Tons of threads like these all over the forum and the answers generally remain the same. Just update the definitions to 2015 and you're good to go:
Maybe run a malware cleaner such as Malwarebytes once in a while.
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On Windows AVG is great otherwise use Linux with pass through.
For people that say don't run anything at all, when your favorite web page gets jacked and then your computer gets a worm or malware and you don't know it, you will wish you have something so you don't have the inconvenience of fixing it. Windows 8.1 is so well optimized that running a few security programs has little to no effect on gaming like in Windows XP where you wanted less than 20 background processes running (that is when I ran NOD32 because it had 1 running process). Now I run Zonealarm, the free bitdefender 90 day full software suite. I even say keep malwarebytes running for even more protection. Why not run it if it doesn't effect performance or something you are doing. Find the best free options because the paid options are just as good as free ones.
That's what NoScript and Adblock is for. An antivirus sure as hell isn't going to catch the zero-day vulnerabilities that you're suggesting. AVs are typically only good for known malware...and even then they suck at removing the infections and keeping them out.
I've been running my PC without an AV for two years. I've been virus free ever since. In my opinion, these programs are unnecessary. No need for these extra processes. I do keep malware cleaners (MBAM, ComboFix, SUPERAntiSpyware, Spybot, etc.) on hand just in case.
I'm not going to get into a pissing contest but I said nothing about a zero day vulnerability. Anything can get hacked and anything can throw a worm or malware onto any site or even portable hard drives or thumb sticks from work. Once again, run some the benchmarks with 3 or even 4 security programs then run them on a fresh install of windows with nothing on it except drivers and I bet the difference is extremely small. All I am saying is, if you feel the need to ask what is the best, you are probably doing something that may require or it is in your best interest to run security programs. I
Point taken. Didn't mean to offend. I personally do not use them nor do I recommend them. But if you want to use an antivirus, then more power to ya. :)
The last AV I used was Avast. I can at least say it did its job better than AVG and MSE. I had a couple of bad experiences with these two AVs in the past, and I refuse to use them.
You can always look here for the top rated, just make sure you sort it by ether protection performance or usability the default is by the name.
I do not recommend anyone use MSE it is the worst piece of shit out there.
Bit defender is highly ranked and they have a free version as stated before they use the same engine just paid one has more features
Panda cloud antivirus free is another good one as the link will also show.
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