Its free antivirus tool is one of the best regarded on the market, and AVG is now expanding its offering by making its LinkScanner real-time web protection tool available for free as well.
LinkScanner (previously only included in AVG’s paid version) analyses links when you click on them, checking the target page to identify any potentially malicious code and blocking access if the page includes a trojan, drive-by download or other unwanted nasty. (Similar features are found in most commercial security software suites.)
Savvy Lifehacker readers might trust their own ability to identify dodgy sites, but malicious code now hops around the Internet so rapidly that instinct alone is not going to protect you. The product is also a useful suggestion for less geeky friends and relatives worried about Web-based threats. AVG LinkScanner is a free download for Windows only. (Note that you don’t need the AVG Toolbar cluttering your screen; the scanning service works regardless.)
Kevin
Tuesday, April 21, 2009 at 9:37 AMActually, LinkScanner has been in AVG free for over a year. http://www.geek.com/articles/news/avg-release-anti-virus-free-80-20080424/ If there are new features to LinkScanner, please elaborate.
Unless AVG significantly changed the way it works, this feature generated an excessive amount of website traffic and there are lots of articles about how to disable it.
If AVG have fixed these issues, I’d be interested in seeing a LifeHacker article describing it. This might persuade me to re-enable LinkScanner.
Angus Kidman
Tuesday, April 21, 2009 at 9:39 AMThe difference is that it’s now a free standalone product. Haven’t noticed any performance impact during my initial testing, but will keep an eye out.
Kevin
Tuesday, April 21, 2009 at 9:45 AMI’ve only ever had the free version, and LinkScanner has been available since version 8, some 12 months ago. I currently have it disabled due to the issues it caused when first released in the free version & the mass impact it had on many sites.
Kevin
Tuesday, April 21, 2009 at 9:53 AMAngus, FYI here’s a description of the problems LinkScanner caused when first released in AVG Free 8: http://news.cnet.com/8301-10789_3-9986453-57.html
It sounds like it’s much better now, and as you say, definitely something worth suggesting to the non-tech relatives & friends.
David
Tuesday, April 21, 2009 at 2:51 PMSo is this download any different from the linkscanner already in the free AVG8??
Why is it available if it is already part of the free product??
pcmemoirs
Tuesday, April 21, 2009 at 5:27 PMI use the link scanner without problems and I think it’s a useful tool.
David, maybe the link scanner wasn’t included in the earlier free AVG versions.
Fanny Smith
Saturday, June 13, 2009 at 1:07 PMI have been dealing with virus issues a lot this year, and I have tried several programs. I read some positive reviews in some of the forums and got the CyberdefenderFree. I really like the Cyberdefender interface, scan times and that it found what I knew was on the system, including several programs/viruses/trojans that some of the others (PC Tools, SuperAntiVirus and Norton) missed. I used it as a free scanner, but the free version does remove spyware and trojan, but you got to upgrade for virus. Eventually one came along, it caught it, and so I bought the upgrade.