Some people could spend all day looking around, comparing antivirus programs, and trying to figure out which one works best. Other people just want something to download and get those darn viruses out of their system already!
Consider this your no-frills guide to free virus protection. Everything listed below is one hundred percent free, easy to use, easy to install, and while we do compare them side by side, you could grab one at random and probably he happy with the results.
Avira AntiVir Personal
Avira’s real selling point is that it is consistently working in realtime. It’s always looking for viruses, worms, Trojans, and malware, and killing it. You’ll still want to run a full virus scan now and then, but even if you want to be incredibly lazy about it, you’ll still be able to get rid of most viruses before they do any damage.
Free AVG
What Free AVG really has going for it is that you get daily updates. Some virus programs update the database once a week, others go about once a month, but AVG is one of the only free virus scanners that will update its database every single day.
NOD32
NOD32 is technically a pay service, but you can get a free online scan to try it out and see if you like it. The program itself is great, too. One major advantage over other programs is simply that you, usually, do not have to restart your computer to install the updates.
You know, conceivably, if you want, you could probably just visit every antivirus website for a free scan once a month, but that’s probably more of a hassle than it’s worth!
Avast! Home Edition
A great, simple, easy to use antivirus product for your everyday computer user. It’s maybe not as potent as Avira, but it does get the job done. We recommend using it in conjunction with a firewall and a spam filter, because, while it does have some great anti-spyware and antivirus capabilities, it’s definitely not a “full package”.
Dr. Web CureIt!
Dr. Web CureIt!, goofy title aside, isn’t a bad little antivirus program. It’s free, but there is one catch. Every time it’s updated, it needs to be installed all over again. This can be a real pain in the neck.
The best of the bunch would probably be Avira. It’s fast, easy to use, and up to date, and it won’t force you to restart your computer with every update. That said, you probably won’t be disappointed with anything listed above.
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