Five million AVG Free downloads in a week

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The popularity of free software shows no signs of waning as AVG revealed its free security product was downloaded more than five million times during the last week of May.

AVG Free is the most common downloaded application off Download.com, although AVG Technologies emphasised the fact that the application in its own words offers only ‘basic’ internet security and ‘does not protect against the full range of today’s web borne threats.’

However, AVG said that the large number of downloads showed that internet users were learning that they needed more than anti-virus technology to be safe from online threats. AVG ended support for their 7.5 edition at the end of May, forcing users to upgrade to 8.0.

“AVG also protects against many drive-by downloads and other Web 2.0 threats by giving real-time safety ratings to all search results obtained through Google, MSN and Yahoo,” said Karel Obluk, chief technology officer at AVG Technologies.

AVG also stated the free product offered core protection against viruses and software as well as the safe-searching component of its ‘LinkScanner’ technology, the full version being only available on commercial editions.

IT PRO recently reported that AVG had to calm fears by users that they were being forced to pay for the latest virus update. After being prompted to click for a necessary update, many users did not notice that there was a free update link at the bottom of the download page.

Larry Bridwell, global security strategist at AVG Technologies, said at the time: "We have no plans to ever do away with the free version.”

“We appreciate that the internet is now such as major part of our lives and people need to be online but might not be able to afford the cost of the paid for version. We believe that everybody needs protection.”

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