To use an Internet-connected computer is to be insecure and place your privacy
in danger. Spyware, viruses, Trojans and assorted malware are everywhere on
the Net, trying to hop onto your PC and cause damage. Snoopers want to get at
your personal information for nefarious purposes, such as identity theft.

Operating systems of all kinds are under assault, but the prime target is Windows,
because the vast majority of PCs worldwide use that operating system. If you
use Windows, hackers have you in their cross hairs.

Luckily, there's plenty of free software for Windows that can help protect
your privacy and security. I'm not talking about anemic, underpowered applications.
I'm talking about industrial-strength tools that can do everything that expensive
security software does.

With all the free stuff out there, which software should you choose? I've selected
10 of my favorite programs that can protect your privacy and security. Download
and install them, and you'll be far safer against all the nastiness out there.

Secunia Personal Software Inspector

Some of the biggest security holes in your PC aren't directly related to Windows
-- instead, they're in the applications you run. As often as not, that's how
hackers and crackers can get into your PC. For example, in the recent "Pwn
to Own" hacker challenge, it was application vulnerabilities, not Windows
Vista itself, that allowed
hackers to crack Vista.

The best way to protect yourself from this problem is to keep your applications
updated with vendor-issued patches. But you don't want to spend your life cruising
the Web, looking for updates for every app you use.

Instead, get this freebie that does it for you. As a security vendor, Secunia
keeps track of software vulnerabilities and available patches. The company's
Personal Software Inspector (PSI) scans your PC, downloads a current vulnerabilities
file, and alerts you to any software on your machine that is missing security
patches. It also warns you if any software is out of date and no longer supported
by the vendor. Out-of-date software no longer gets security patches, and so
may be more vulnerable to hackers.

When you get a list of insecure software, you can get more details about each
piece of software, open the folder where the software resides, or download a
patch. Click the + sign next to the software, and you'll get even more details
about it, often including links to any tools for uninstalling the software.
You also have the choice of having Secunia
constantly monitor your software use and notify you when patches are available.

Secunia says that some programs require tedious or confusing patching procedures,
so by default it starts

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