Waiting for Plunet Protect

[#1]

Question to PlusNet
Yesterday I upgraded my membership from Plusnet Value to Unlimited. This does not start until my next bill on 8 May 2014.
Part of the reason for upgrading was the inclusion of Plusnet Protect by McAfee. I have 6 months of McAfee from Dell left on my computer but unfortunately the Norton 360 protection runs out on my wife's machine on 29 April 2014.
I do not like the idea of her using the internet for a week without antivirus protection so is it possible for Plusnet to allow a long term member like myself me to download the Plusnet Protect a week earlier than the start of the upgrade? Alternatively, I would be prepared to lose what is left of this months membership, bring the bill payment forward to now, and start the upgrade immediately.
Reply from PlusNet
Sadly we are unable to bring forward the date that your product change is due to take place so it is a case of waiting until this happens before the protect software will be ready for you to download.
In the interim period there are several free anit virus packages you can use to cover yourself, the most common of which is AVG.
I am sorry we have been unable to help in this matter.
Comment to Plusnet
I am very disappointed with this reply. I always thought Plusnet was the greatest but now I feel let down. I did not seem to be asking for much. Why would you suggest AVG free? If that was going to give adequate protection why is Plusnet charging £2/month for McAfee (On the Essentials and Value packages)?
People often write online about problems when uninstalling one antivirus package and installing another. I would have to uninstall Norton 360, install AVG, then after one week uninstall AVG and install Plusnet Protect with McAfee.
I never imagined Plusnet would be this rigid.

[#2]

Hi PWilliams,
I have escalated Ticket: 84715803 back to you detailing the answer to your query. I hope this has resolved your issue and I'm sorry for any inconvenience caused.

[#3]

Try installing Comodo Internet Security; it free and is a full internet security suite, not just anti-virus. Also no limit to the number of devices it can be installed on.  You will get a few adverts, but generally no more than 1 or 2 a week.
http://www.comodo.com/home/internet-security/free-internet-security.php?track=2737&key5sk1=514e7a97e...
I have used this for a while & am quite happy with it.

[#4]

Thanks Oldbadeagle. I have repeated a post here that I have just posted under Windows Software. Please do not take it as a criticism of your advice.
I spent a good few hours researching which antivirus software to get next and I wonder how so many people on forums state that one is rubbish and another is great. How do they know? The only independent results I have seen are provided by AV-Test. They do not rate McAfee very highly. I was convinced by AV-Test results that I would go for Bitdefender. However, when searching for the cheapest price I read a few very bad reviews on Amazon from people who had big problems when trying to install it and lost control of their computers. They were then stuck because they could not get any replies from phone support. Any chance of totally losing control of the machine has put me right off. Good phone support is essential as proved by the excellent help I have received from PlusNet and Dell. Now I seem to be stuck with changing to PlusNet Protect provided McAfee but unlike Bitdefender it does not detect 100% of zero day malware. Is any antivirus software that does not stop 100% of attacks worth having? The odd 1% can cause a lot of damage. I am still confused in deciding what to do.

[#5]

Reply to forum post from Linn Karstrom - CSC Analyst. 5:16pm, Friday 25 Apr 2014
Dear Mr Williams,
Thank you for contacting us on the Forums. I have changed your account to Unlimited from today as a goodwill gesture to ensure that you can download the McAfee Add On for free when your wife's protection expires.
Please note that this means that your account has changed as of today instead of your next billing date.
I hope this resolves your query and I'm sorry for any inconvenience caused.
Problem solved. Now I love Plusnet again. The only thing left to worry about now is, will the odd 1 or 2% that McAfee does not detect get me.

[#6]

There's always some chance of being infected by a new virus, trojan, etc before any of the major AVs get a chance to be updated.
You can minimise this risk by being careful not to click on any links in emails especially from unknown/untrusted sources as well as not opening any attachments unless you are sure of their legitimacy.
I haven't used a paid-for AV for over 12 years preferring to stick with Microsoft Security Essentials, Malwarebytes, SpyBot S&D and CCleaner. In all that time I have never had an infection. Good housekeeping or just lucky - I think the former

[#7]

I can totally agree with the above.
MSE and Malwarebytes is all i've ever needed.
The biggest fault with any AV is the point past the keyboard.
With a little bit of care, you should never be put in the position where you NEED an AV, never mind get infected.
Remember, Having protection from an AV does not mean you can just be wild with your internet adventures. Just because you have an airbag installed in your car does not mean you can do twice the limit.
The only addition i would give to the above is an Adblock. Of the many PC's i've had to clean, its the adverts that seem to get people. Most are aware of the email ones now, yet still click unvetted adverts on many social media sites, and then think "Oh look! A security program i never installed has detected a virus! lets do a scan with it... Wait, i need to download the new updated scanner they have? Great, lets do that too! Oh, its found 9,540,882 issues and i need to pay to remove them? fancy that!"
Sitting back for a second and thinking "Wait, how legit IS this popup?" will save you one hell of a lot of heartache.
One last piece of advice:
Disable the "hide known filetypes" option.
Its the WORST thing microsoft ever brought out.
Both .exe and .jpg are known filetypes, so how do you know that "picture" you just downloaded is a .jpg or a .exe?
Food for thought...

[#8]

Quote from: DoughPea

One last piece of advice: Disable the "hide known filetypes" option. Its the WORST thing microsoft ever brought out. Both .exe and .jpg are known filetypes, so how do you know that "picture" you just downloaded is a .jpg or a .exe?

I agree 100% with that

[#9]

On of the first things I do after installing Windows.

[#10]

i will second what MAV says , no need to pay for AV when you can get it for free MSE / malwarebytes/Ccleaner  is all anyone needs .
and of course a little bit of common sense in what you do while surfing