I have been computer free for probably 15ish years until I recently bought and set up a RPi4 with Linux. It’s been fun but I’m not really a super user so I’m looking to back to Windows as my main OS.

  1. is antivirus a necessity? I will be gaming and streaming on my new setup.

If yes then

  1. what are some ideal options? Paid or free.

Thanks for your responses in advance.

  • treadful@lemmy.zipEnglish
    0·
    1 year ago

    Generally speaking, in reverse order of strength of argument:

    • Linux is built a little more securely. There’s a ton of caveats here but it is generally harder to privilege escalate. (inb4 someone sends me a list of escalation attacks)
    • The user base is generally more security conscious (i.e. doesn’t just run random executables)
    • Doesn’t have the same attack surface (like default exploitable services)
    • The ecosystem isn’t a monoculture so it’s harder to build one-size-fits-all malware
    • The market share is so low that it’s rarely ever a target of malware

    Mostly it just doesn’t make sense for attackers looking for low hanging fruit to attack Linux machines.

    • uranibaba@lemmy.world
      0·
      1 year ago

      The last point is probably biggest point today. A hacker wants your money, and you as an individual do not have that much money. A company on the other hand, they can pay up big.

      Since a lot of companies use Windows, they target that, because that is where the money is.