Back to School Security Tip #7

7. Keep Malware Out. The archetypical starving student doesn't have any cash to spare. Downloading pirated software and tunes is one way to save money, but doing so can expose you to malware. In fact, you can run into malicious code even on perfectly legitimate sites, through "poisoned" advertising links. The best free antivirus tools are better than many of their commercial competitors, so there's no excuse for going without antivirus protection. PCMag's Editors' Choice products for free antivirus are AVG Anti-Virus FREE 2013 and Ad-Aware Free Antivirus+ 10.5.