Here is a selection of free programs that I have used and can recommend that will help you to keep your PC safe and running smoothly.

AntiVirus

I usually recommend AVG. It is effective and the antivirus-only version is free for non-commercial use. It can be downloaded from http://free.avg.com. The latest version of AVG Free also includes an anti-Spyware component.

Firewalls (I have 2 suggestions)

Zone Alarm produce a very good free version of their firewall software. It can be downloaded from www.zonealarm.com (Look for the link to "Free Firewall and Trials").

An alternative is the firewall component of Comodo Internet Security (CIS). Comodo is a leading web security company who make their full internet security software suite freely available. The firewall component is consistently well reviewed; the antivirus component less so. I suggest installing only the firewall (you get the option during the installation procedure). You can download CIS from www.comodo.com - look for the link to Free Products.

Both of these firewalls have to learn how you use your computer. At first they may pop up frequent warning messages asking for your approval whenever a program tries to connect to the internet. This is normal. As long as you are happy that the pop-up is a result of something you have asked the computer to do just tick "Remember this answer" and then click "Allow". The firewall will not ask about that one again and will soon stop bothering you (but go on protecting your computer).

Security Suite

Microsoft now produce a free security suite called Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE) which I am happy to recommend to my customers, MSE does not have its own firewall but relies on the standard Windows Firewall that is part of every Windows installation. With older versions of Windows, such as Windows XP, I would be inclined to use MSE in conjunction with one of the free firewalls mentioned above (they automatically disable the Windows Firewall) You can download MSE from www.microsoft.com

Spam Filter

If your email software does not offer spam filtering, you could do worse than try Mail Washer. There is no longer an official free version, but you can download an older free version from http://321downloads.com.  (Last time I looked it was on page 2).  

 

FREE SOFTWARE SUGGESTIONS

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