products in all sizes and can suite most users and corporate needs.
E2 Computers is also provides a basic managed Antivirus product which is or entry level into the support features of Managed Desktop Support. At the very basic level we will add some basic monitoring and reporting features to you computer as well as Vipre virus protection. We are alerted to some basic reports on a daily basis about your computer including hardware issues and virus related incidences. We will ensure that quarantined items are removed on a periodic basis and if we see repeat issues we will notify by email that you may have issues that need to be looked at. For information about pricing or more advanced Managed Solutions contact the store at 727-943-2406.
This is a technical update from the staff at www.end2endsupport.com, I hope that you found it useful comments are welcome.
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