Is Avast beginning to annoy anyone else?

Shrimply

I've used Avast for ages, and I've recommended it.

Lately though the pop-ups seem to be getting more frequent and larger all the time.

Two things have frustrated me in the last couple of days beyond this though, and what it really comes down to is it just doing things, not asking whether it should or not.

The other day it suddenly decided to tell me that it had added a message to the end of my email to say it was virus free. Luckily this was just to a friend, if it had been in a more professional context I would not have been at all happy. It's never asked about settings for this, just decided to do it. I have now turned it off, but it should have asked, not just proceeded anyway.

The second is that it's blocking a file download, due to its domain report system. I'm not sure if the settings for this can be changed yet. I had to disable it to get the file through. But why not warn about the file and ask if you want to continue.

I am also finding it more and more of a challenge to easily navigate the UI, it seems to get less and less intuitive.

That concludes my morning rant.

grumpycrab

Settings -> tick Silent/Gaming Mode

RumRat

I used Avast for a long time, until it became too bossy......Moved to Bitdefender free, then paid Bitdefender, because it is so unobtrusive and does everything in the background.

Fightsback

The best free thing that you can do is set yourself up as a standard user rather than administrator as this blocks or mitigates a lot of malware.

However no amount of security can protect from PEBKAC.

chunter

I agree to a large extent with the OP, but it's free and it works..
and it's unarguably the best of those free options.
So I can't complain. For a change.

GabbaGabbaHey

chunter wrote: »

and it's unarguably the best of those free options.

If you are running Windows, then Windows Defender does everything (important) that Avast! can, and does it equally well (if not better).

bod1467

Fightsback wrote: »

However no amount of security can protect from PEBKAC.

Or PICNIC.

spud17

RumRat wrote: »

I used Avast for a long time, until it became too bossy......Moved to Bitdefender free, then paid Bitdefender, because it is so unobtrusive and does everything in the background.

Similar here, except for moving to paid for Bitdefender.
Even works on XP, .

Shrimply

grumpycrab wrote: »

Settings -> tick Silent/Gaming Mode

But that blocks all pop-ups, even ones about scans and threats. And is not really the point I'm making. I don't have a problem with occasional pop-ups. I appreciate that it's a free service, and one that is giving good protection. I object to the increased size of them, which I just feel is getting a bit much.

I posted mainly for the moan, but its just disappointing to think that I will have to consider switching, after so long, if it continues to make itself more and more of a pest.

bsod

Impossible to win, if you don't like popups, and then don't like them switched off. The popups, the sounds, are all configurable.

If it sits there quietly doing it's job in the background, why do you have to interact with it at all. You're moaning that it stopped you downloading something from a suspect website, to me, that's a useful feature, its a hey, do you really want to venture here.

The scanned by avast thing is hardly a big deal, many products, especially in the corporate world, do similar things

Switch to what, something inferior, something costly, something with poor privacy, or something with different annoyances.

marleyboy

I done away with Avast once it started becoming more of an irritating pop up than the pop ups it was supposed to be dealing with.

Currently have no virus scanning software installed, but as I dont download or visit unknown or new sites my computer has so far remained virus free.

To be sure I give a Monthly scan using malwarebytes and superantispyware but nothing comes up.

Have now got a new iMac, so once my win7 becomes redundant via win10, will use the laptop for nothing more than MSE or FB and maybe yahoo mail.