Tools to keep your PC free from malware

Protection of a PC against malicious software, is a constant battle.  I will like to  list the tools I prefer for keeping Windows as malware-free as possible. They are free, and they’re about as reliable as any malware removal app.

1: Malwarebytes

It’s fast, it’s always reliable, and it’s free. For the free version of Malwarebytes to actually be active and scanning, the user must run the tool. Now, if the end user is too lazy (or forgetful), I would suggest purchasing the non-free version, which does contains a real-time component. But the free version is certainly solid. Note that here are instances where the removal of a piece of malware by this tool will require a reboot of the machine.

2: ComboFix

ComboFix is the best amongst removal tools. It’s also not a standard anti-malware tool so much as it is a major problem-solver. When you have malware that simply won’t go away (and you suspect something a bit uglier — like a rootkit or Trojan — that keeps re-infecting your machine), you want this tool. I recommend ComboFix, but with a warning: It’s powerful. Very powerful. Once you have finished using it remove from your system, ensure all programs are shutdown before running this.

3: Spybot Search and Destroy

Spybot Search and Destroy is one of the most popular anti-malware tools. If there’s a piece of anti-malware software on a machine, it’s probably going to be this one. Now, I will say that S&D is not the most powerful of the anti-malware tools, but it’s by far not the worst. I would actually rank it right below Malwarebytes with regard to reliability. And since there is no harm in having two anti-malware tools on one machine (unlike antivirus, which is a big no-no), using Malwarebytes and S&D as a one-two punch will catch most every piece of malware. The one thing S&D has over the free version of Malwarebytes is that it has a real-time scanner.

4: Avast Free

I like Avast. I like it for antivirus. I like it for anti-malware. The best thing about this tool is that you can have them both, at the same time, for free! Not only is the anti-malware portion of the tool safe and reliable, the antivirus is one of the tops of the free suites. So this one is a win-win for sure. Yes, there are paid versions of the same software suite, offering anti-phishing, safe-shopping, SPAM protection, and the like. But if you’re looking for solid anti-malware and antivirus, just download the free version of Avast. Once in a while i run the boot-scan to run at start-up because of those naughty malware that may want to go undetected.