BEST ANTI-VIRUS AVG Free Edition
Why spend money on anti-virus software when you can get this superb tool for free? It might not offer the same level of features as its commercial rivals but it will certainly keep your PC safe and secure. The software offers real-time, scheduled and on-demand scanning, and automatically checks incoming emails for viruses. It updates itself on a regular basis so you always have the most up-to-date protection.
Minimum Requirements: Windows
File size: 22.6MB
Download at:Get the free version of AVG Free Edition here
BEST ANTI-SPYWARE Spybot – Search and Destroy
There is no shortage of tools that you can use to protect your computer against malware, but Spybot is the best free option. Running a full scan is quicker with Spybot than a lot of commercial programs, but no less thorough. As well as searching for spyware and removing anything it finds, the software can immunise Internet Explorer against future infections, shred private data and scan and fix problems in the Registry.
Minimum Requirements: Windows
File size: 4.8MB
Download at:Get the free version of Spybot – Search and Destroy here
BEST FIREWALL Comodo Free Firewall
A good firewall is essential for keeping your system safe – preventing external attacks and stopping spyware or Trojans from contacting the outside world. Comodo's firewall monitors all internet traffic and lets you allow or deny applications which attempt to go online. It's particularly good at spotting programs which are using other software to connect to the net – something weaker firewalls often miss.
Minimum Requirements: Windows
File size: 7.57MB
Download at:Get the free version of Comodo Free Firewall here
BEST ANTI-SPAM MailWasher Free
It's difficult to avoid spam entirely, but MailWasher Free certainly helps you reduce the amount that comes your way. The software lets you check your incoming mail on the mail server and download, delete or bounce any waiting messages. Bouncing them is a useful trick as this makes your address appear invalid to the sender. The software also employs a white list and black list approach to further limit the incoming tide of junk mail.
Minimum Requirements: Windows
File size: 3.3MB
Download at:Get the free version of MailWasher Free here
BEST INTERNET FILTER McAfee SiteAdvisor
A browser add-on for Internet Explorer and Firefox, SiteAdvisor rates the safety of websites you visit using a traffic light system. It installs a button which changes colour according to the security level of the site you're viewing, and also shows colour-coded icons in your search results. Safe sites are green, questionable ones are yellow, and sites which are deemed to be no-go areas are highlighted in red.
Minimum Requirements: Windows, Firefox or IE7
File size: 311KB
Download at:Get the free version of McAfee SiteAdvisor here
BEST CLEAN-UP TOOL CCleaner
An essential piece of software, CCleaner scans your hard disk and removes unwanted detritus from your system, including temporary files, cookies, cached internet data and file fragments. It can also uninstall programs and find and fix issues with the Windows Registry. You have complete control over what it looks for and can choose which files to keep and which to delete. CCleaner also tackles leftovers from any third-party programs you have installed.
Minimum Requirements: Windows
File size: 2.6MB
Download at:Get the free version of CCleaner here
BEST RECOVERY TOOL Recuva
It's easy to delete whole files or folders from your computer by mistake. Thankfully, Windows only removes the reference to the content, not the data itself, which lets Recuva locate and retrieve deleted files on your PC with surprising ease. The process is very straightforward – it scans your disk and then displays any files or folders that are recoverable. Select the item you want and hopefully the program will restore it for you.
Minimum Requirements: Windows
File size: 192KB
Download at:Get the free version of Recuva here
BEST ROOTKIT REMOVER AVG Anti-Rootkit Free
Rootkits can be used to hide malicious software on your system, rendering them invisible to most security tools. To detect and remove them you need a specialist program like this. AVG Anti-Rootkit Free can run basic and advanced searches on your computer. If it discovers a rootkit it will attempt to remove it for you.
Minimum Requirements: Windows
File size: 416KB
Download at:Get the free version of AVG Anti-Rootkit Free here
BEST REGISTRY CLEANER Eusing Free Registry Cleaner
The Registry lies at the heart of Windows, so any problems can slow your system down and cause it to crash. But Eusing scours the database thoroughly, looking for invalid or obsolete entries. You can then specify which sections to scan and which entries to remove. Making any change to the Registry is potentially risky, so the software can back it up beforehand and restore it to its previous state in the event of problems.
Minimum Requirements: Windows
File size: 860KB
Download at:Get the free version of Eusing Free Registry Cleaner here
BEST FILE SHREDDER Eraser
If you want to ensure a deleted file is gone for good and can't easily be retrieved you need to shred it using Eraser. The program makes content unrecoverable by repeatedly overwriting its position on the hard disk with random data patterns. To use it all you have to do is drag and drop items onto the On-Demand Eraser, or right-click the file and select Erase.
Minimum Requirements: Windows
File size: 2.6MB
Download at:Get the free version of Eraser here
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Claire Woffenden, Editor
