Freeware internet privacy

Whether that level of detail or lack thereof is a boon or a drawback entirely depends on your perspective. One of our favorite things about this VPN service other than the price is the fact that your subscription covers an unlimited devices and services. Surfshark offers a day money back guarantee, giving you plenty of time to give it a try before committing for a longer period. And even then, annual plans are very reasonably priced indeed.

To find out more, read our full Surfshark review. One of 's best value VPNs While Surfshark loses out to Express when it comes to sheer all-round quality, security and support, Surfshark has bite when it comes to pricing.

On the subject of support, we really like that you can access it directly from your Android or iOS app on mobile. The apps are a powerful highlight. Not only are there loads of them Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, even Fire TV , but they're absolutely stuffed with unusual features, options and settings, trampling all over the horribly basic "list of flags and a Connect button"-type apps you'll usually get elsewhere.

The good news continued when we tried some real-world tests. Servers were always up, and connected quickly; download speeds were above average; torrents are supported on every server, and we were able to unblock US Netflix with ease. There are some issues, too. The apps are powerful, but that means there's a lot to learn, and we noticed a few small usability issues.

A small number of servers didn't appear to be in the advertised locations, and there is no kill switch in the iOS app. Overall, if you need its ten simultaneous connections, or the power and configurability of its apps, take the plunge with this VPN service, and if somehow you end up unhappy you're protected by a 30 day money-back guarantee. Even with it's huge discount for an annual plan, it comes out a bit higher in price than some.

But you're paying for high quality here, as many simultaneous connections at any one time as you can handle and a whole year free of SugarSync cloud storage - so fantastic value overall. Hotspot Shield is available in two flavors: a free, ad-supported one, and a paid-for version that offers unlimited bandwidth. Hotspot Shield hides your IP address and provides encrypted traffic tunneling ideal for use on public Wi-Fi networks to improve security and ensure privacy.

You may not want to use Hotspot Shield at all time. For instance, you may only be interested in using it to access certain sites that are blocked in your country.

In this case you can create shortcuts to individual sites in the Hotspot Shield window, which will enable protection before launching the sites. Protection can also be toggled on an off with a single click.

The paid-for product, Hotspot Elite , only costs a few dollars or pounds a month, but it's worth trying the free edition first before opening your wallet. The premium version's additional features, including ad-free browsing and dedicated customer support, make it a tempting proposition.

For more information, read our full Hotspot Shield review. Norton Deluxe offers an even richer and more feature-packed internet security suite than just providing a firewall. While it provides for antivirus and standard anti-malware protections like the above internet security suites it dares to go further.

Additional features in the Norton Deluxe edition includes a secure VPN, parent controls, a password manager, and online cloud backup. There's also a feature for dark web monitoring so you can be alerted if any of your details appear for sale on the Dark Web. This all comes at a more expensive price than the other internet security suites featured here, but the additional features and peace of mind are likely to be worth it for some people.

Beyond the deluxe edition, you can upgrade to the Lifelock Select version which provides additional identity protection and credit rating monitoring as well as insurance provision in the event that your personal information is misused.

Firewall, real-time malware detection, speedy cloud-based scanning, URL filtering to block malicious websites: Panda Dome Essential antivirus has all the essentials — not to mention, the goodies — you'd expect from the best antivirus software. And, that's just the beginning. The interface will be a little bit decisive, too. With so many weird and wonderful features included, Panda Dome does a very capable job of making sure that they can all be accessed and you can go as in-depth as you need.

However, on the other hand, this might put off users who just want a quiet, simple antivirus package. One undoubted advantage here is the price - Panda Dome Essential is one of the best value programs out there.

And, you even have the option of paying a little more and upgrading to cover an unlimited number of laptops, phones, tablets and desktops with a single subscription. Tor Browser is probably the best-known anonymous browsing tool out there, and it is described as a 'censorship circumvention tool'. Tor Browser has a vast following in the online privacy and security communities.

It works by bouncing your communication through numerous encrypted nodes on the internet, making it impossible to determine your location or other identifying information. Tor Browser employs complex technology, but is refreshingly accessible. It's based on the same code as Firefox, and guides you through the process of getting online one step at a time. It uses different connection methods depending on what you're trying to achieve, but there's no need to understand the details because it's all taken care of for you.

This combination of effective protection and ease of use makes Tor Browser the best free privacy software you can download today. If you'd like to find out more, read our full Tor Browser review. The free version of TunnelBear gives you up to MB of data each month, but if this isn't enough, unlimited data is available for a subscription. Alternatively, you can pay around twice that to use on a month-by-month basis. It also is one of the easiest password managers to use, with a browser-based user interface.

You can learn more about that in our LastPass review , as well as see how it stacks up to our first pick in our Dashlane vs. LastPass comparison. Kaspersky, the famous Russian antivirus provider, also offers a password manager. It even shares a theme with LastPass in that it offers full vault access with multi-device sync. That makes it feel more like a trial, but 15 entries should be enough to see if you like the service.

You can learn more in our Kaspersky Password Manager review. McAfee True Key has a lot in common with Kaspersky. Like Kaspersky, its upper limit is 15 entries, which is still enough to try the service. McAfee True Key can store a variety of different entry types, including passwords, notes, addresses and credit cards.

Unfortunately, those other entry types also count toward your limit. You can learn more about that and why an upgrade to Premium is worth it in our McAfee True Key review.

RememBear is a password manager offered by the makers of TunnelBear. Unlike the VPN, though, the free plan is one of the best around. While the feature set is nearly non-existent, RememBear still offers unlimited password storage on a single device and an easy-to-use interface. The paid version adds multi-device sync and password backup for the same price as 1Password read our 1Password review.

You can learn more about why we think the free plan is enough in our RememBear review. F-Secure is an antivirus provider that also offers a password manager. You can store an unlimited number of passwords on a single device. It has an excellent feature set and user experience, outside of issues in password import, too.

You can learn more about that in our F-Secure Key review. LogMeOnce is one of the most complex password managers on the market. It has so many features it overwhelms the user experience. Thankfully, it has a free plan that makes the hair-pulling UI worth it. It offers unlimited password storage, multi-device sync and restricted access to advanced features for free.

You can learn more about the free plan and advanced features in our LogMeOnce review. Master Password is not a password manager, exactly. It uses a combination of factors, including your name, master password and website to generate a unique password for each website you use. That is meant as a way to bypass storing your passwords anywhere else but locally on your device. DataVault is a bit under the radar, as more commercially viable options have risen to the forefront of the space.

Antivirus software is mainly used as a check against cybercrime , protecting against nasty malware, such as ransomware read our what is ransomware guide.

That said, other schemes, such as browser hijacking and phishing, can put your personal information at risk, as you can read in our what is phishing and what is browsing hijacking guides. The best antivirus software can protect you against desktop-based threats, such as ransomware, and data mining scams, such as adware. We scanned our antivirus reviews to find the free tools that do the job best. AVG took first place in our best free antivirus software guide, and for good reason.

It has some of the best independent lab results around, a slew of built-in features and an easy-to-use interface, to boot. The free version comes with basic protection and scanning, including real-time protection against web and email threats.

You can learn more in our AVG review. Kaspersky is known as an ultra-secure antivirus, and we found that to be mostly true when we tested it. The free version lacks features, but it still gives you the same powerful scanning modes and real-time protection of the full version. That said, one big omission is webcam protection, a feature that made us recommend Kaspersky in our how to secure your webcam guide.

Still, the free plan is impressive and an upgrade to a paid plan is cheap, as you can read in our Kaspersky Anti-Virus review. Bitdefender is our top choice for the best antivirus for Mac and the best antivirus in general. The free plan is good, but not as good as its paid counterpart. While you still get the superior protection in real-time, the features are lacking. Still, you could do a lot worse.

You can learn more in our Bitdefender Antivirus review and see how it stacks up to Kaspersky Anti-Virus in our Bitdefender vs. Kaspersky comparison. Avast, which earned a spot in our best antivirus for Android guide, has been the de-facto free antivirus for many years. It has an excellent interface and set of features, but, despite being under the same management as AVG, it has inferior protection results.

You can learn more in our Avast Pro review and see how it compares to Bitdefender in our Bitdefender vs. Avast guide. Avira ranks right under Bitdefender in our reviews, largely because of its reasonable pricing, excellent protection results and abundance of features.

You can learn what we think about those additions in our full Avira review. Sophos provides one of the most feature-rich free antivirus packages available. You get parental controls, protection for three devices and real-time web monitoring without spending any money. The protection results are scattered, too. You can learn more in our Sophos Home review. The prices are high, but not unreasonable, and the protection results are excellent.

The sluggish interface holds us back from making a full recommendation, though. The free version makes the hassle worth it. It can protect Windows or Android and comes with real-time protection, USB inspection and the Panda Security Rescue Kit, which helps you come back from machine-breaking infections. You can learn more about those features in our Panda Security review. MRG Effitas awarded it a Level 2 certification in its Q2 full spectrum analysis , meaning it was 98 percent effective against Windows-based threats.

Windows users can also take advantage of Comodo Free. It uses real-time protection and behavior monitoring to protect against threats in its malware database and new programs that have yet to be logged. While the paid version comes with a lot more features, the free version should get you by.

Lavasoft Ad-Aware Antivirus has received mixed protection results in the past. The free version is basic, including real-time protection and rudimentary scanning.

The upgraded version adds web protection, a firewall and more, but the free version looks most attractive given the lab results. Even so, it comes with a lot of additional features that other providers charge for. If you want to know how to encrypt text messages , this is the section for you. That said, it now uses end-to-end encryption on messages sent using it.

In addition to texting, you can send voice messages, photos and videos in the app. Encryption protects you from external threats, but not from losing your messages. Make sure to read our guide on how to backup and restore your WhatsApp chat history , so you can stay protected there, too.

Signal comes from Open Whisper Systems, a software developer best known for developing the Signal protocol, which the app is named after. It even has the seal of approval from privacy savior Edward Snowden, which Open Whisper Systems displays on its website. Voxer is a messaging application for iOS and Android. It supports text, photo, video and location messages, but has a particular focus in voice messaging.

While a standard messaging app on its face, it includes the Signal protocol, which allows you to encrypt your messages. Wickr Me provides end-to-end encryption for iOS and Android devices. It takes privacy seriously, too, deleting metadata, such as geotags and times, from your messages.

Your messages delete themselves, as well. Wickr Me includes a self-destruct timer that you set, so no messages linger on your devices longer than you want them to. While our previous options have focused on individual users, Pryvate targets businesses.

The free version is available for iOS and Android and includes encrypted calls and texts. You decide which. The app is only available for iOS and Android, but Golden Frog has plans for desktop versions in the future. Facebook is at the center of massive privacy concerns around the world, but it provides messaging with end-to-end encryption. Make sure to read our guide on Facebook privacy settings , though, if you want to explore the idea further.

KeeperChat is a secure messaging app from the company that makes the password manager Keeper, which you can learn about in our Keeper review.

Mailvelope is a browser extension that encrypts popular webmail applications using OpenPGP. Surf the Web anonymously and securely. Free Internet Eraser Free. Protect your online privacy by cleaning up Internet history and past activities. Jailbreak VPN Free. Hide your IP address and encrypt Internet connection. Protect yourself on P2P networks by blocking IPs. CCleaner Free. Protect your online privacy and secure your computer by cleaning unnecessary info. Wise Folder Hider Free. Hide and encrypt files folders in local drive and removable drives.

PGPfreeware Free. Protect your email from unauthorized viewing. My Lockbox Free. Hide, lock, and protect your files and folders with password.

MultiProxy Free. Protect your privacy while staying online. R-Wipe and Clean Free to try. Wipe useless files and private records and free up your disk space. Maintain your anonymity online and secure your web session. Real Hide IP Free to try. Hide IP and protect your privacy on the Internet. Primedius WebTunnel Free to try. Surf and chat anonymously, kill pop-ups, and erase Internet traces.