Virus was the first of the many malware problems to trouble the computer user's world, whether in the business environment or a home computer user. Virus and worms are still a problem for unprotected computers and users still  need a good, updated virus scanner!

Home users can get free versions of many commercial virus scanners. The free versions perform very well, but may require manual updates or may not have all of the features in commercial versions.

 

A lot of users wonder why the commercial venders provide free versions of their products. The main reason is not because they really care about your computer so much as they want you to use their product and like it so much you will eventually buy their scanner. Another reason may be that unprotected computers are sending out loads of spam, worms and who knows what else, eating up bandwidth and generally causing the Internet to choke. Regardless of the reason for offering a free virus scanner, the free versions are there so take advantage of the free offers and use an updated virus scanner!

Some excellent free virus scanners available for home users are listed on the Free Downloads page on this site.

It is important to note here that a virus scanner must be constantly updated as new and ugly virus are introduced into the wild on a very regular basis.

Free online scanners.  It must be noted that some of these scanners may not clean but only advise of malware.

Panda (Will clean)

Trend Micro (Will clean)

BitDefender (Will clean)

 

ESET Online Scanner (Will Clean)

 

These indicate they will scan, but does not say they will clean. However, they may clean.

Kaspersky

F-Secure

Windows Live One Care

Important!

If you have a virus, worm or a Trojan on your Windows ME, Windows XP or Vista computer, you will need to turn off System Restore once you have cleaned the offender from your computer.

Instructions for turning off/on System Restore for Windows ME, Windows XP or Vista.

Some Tutorials for NOD32, AVG and Avast Antivirus