It seems not all anti-virus, spyware, adware programs are equal. And a good anti-virus program isn’t necessarily the best anti-spyware program. So the truth is you should use at least a couple different varieties. Many programs now do it all; anti-virus, spyware, adware, firewall. I would try two different anti-virus programs, one that scans real time and one that doesn’t, use a freebie and a premium paid one. I recommend BitDefender because I use it and it has removed malware from my system on a few occasions.
If you are a hi-risk user you need to use something! It really doesn’t matter what. By hi-risk I mean a user that downloads tons of free software, visits disreputable websites that infect you with malware, or uses media disks made by other hi-risk users. I generally recommend you pay for your antivirus software, however there are some freebies to be found. Try these: Avast, Windows Defender, BitDefender, PC Tools, AVG. Read my post How to surf the internet more safely.