What do you need to stay safe on the web? Let's begin with a little, "common sense"...You don't walk down dark alleys in the middle of the night in the real world, so, simply put, don't do it online either. Believe it or not, you will begin to get a "feel" for those dark alleys here in the virtual world as well...

All of these reliable and trustworthy products, supplied by reputable vendors are absolutely free, to download, install, keep updated and use for non-commercial use.

Begin with, Scotty, the web wonder dog! Actually, it's WinPatrol by BillP Studios and everyone on the net who knows anything, knows and loves Scotty. He is on constant patrol every minute your motor is running making certain that nothing, and no one comes and goes without your knowing it. Arf...

Firefox is without question, still the safest web browser available. Download it here. Learn to use it.

Zone Alarm's Free Firewall rivals any paid product for the average user, and is far more secure if you are using a Windows OS. Download it, install it and rest assured that your machine is safe from attack by bad guys! The optional, "Tool Bar", is not necessary but adds a great degree of added protection and options for, serious surfers.

For years we have both used and recommended AVG for virus protection, unfortunately, we believe AVG has simply gotten too complex for the average user to understand and fully keep operational, therefore we are now suggesting another fine, reputable product, Avira Antivirus.

There are a number of reliable Malware/Spyware programs out there to enhance the security of your computer, you can have, and "should" use several. They only run when you start them so they are not using up your resources. Download all of these, keep them updated, and run one or two once a week.
Malwarebytes : SpyBot Search & Destroy : SUPER AntiSpyware

Keep a clean machine...If bugs have no place to hide bugs go elsewhere...Begin with CCleaner. Run this simple little tool about once a week, you'll love yourself for it.

Keeping your computer, "defragged" is a very important part of its optimization and contributes greatly to its overall performance, especially its speed...Think of it this way, everything on your machine is a file, sometimes, when you use one it gets misplaced, that is, returned to the wrong, "file cabinet", defragging puts everything back where it belongs, hence it's where it should be the next time you look for it. Use, Defraggler once a week, at least, more often if you're a, heavy surfer.

You wouldn't simply toss sensitive documents in the trash at home in the real world, i.e. bank statements, phone bills, etc. without at least tearing them up, so why do it in your virtual world? Use this tool, File Shredder to make your virtual documents nearly impossible to be retrieved by bad guys...

For near complete anonymity online, TOR is the answer. A free, open source tool that routes your IP through a web of worldwide ISP's that hides your origins. Not for, everyday use, perhaps, but for those times when you have that "need" to enter that, dark alley.