McAfee AV (Nov-25)

McAfee AV (Nov-25) Don Trauger – Kennett

McAfee’s Antivirus is highly rated in its anti-virus protection. It does its job well but it has a significant downside in its marketing aspect. Visual prompts, let’s just call them ads, are pressuring the user to get their credit cards out and pay for a full subscription to McAfee anti-virus. This is while you have a free trial. The pressure reads like this: “Extend your subscription today and stay protected against scams, viruses, identity thieves, and more.” You are presented with 2 choices, one is “Accept risk” or “get protection”. “Accept risk” is almost a lie. I’ll explain that below. “Get protection” is the pay-for route. You’ll often see these types of ads when you purchase a new Windows 11 computer. You get 30 days of a free trial of McAfee’s. “Accept risk” button is the alternative. There is no risk involved here. That’s why I call it almost a lie. What happens if you click on “Accept risk”. First, you will save some money by not purchasing McAfee. However, if you don’t desire to purchase McAfee You need to uninstall McAfee. This will activate Microsoft’s free Windows Security to automatically jump into action and protect your computer now that McAfee is gone. To uninstall McAfee, type Control Panel in the Search box then click it in the window. In the upper right of the window, change the View by: by selecting the little down arrow so it shows large icons. Next, click Programs and Features, locate McAfee and click it once to just highlight it then click Uninstall at the top to rid the computer of McAfee. If you see any additional McAfee programs uninstall those also. Wait until the previous uninstall completes. Although, Microsoft’s Windows Security is very good, it doesn’t quite match Norton or my favorite, Bitdefender Total Security at bitdefender.com. I do not have any financial or other interest in any company mentioned in my articles.