What is the best anti-virus program for Linux Mint?

[botnoob]

What anti-virus program should i install on Linux Mint? I heard that the best option is ClamAV. Is this true, or are there better programs? Is ClamAV trustworthy and credible and safe, does it receive definition updates every day?

[Moem]

Clam AV is suitable for protecting mail servers. Are you planning on running a mail server?

In my personal view: you should not install any anti-virus at all.
Please see this sticky topic.

[antikythera]

In my personal view: you should not install any anti-virus at all.

I second that. If you multiboot with windows 10/11, just make sure you have at least defender realtime protection running if no other third-party application for that OS.

Keep the packages up to date for both OS and you shouldn't have an issue with being compromised. However for both operating systems, the first defence is using common sense about what sites you visit, what you download and what you open from emails (especially if you are not expecting it and even if it's from a friend or relative)

[Cosmo.]

I heard that the best option is ClamAV. Is this true, or are there better programs?

Yes: No AV!. You do not need to hunt for viruses, which attack Windows-files; those attackers are toothless on a non-Windows-system. And Clam-AV and Company look for Windows-viruses. This is as useful as if you would look for Windows-updates: Not even applicable.

[botnoob]

I heard that the best option is ClamAV. Is this true, or are there better programs?

Yes: No AV!. You do not need to hunt for viruses, which attack Windows-files; those attackers are toothless on a non-Windows-system. And Clam-AV and Company look for Windows-viruses. This is as useful as if you would look for Windows-updates: Not even applicable.

Then how can i know if my Linux has viruses or not? What program should i use to clean viruses and get notifications when a virus is detected?

[antikythera]

Did you not read this sticky Moem linked to? viewtopic.php?f=90&t=358408

[Pjotr]

You might find this article interesting, that I've written about security in Linux Mint:
https://easylinuxtipsproject.blogspot.c ... urity.html

[Moem]

how can i know if my Linux has viruses or not?

If you simply assume that it doesn't, then you'll be right in 99,99% of the cases. I have been in this forum for a while; no one, exactly zero, valid cases of infection with a Linux virus have ever been reported here in that time.
There are almost no Linux viruses out in the wild. And the few that do exist, need local access (someone with their hands on your computer) to be installed.

Please do read the sticky. I didn't post the link to keep myself busy. And Karlchen didn't write it for that reason, either.

[Cosmo.]

If you use a Windows system, than actually the question would not be, will I get attacked by a virus, but when will this happen and how. Those Windows users, who do not care about this topic are irresponsible.

But this is Linux. If you add all experienced users in this forum, than they have spent in front of their computer more than ten times the time, which you are able to spend in front of yours in a year, perhaps it is more than hundred time as much. If you take the experienced users of all the other Linux distributions, than this will likely be a thousand times as much. If they would have got successfully attacked by a virus, this would produce very great noise in the community. This has not happened in years.

I understand, that a (previous) Windows user is nervous about this. I also understand, that a Windows user cannot even imagine, that there is an IT, where you are not under continuous fire by those malicious attackers. But this is the case and that is (one) reason, why Linux is superior. The real weakness of Linux is, that there is not a big company behind, which spends millions of bucks into marketing. (Perhaps this weakness is a strength, here is not the place to discuss this.)

Compare it with the catastrophe of Boeing 373 MAX with so many dead. If you have have owned at the time, when this came up, a ticket for a flight with this type it would be normal, if you would get more than anxious. But the other airplane types did not have the problem, so there was no reason to keep them on ground.

Back to viruses. AV-programs have the problem, that they do partly collect data from you - without your knowledge and of course without your consent. As they are (in Windows) so deep integrated into the system they can do this rather easily. Taken from behavior those AV-programs are viruses themselves. They do not clean themselves and they do not notify the user about the data theft.

There have also been repeatedly cases, where a bug in an AV-program resulted into the impossibility to run the Windows system at all or to do specific tasks.

Then how can i know if my Linux has viruses or not? What program should i use to clean viruses and get notifications when a virus is detected?

The separation of user rights (privileged - non-privileged) works in Linux far better and is more consequent than in Windows. In Windows it is rather easy for an knowledgeable programmer to find the leaks, where their beasts have to find their way. No leak - no way. It is so simple. You know it, if you have spent some time with Linux. Of course it is important to not circumvent the privilege separation, a thumb idea, which some users are hunting for. (I name it a kind of masochism.) If you use Linux right, than you know, that there is no hole.

If there are no viruses, than there is obviously nothing to clean and nothing to notify. Again: Try to separate from bad Windows experiences.

[botnoob]

If you use a Windows system, than actually the question would not be, will I get attacked by a virus, but when will this happen and how. Those Windows users, who do not care about this topic are irresponsible.

But this is Linux. If you add all experienced users in this forum, than they have spent in front of their computer more than ten times the time, which you are able to spend in front of yours in a year, perhaps it is more than hundred time as much. If you take the experienced users of all the other Linux distributions, than this will likely be a thousand times as much. If they would have got successfully attacked by a virus, this would produce very great noise in the community. This has not happened in years.

I understand, that a (previous) Windows user is nervous about this. I also understand, that a Windows user cannot even imagine, that there is an IT, where you are not under continuous fire by those malicious attackers. But this is the case and that is (one) reason, why Linux is superior. The real weakness of Linux is, that there is not a big company behind, which spends millions of bucks into marketing. (Perhaps this weakness is a strength, here is not the place to discuss this.)

Compare it with the catastrophe of Boeing 373 MAX with so many dead. If you have have owned at the time, when this came up, a ticket for a flight with this type it would be normal, if you would get more than anxious. But the other airplane types did not have the problem, so there was no reason to keep them on ground.

Back to viruses. AV-programs have the problem, that they do partly collect data from you - without your knowledge and of course without your consent. As they are (in Windows) so deep integrated into the system they can do this rather easily. Taken from behavior those AV-programs are viruses themselves. They do not clean themselves and they do not notify the user about the data theft.

There have also been repeatedly cases, where a bug in an AV-program resulted into the impossibility to run the Windows system at all or to do specific tasks.

Then how can i know if my Linux has viruses or not? What program should i use to clean viruses and get notifications when a virus is detected?

The separation of user rights (privileged - non-privileged) works in Linux far better and is more consequent than in Windows. In Windows it is rather easy for an knowledgeable programmer to find the leaks, where their beasts have to find their way. No leak - no way. It is so simple. You know it, if you have spent some time with Linux. Of course it is important to not circumvent the privilege separation, a thumb idea, which some users are hunting for. (I name it a kind of masochism.) If you use Linux right, than you know, that there is no hole.

If there are no viruses, than there is obviously nothing to clean and nothing to notify. Again: Try to separate from bad Windows experiences.

Thanks for the long explanation.

Yes, it's hard for me to get used to an OS that doesn't need anti-virus software. After all, i was a Windows user for many years - during that whole time, i was constantly receiving security updates + "Threat detected!" notifications every day. Basically, "Your system is infected" is what i grew up with over the years, which rooted in me the need to think about viruses and want to always scan the system.

Ok, so, Linux is very secure and doesn't need anti-virus programs - i got it.

[Moem]

Yes, it's hard for me to get used to an OS that doesn't need anti-virus software.

Cut yourself a little slack... you didn't learn all about Windows in a couple of days.
It's an entire new system for you, of course that takes some getting used to! It's expected to.

[antikythera]

It's also about reducing the risk of attack by not downloading music or movies from file shares, cracked games or other programs from dubious websites no matter how tempting they might be because they are 'free'.

The same goes for applying common sense to websites you visit and behavioural patterns opening unsolicited emails with or without attachments.

The critical difference being, none of the above should affect linux as the payloads are designed to target windows OS. It does not however mean the same basic common sense to web usage does not still apply.

At the end of the day, it's up to you what you do with your computer and we can only advise you based on our collective years of experience.

[gittiest personITW]

If you are unsure about a mail attachment or a file you have downloaded, then you can run 50 different antivirus programs at the same time if you like.....
https://www.virustotal.com/gui/home/upload

It is definitely worth your while going here also although Pjotr has also posted the link for some reason
https://easylinuxtipsproject.blogspot.com/p/1.html

[sleeper12]

There is also: https://www.hybrid-analysis.com/

[cliffcoggin]

The best anti-virus protection you can use is the one between your ears.

[Cosmo.]

Just another, quite different thing to learn:
Please, no full-quotes, except there is a special reason. If you want to reply, use the reply button on the bottom of the page. If you want to quote partially, remove all text from the quote, which is in the given context not needed to get quoted. The point is, if the user has at first to scroll endlessly down (because (s)he has read the quoted post already), he can get tired. You want attention for your questions, so don't reduce the reader's attention. At the end it helps you.

[Coggy]

The best AV program for Mint is update manager.

No AV can protect you from attacks against unknown vulnerabilities by unknown viruses. Once a virus is known, two things happen - the virus gets added to AV programs, and the vulnerability it uses gets patched in updates.
An updated system is immune to that virus and any others that abuse that vulnerability.
An un-patched system with updated AV will of course still be vulnerable to other unknown viruses that abuse that vulnerability.