Antivirus Software
Antivirus software helps protect your computer against viruses, worms, trojans and other unwanted invaders that can perform malicious acts such as deleting files, accessing personal data, or using your computer to attack other computers. Viruses are released every day, so it is advisable to update your antivirus software frequently to ensure you are protected from the latest threats. Most AV software can be configured to automatically download updates when available. Please see your AV software manufacturer's website for information on automatic updates specific to your application.
Computer Viruses Demystified (PDF) provided by Sophos, Inc. - This book examines various types of computer virus, the damage they can do and methods for avoiding infection.
Free Anti Virus Software Downloads
avast! 4 Home Edition avast! Home Edition is now free of charge for HOME users for NON-COMMERCIAL use. (onShore employee favorite)
PC Tools Antivirus Free Edition - PCTools Antivirus Free Edition protects against a variety of malware, including viruses, worms, and Trojans. It provides real time scanning of the files you execute as well as the email you download. (Scroll down the linked page to find the free edition.)
AOL Antivirus Shield - AOL Antivirus Shield is an antivirus software based on a substantially stripped-down version of the well-regarded Kaspersky Anti-Virus Personal software. It provides real time scanning and automatic updates of the virus definitions. You will have to register with an email address to get a serial number which can be used to activate the software. Once activated, the serial number will be tied to the machine on which you installed it; if you need to install onto another machine, you will need to register again with a different email address. The software works on Windows 98, ME, 2000 and XP.
Comodo AV - Comodo Antivirus provides real-time scanning, where it resides in memory and checks your programs for viruses as they are run, as well as on-demand scanning for viruses. You can also schedule your scans. It automatically updates itself through the internet. Note that you have to activate your copy as well as supply your email address to get and use this software.
Clam AV - ClamAV is a free command line antivirus scanner for Unix systems. You can also integrate it with your mail server for scanning your email messages and attachments. It is able to scan inside archives like RAR archives, Zip archives, Gzip and Bzip2 archives (that is, it has unpacking engines for those types of compressed archives). If you are a programmer, you can even integrate the antivirus scanner into your own programs. This free antivirus program comes with source code that is released under the GNU General Public License. Prebuilt binary packages are available for numerous Linux distributions (Debian, RedHat / Fedora, PLD Linux, Mandrake), Microsoft Windows, FreeBSD, OpenBSD, AIX, OSF and Solaris 8 (Sparc).
AntiVir Personal Edition - AntiVir Personal Edition is a free antivirus program for Windows computers. It has a resident component that monitors file movements for signs of viruses. It also allows you to scan your computer and repair files that have been infected. The program comes with a facility to automatically check the AntiVir website for updates to the virus definitions and download them. Updates are free.
AVG Anti-Virus - The AVG Anti-Virus software comprises a resident program that works in the background, an email scanner (checks your email for viruses), an on-demand scanner (eg, you invoke it to scan your system), the ability to repair certain infected files, and automatic updates of the virus definitions.
Panda Software - makes a line of antivirus and other security products, and even offers a free online virus scanner.
Free onLine Virus Scans
Freedom Free Virus Scan - The free online virus scan from Freedom Internet Security and Privacy scans your hard disk, diskettes, CD-ROMs, network drives, directories and specific files for viruses, Trojans and worms.
Jotti's Online Malware Scan - This site scans any file that you upload to it with a variety of antivirus programs. It is particularly useful if you are suspicious about a particular file, and want to see if different antivirus software detect anything in it.
BitDefender Free Online Virus Scan - This free online virus scanning service will check your system for viruses. Note that the service only works if you use Internet Explorer on Windows since it uses ActiveX controls to do the scanning.
Trend Micro Free Online Virus Scan - Scan your computer for viruses free with Trend Micro's online service. You will need either Netscape (3.01 or above) or Internet Explorer (4.0 or above).
VirusList.com - Viruses, antiviruses, events, facts and commentary courtesy of Kaspersky Antivirus
The links below direct you to stand alone tools that can be used independently or in addition to antivirus software to help disinfect your computer:
Gibe-F Disinfection Tool - Windows 95/98/Me/NT/2000/XP/2003
McAfee AVERT Stinger - Stand-alone utility used to detect and remove specific viruses