Here are reasons why you don't know what you're talking about...If java has a security hole and Sun or the user fail to update, anti-virus shouldn't protect them from that.
If Java has
a security hole? How about many security holes? Have you not heard? It's Oracle that owns the Java product line, not Sun [Microsystems] anymore.
If antivirus shouldn't protect my computer from vulnerabilities, then what will? If a real life virus got in my body, it was because of a vulnerability, so I take a vaccine (antivirus) to protect me from the vulnerability next time to avoid the virus. Get the analogy? That's why vulnerability management and prevention is so important, because it would prevent the virus from even having a chance at getting installed. Further, vulnerability prevention in antivirus software is just as important as blocking viruses themselves.
Many people get viruses not because their anti-virus couldn't protect them, but because they continually ignored warnings to upgrade their software including the anti-virus software itself!
Many people get viruses through vulnerabilities. If people would read the news, and not skip over the security section, they could learn how to protect themselves. They may fail to upgrade the antivirus software, but there are measures being taken by both antivirus companies AND operating system companies (such as Microsoft, Apple, Ubuntu, etc.) to manage the vulnerabilities associated with that (by forming a strategic alliance with security companies), in hopes to help update/upgrade those products.
I'm not saying viruses and security holes aren't a threat here, they certainly are and user education can prevent a whole lot more than a $10 a month subscription to a service that by design can only prevents threats that are known about and already out in the wild.
This makes no sense. Re-read the sentence, and tell me if you would understand this. Why would somebody want to prevent a $10 a month service?
By design, antivirus was originally supposed to prevent viruses from doing anymore damage, by scanning the system and looking for bad code. Then, it was the ability to prevent the install of viruses by scanning the threats in real-time (which was only allowed Windows XP and up).
Now, heuristics and other algorithms spot more viruses/malware because they rely on behavior of the file, which they run in a self-contained sandbox, called virtualization. If malware is found by the analyzer built in to most antivirus programs these days, the program is marked as malware if it relates to other threats, or labeled new malware if it is suspicious.
We've come a long way, in which now vulnerability prevention is in play, which is strengthening heuristics and algorithms. I would hate to give my product away for free, if I knew I spent 800-1000 man hours writing code, and double that in researching malware.
Again, agree to disagree none of the links you provided showed that paid anti-virus programs actually block significantly more threats than free ones.
I don't agree to disagree to people that think they know what they're talking about, and don't listen to experts. I agree to disagree to people that made a solid, rational opinion. All you have done was contradict myself, because you are part of a community of people that think all software should be free. You lack the ability to believe in solid, awesome software, such as Adobe Creative Suite, Kaspersky PURE or Antivirus or Internet Security, etc.
As I explained above, it's not about blocking [known] threats, it's about discovering unknown threats and vulnerabilities and being ahead of the game. Free antivirus does a job that paid antivirus cannot do, provide a temporary means, so that people don't have to go without antivirus software. However, the astute person can save themselves from computer heartache, by getting a paid antivirus software.
Many people, some who claim to have not had problems with viruses, are big supporters of free antivirus. Meanwhile, they are promoting free antivirus like the black plague, putting users at risk for zero-day vulnerabilities.
Anyway, I've had enough trying to explain this, but at least the data is here so people can learn from a security teacher.
