AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition

For many years, AVG has been a leader in the antivirus industry. AVG Free is one of the only free antivirus software’s available that actually works well. AVG Free is also wildly popular, as it essentially provides the same protection as $50/year software, but for free. This software is designed to automatically scan your computer, searching for any potential threats. When a threat is found, it is dealt with swiftly, without any work needed from you. It’s probably not the best possible antivirus out there, but keep in mind that it is free, and it provides sufficient protection for most people. AVG Free is currently compatible with windows XP, Vista, and Windows 2000.

Version 8.5.278, the latest release (as of 3/14/09), has been downloaded more than 171 million times. Keep in mind that that figure is just for this edition. There has been countless other editions released, and each has received millions of downloads. This gives you an idea of how popular this particular software is.

AVG prides itself on bringing you a quality product, free of charge. AVG also comes with free updates for the life. In fact, AVG Free updates quite a lot, often daily. Updates are important because, in order to protect you from the latest viruses, software needs to know about the latest viruses. In antivirus technology, knowledge is power, and knowledge in this case is delivered in a small download, which usually is completed in seconds. The updates are fully automated, so there is no need to worry about checking for updates.

Perhaps the best feature of AVG free is that it doesn’t slow down your computer. Many antivirus software’s will bog down your computer while scanning, making it impossible to get anything done. AVG runs in the background, and produces virtually no change in computer performance. Even while an update download is in progress, there is no noticeable change in computer speed.

There are a number of other features included in AVG Free that are worth mentioning. One of these is AVG Resident Shield. Resident Shield provides real-time protection, scanning files as they download, and warning you of potential threats. While most antivirus programs try to find and destroy viruses already on your computer, AVG attempts to prevent them before they are even installed.

Since its original release, AVG has received countless awards, lots of public praise, and millions of downloads. AVG Free is available for download at download.com, and as mentioned, it automatically updates.