These are my top 10 antivirus programs (aka - anti-malware programs) that are generally not known to the average PC user. Before you buy anti-virus at your local store you may want to consider these free anti-malware applications (which are far better than anything you pay for).
I work on 3-4 infected PC’s a day, and these are the tools I live by.
- MalwareBytes Anti-Malware and Rogue Remover - super fast malware removal with awesome detection rates.
- SmitFraudFix - does a great job at removing rogue anti-virus applications (gets rid of all those fake system alerts saying you are infected).
- ComboFix (if you’re running windows xp AND you have just done a complete virus scan in safe mode).
- Avira Antivirus (also known as Free AV) - has an excellent detection rate and removal system. Best used in safe mode.
- ThreatFire - this is a behavioral anti-malware tool that is a great addition to a layered anti-malware approach. ThreatFire does not rely on updates to stop malware which is a huge bonus.
- SuperAntiSpyware - great anti-spyware that offers super detection and removal. Removal usually requires a reboot, but you can minimize this if you run your scan in safe mode.
- VundoFix - from attribune. Since most infections are Vundo based and are hard as hell to remove, VundoFix does a great job removing all Vundo infections, even the latest ones.
- Ultimate Boot CD 4 Win (UBCD4WIN) - Say goodbye to malware. UBCD4Win is a bootable cd loaded with antivirus and anti-malware applications. In a bootable environment malware (even rootkits) are toast…all of them. I use my UBCD4win on very heavily infected machines and removal is always 100%. You can read my article on how to build a bootable antivirus disc here.
- HiJackThis - think you may be infected? HiJackThis will enumerate runtime and startup entries and gives you (or another person) a detailed log from which to gauge how infected a PC is. HJT logs can and will be confusing to most people and HJT logs should only be analyzed by qualified anti-malware technicians. HJT can remove some infections, but I’ve found that it does a pretty poor job.
- Gmer Anti-Rootkit - these guys offer free anti-rootkit detection and removal. GMER is superp anti-rootkit technology for free. If you encounter an infected machine I would recommend a GMER scan just to make sure a rootkit isn’t hanging around.
A scan with Spyware Doctor with Antivirus will clean the infection from system files, then combofix will fix broken or locked down security settings.