Anti-virus Software is a scam!

After five years of smooth running, my laptop crashed unceremoniously one fine morning, no warning what soever. The hard disk had developed a number of bad sectors. After many hours of browsing and tinkering, I was able to recover my data. However, to avoid the problem from recurring, at least for the time being, I had to reformate my laptopand reinstall the operating system.

As my Anti-Virus Software (AVSW) had expired a couple of years ago, I was exploring the options available. Thats when a friend of mine explained how he is protecting his laptop without the support of an AVSW. He is so resolute that he is ready to take the challenge in any open forum that his laptop cannot be infected. His argument is that the AVSW does more harm to the computer than to protect it. He is totally pissed off that the AVSW hogs the processing unit and probably reduces the hard-disk's life with frequent disk reads. His point is, the pros are not worth its cons. He has enabled a plethora of operating system provided features to protect his laptop.

It was not only his strong argument against AVSW but also the cost, the number of options available, the irritating need to renew it every year, that have made me go ahead with only the operating system provided security features for my laptop.

Well, it is not that simple. Now I use only limited-access user login. Whenever I need to perform an admin activity, I not only need to login as an administrator but also undo a number of protections before I can do any worthwhile administrative tasks. It is a pain, of course.

Now, how do I feel about it? I dont know. Its a bag of mixed feelings. On the one hand I feel exposed! Im not sure if I have turned on all the possible protection mechanisms that the operating system provides (AVSW is a score winner here! Whether it really protects our system or not, it gives us a warm feeling that everything has been taken care!). On the other hand, Im happy that I dont have to choose between the anti-virus softwares available in the market. I dont have to shell out every year. We have heard a number of times how an operating system's vulnerability was exposed or a browser's weakness was used by the hackers to do something nasty. However, how many times have we heard of an anti-virus software failing to detect a virus or its variant? Are they (all of them) really that good? Too good to be true, isn't it? Given that, how one makes a decision on which AVSW is best forone's needs.

Anyway, this blog isn't about whether I have protected my laptop fully or not. It is, certainly, not about how you can protect yours. The question is whether AVSW is a scam?

Let us look at the anti-virus software's biological counterpart. The similarity is not only in their behavior, but also in how they are challenged. Once the system is infected, just like our modern medicine, the AVSW addresses and cures the symptoms, leaving the cause of the problem dormant, waiting patiently for the next opportune moment to rear its ugly head. I do not understand! In stead of creating the operating system robust in the first place, we were given a buggy system, leading to a multi-million industry that develops anti-virus software. We, the users, are fleeced in the end.