In addition to paid antivirus programs, the full operation of which is carried out only after the purchase of a license key, there are also their free counterparts that have similar functions and are capable of identifying a potential threat to a computer at a high level.
Choosing an antivirus program
To download a free antivirus, you first need to decide on the version of the anti-malware program you need.
Among the free antivirus programs are Avast !, Avira, AVG and Microsoft Security Essentials, the latter included in the list of preinstalled programs for Windows 8. Avast! presents a large number of tools that allow you to block malicious applications of completely different types. Antivirus allows you to check email attachments in your messages, fix system vulnerabilities and block programs depending on their behavior in the system.
Free antivirus programs are superior in capabilities to some paid counterparts.
Avira is a new free software package that aims to fight viruses and infected files on the Internet. AVG has a similar Avast! functional and does not affect the performance of the operating system. The advantage of Microsoft Security Essentials is full integration into the system, but the program is only responsible for detecting viruses and has no configurable operating modes.
Check out every antivirus program on the internet and check out all the reviews if needed. Depending on the required functionality, make a choice in the direction of one or another anti-virus program.
Download and install
Go to the site of the selected antivirus and use the "Download" or "Download" section. In this section, you will see a list of versions available for download. Select the newest program by clicking on the corresponding link on the page. After that, wait until the download starts and the download of the installation file is complete.
Before installing a new one, remove the old antivirus if it is installed on your computer.
Open the program by double-clicking on the file received after downloading. An installer window will appear to guide you through the installation using the on-screen instructions. Select the required options and wait until the program files are unpacked.
After the corresponding notification appears, the installation will be completed and the antivirus will be automatically launched in the system. If you want to make additional program settings, use the shortcut to launch the antivirus program on the desktop or the menu that is available by clicking on the corresponding icon in the system tray.
