Jul 09, 2019  Important: Windows Defender and Microsoft Security Essentials will turn themselves off if you install another anti malware program to protect your PC.Before you install anti malware software, check to make sure you don't already have an anti malware product on your computer. If you do, be sure to remove the product you don't want before you install the new one. Starting with the release of Microsoft Security Essentials version 4.5 in April 2014 and end of support for Windows XP, users were no longer be able to do new installations of MSE.

I have Windows XP my Microsoft Essential Security needs to be replaced. What is the best anti virus software for Windows XP. Thank you

You can only install one real-time AV product; so you’re obviously better off if you pick one with a good protection rating – like the ones suggested above by Bruce Hagen. But you shouldn’t stop there if you’re using your XP computer for surfing, because the odds are going to be stacked against you in a big way. To stay safe, you’ll need to double-check frequently by scanning with some of the on-demand malware-removal tools suggested by quietman7 MS MVP here:

Security Software For Windows Xp

Supplementing your Anti-Virus Program with Anti-Malware Tools.

On my XP machine, I use Avast Free for the primary protection, and then back that up with the free version of HitmanPro (not activated) and HitmanPro.Alert (with CryptoGuard). I also do periodic scans with Malwarebytes, SuperAntiSpyware, and Kaspersky Security Scan – and I still back up all of my personal files religiously; because with a zero-day threat, everything else can fail.

[EDIT]

Looking around a little, I see that quite a few free AVs (for Windows XP) now tend to get better reviews than Avast, including these:

http://www.pandasecurity.com/usa/homeusers/solutions/free-antivirus/

http://www.bitdefender.com/solutions/free.html

Free Security Software For Windows Xp

http://free.avg.com/us-en/homepage

[End Edit]

GreginMich