CleanSoftware.org - Free software, no nasties!

Security, antivirus and antispam software

This software is believed to be free from nasties: adware, spyware, harmful/intrusive components, and threats to privacy. There are no sponsored entries. See home page for listing criteria.

Jump to:

Antivirus, firewall and spyware scanners

[green] Ad-Aware
Free for personal use : Windows
Checked: version 1.05

Ad-Aware scans a computer and helps locate likely adware, spyware, data mining, malware, privacy threats and other malicious components. Definition files can be automatically updated to better detect new threats. (comments)

[green] AntiVir Personal Edition
Free for personal use : Windows
Checked: version 6.29

AntiVir Personal Edition is a virus scanner which features resident Virus Guard for automatic background monitoring, scanning and repair of macro viruses, detection of dialer malware, and internet update wizard. (comments)

[yellow] avast! Home Edition
Free for personal use : Windows
Checked: version 4.5

avast! Home Edition is a virus scanner which features Resident Protection, automatic internet update, and scanning of: e-mail and Outlook (plugin), instant messaging, and some P2P. NOTE: This Home Edition requires a no-fee online registration using your email address, and you must re-register every 14 months. (comments)

[green] AVG Free Edition
Free for single home user : Windows
Checked: version 7.298

AVG Free Edition is a basic virus scanner, which features online automatic updating of virus definition files and email scanning. (comments)

[green] ClamWin
Open Source (GNU GPL) : Windows
Checked: version 0.37.3

ClamWin is an on-demand virus scanner which uses the Clam AntiVirus engine. ClamWin features Outlook integration, automatic internet update, proxy support, scheduled scans, document macro scanning, and sending reports by e-mail. (comments)

[green] Spybot - Search & Destroy
Freeware : Windows
Checked: version 1.3

Spybot-S&D scans a computer for spy/ad-bots (adware/spyware) and attempts removal of such components. The software can also remove traces of web browsing and other records that threaten privacy. Advanced tools help patch the registry after malicious program installations. (comments)

[yellow] Sygate Personal Firewall
Free for personal use : Windows
Checked: version 5.6

Sygate Personal Firewall can block or warn about both incoming and outgoing network connections or probes, protecting vulnerable Windows ports and guarding against trojans and other unauthorized applications. The firewall can also block or permit network access depending on the application involved. Features logging, application checksum verification and DLL authentication. NOTE: Requires a no-fee online registration using your email address. (comments)

[green] ZoneAlarm
Free for individual use : Windows
Checked: version 5.5

ZoneAlarm is an internet firewall that can block or warn about both incoming and outgoing network connections or probes, protecting vulnerable Windows ports. ZoneAlarm can also block or permit network access depending on the application involved, defending against privacy and security threats from unauthorized applications. (comments)

Antispam software

[green] K9
Freeware : Windows
Checked: version 1.28

K9 is a Bayesian classification tool that is used via a POP3 proxy. This allows the filter to operate alongside any existing mail client. The spam filter learns according to human training, and over time can recognize spam with high accuracy. (comments)

[green] POPFile
Open source (GNU GPL) : UNIX, Windows, Perl
Checked: version 0.22.2

POPFile is a Bayesian classification tool that is used via a POP3 proxy. This allows the filter to operate alongside any existing mail client. Unlike most other Bayesian filters, POPFile can be trained to separate mail into an arbitrary number of buckets, not just spam versus non-spam. (comments)

[green] SpamBayes
Open source (PSF) : UNIX, Windows, Mac OS X
Checked: version 1.0.1

SpamBayes is a Bayesian anti-spam filter consisting of several different components. It includes an Outlook plugin, a POP3 proxy, and an IMAP filter which can all be used to classify messages and train the filter. (comments)

[green] SpamPal
Open source : Windows
Checked: version 1.591

SpamPal is a mail classification program that runs as a POP3 or IMAP proxy on your local computer, automatically filtering incoming emails. Filtering is based on DNSBL lookups, whitelists, and blacklists for an effect similar to SpamAssassin under *nix. Emails are tagged with extra headers as they go through SpamPal. (comments)

Encryption, digital signature software

[green] GnuPG (GNU Privacy Guard)
Open source (GNU GPL) : UNIX, Windows, Mac OS X
Checked: version 1.4.0

GnuPG is a command-line replacement for PGP. It supports all PGP functionality, including encryption/decryption, creation and verification of digital signatures and key management. Unlike PGP, GnuPG can be used without restrictions. (comments)

[green] PGP (Pretty Good Privacy)
Freeware : UNIX, Windows, Mac OS X
Checked: version 6.5.8

MIT distributes Philip Zimmermann's PGP Freeware (to U.S. and Canadian citizens only). The PGP package provides various tools to encrypt, sign, and verify documents and communications. Features strong encryption, VPN client, and easy to use file tools. (comments)

[green] Windows Privacy Tools (WinPT)
Open source (GNU GPL) : Windows
Checked: version 1.0rc2

Windows Privacy Tools (WinPT) is a collection of tools based around GnuPG (the GNU Privacy Guard), OpenPGP compatible. WinPT provides access to encryption and digital signatures. Processing for arbitrary clipboard contents allows global GPG/PGP use, for example in any email application. (comments)