The Top 10 Free Antivirus Of 2009

Have you read my post about my picks for the top 10 antivirus programs of 2009?

If not I recommend doing so before returning to this page as there are many fine AV products listed there.

If, however, none of them take your fancy, or if you are looking for something a little cheaper, then the following programs may be for you.

(They are all free!)

1. Avast! Home Edition

At last I can please my good friend Justin Bellinger by referencing his company – Avast!

Their ‘Home Edition’ is a free antivirus program that comes complete with spyware protection.

It is certainly one of the better free antivirus packages on the market and features antispyware and rootkit protection.

Additionally, it defends against peer-to-peer and IM nuisances too.

Download Avast! Home Edition

2. AVG Free

AVG Free is the entry on this list that I have used most often as it resides on all of my kids’ computers.

It is a trusted antivirus and antispyware solution for Windows users that features a new LinkScanner Active Surf-Shield which enables you to check and verify the safety of web pages before clicking on any links.

Additionally, it also adds dialogue to search engine results pages, advising users whether a listed entry is safe to visit or not.

Download AVG Free Edition

3. Avira Antivir Personal

Avira Antivir Personal will scan your computer for evidence of malicious programs such as viruses, Trojans, worms, etc.

Running in the background, it will monitor the user’s every action and will notify them of any threats immediately.

Download Avira Antivir Personal

4. Bitdefender 10 Free Edition

BitDefender Free Edition uses exactly the same ICSA Labs certified scanning engines that are found in the other BitDefender products.

This allows the end-user to employ an on-demand virus scanner for zero cost.

Download Bitdefender 10 Free Edition

5. Clamwin

Unlike most other antivirus programs I’ve mentioned in the past, Clamwin is open-source.

Its features include a scanning scheduler, standalone virus scanner and an addin for Microsoft Outlook that allows for the manual identification of virus-infected attachments.

The drawback of ClamWin, in my opinion, is that it does not include a real-time scanner.

Instead you will have to manually scan a file in order to detect whether it is infected with a virus or spyware.

Download Clamwin

6. Panda Cloud Antivirus

I’ve previously tried Panda’s Cloud Antivirus but found that the beta version I was using was a quad core CPU hog.

Its quite possible that the resource usage issue has been resolved by now though.

Cloud AV is the first free cloud-based antivirus client.

Download Panda Cloud Antivirus

7. Comodo Internet Security

Comodo Internet Security is a free all-in-one security software that that comprises of antivirus, host intrusion prevention system and a firewall.

Interestingly for a free product it comes with a free 30 day trial of their LivePCSupport.

Download Comodo Internet Security

8. Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE) Beta

I’ve not personally used Microsoft Security Essentials Beta yet because it wasn’t available to UK users last time I checked.

If you are in the US you are luckier as you can try it out now.

I’ve heard that it offers a good level of protection against the usual suspects, such as viruses, spyware, Trojans, worms and all the other bad stuff.

With automatic upgrades and updates, MSE beta offers users what many of them are looking for from such a product – simplicity.

Download Microsoft Security Essentials Beta

9. PC Tools Antivirus Free Edition

Lastly, there is PC Tools Antivirus, another free program.

Download PC Tools Antivirus Free Edition

10. ???

I couldn’t actually think of a tenth free antivirus for the list.

Have you got any suggestions???

Also, now see my new lists :

The Top 10 Free Online Virus Scanners Of 2009

The 10 Best Internet Security Products Of 2009 and

* NEW * : The Top Ten Antivirus for 2010