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Free Download

Independent Windows security guidance, written for real people.

Plain-English explainers on malware, scam pages, ransomware and the tools that clean up a Windows PC.

Start with our scanning guide before you install anything.

Start here Compare tiers

How detection actually works

What scanners find that you cannot see. We explain how modern engines spot suspicious behavior early, and what that means for your own PC.

The categories an anti-malware engine looks for on Windows:

49M+

malware families
and bundled PUPs

90M+

risky web pages

13,700

ransomware behavior

2M+

browser exploits

Clear answers about
malware, scams and cleanup

PC cleanup

Illustration of a laptop with a shield in front of the screen

Get a stubborn PC clean again

Pop-ups that will not stop, a browser homepage you never chose, a laptop that crawls after an install. Our step-by-step malware removal walkthrough for Windows.

Everyday privacy

Illustration of an anonymous figure hidden under a blue sheet

Cut down what you leak online

Trackers, data brokers and public Wi-Fi all collect more than most people expect. Start with our notes on VPNs, tracker blocking and browser hardening.

Scam awareness

Illustration of a phone wearing a mask to suggest anonymity

Spot a scam before it lands

Fake invoices, support calls and delivery texts all follow patterns. Our breakdown of current scam tactics and warning signs helps you check a message before you click.

Read the guide

How the paid tiers differ

Limited-time offer

1 month FREE

Try a paid tier for a month at no cost, then decide. Cancel any time before the month ends and you pay nothing.

See offer details
  • Individual
  • Family
  • Small business

Standard

PC cleanup

US$59.99/yr.

Protects 3 devices

On-demand and scheduled scanning for Windows

Blocking for known malicious and scam domains

See details

Plus

Scanning plus a VPN layer

US$79.98/yr.

Protects 3 devices

On-demand and scheduled scanning for Windows

Blocking for known malicious and scam domains

Encrypted tunnel for untrusted networks

See details

Total

50% OFF

Scanning, VPN and monitoring add-ons

US$89.99/yr

US$179.99/yr.

Protects 1 adult, 3 devices

On-demand and scheduled scanning for Windows

Blocking for known malicious and scam domains

Encrypted tunnel for untrusted networks

Monitoring and recovery assistance

See details

Standard

PC cleanup

US$119.99/yr.

Protects 10 devices

On-demand and scheduled scanning for Windows

Blocking for known malicious and scam domains

See details

Plus

Scanning plus a VPN layer

US$149.99/yr.

Protects 10 devices

On-demand and scheduled scanning for Windows

Blocking for known malicious and scam domains

Encrypted tunnel for untrusted networks

See details

Total

50% OFF

Scanning, VPN and monitoring add-ons

US$124.99/yr.

US$249.99/yr.

Protects 2 adults, 10 kids, 10 devices

On-demand and scheduled scanning for Windows

Blocking for known malicious and scam domains

Encrypted tunnel for untrusted networks

Monitoring and recovery assistance

See details

Sole
proprietor

US$119.99/yr.

Protects 3 devices

Behavior-based detection for malware and ransomware

Filtering for known malicious and scam pages

Traffic encryption on shared Wi-Fi

Fewer trackers and ads to load

Coverage across Windows, macOS, Android and iOS

One tier covering home and work machines

See details

Boutique
business

US$399.99/yr.

Protects 10 devices

Behavior-based detection for malware and ransomware

Filtering for known malicious and scam pages

Traffic encryption on shared Wi-Fi

Fewer trackers and ads to load

Coverage across Windows, macOS, Android and iOS

Cover the handful of machines that matter most

See details

Small
office

US$519.99/yr.

US$799.99/yr.

Protects 20 devices

Behavior-based detection for malware and ransomware

Filtering for known malicious and scam pages

Traffic encryption on shared Wi-Fi

Fewer trackers and ads to load

Coverage across Windows, macOS, Android and iOS

Cover office desktops as well as staff-owned laptops

See details

60-day refund window is documented by the vendor

The pieces people ask us about

Premium Security

Premium Security is the paid Windows tier. Our independent overview walks through its real-time layers, how they behave day to day, and the situations where the free manual scanner is genuinely enough.

Browser Guard

Privacy VPN

Identity Theft Protection

Illustration of a laptop, tablet and phone grouped behind one shield
Person holding a phone showing a suspicious-message check on screen

New

Explained in our guides

Check a link before you click

Try our Scam Guardchecklist: five things to look at in a suspicious link, message or screenshot before you trust it.

Why read us?

Written by editors

No vendor sponsorship, no download mirrors, no affiliate pressure. Guides get revisited when Windows changes.

Our editorial standards are published in full —

Press logo shown in the media coverage row

read the editorial policy

How we test claims

Corrections and updates

Who writes here

Practical, not
theoretical

Every walkthrough is written against a real Windows 11 install: the exact screens, the exact menu names, and the point where most people get stuck. If a step behaves differently on Windows 10, we say so instead of glossing over it.

Scoped to what a home PC actually needs.

We start from the symptom, not the product page: browser hijacks, fake update prompts, sluggish boots. Each guide explains what causes it, what a scan can fix, and when the honest answer is a full Windows reset.

Built for Windows

4.6

Windows 10 and Windows 11 are our focus, so instructions match the operating system most readers are cleaning up.

Browse all guides

Independent by design

This site is not affiliated with Malwarebytes. We host no installers and sell nothing, and we link to the vendor for anything account-related.

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What we cover

Most people arrive here mid-problem: something on the PC is behaving strangely and the advice online contradicts itself. Our job is to explain what is happening in ordinary language, show the checks worth running, and be clear about the limits of any scanner — including when the right move is professional help or a clean install.

The topics our Windows guides keep coming back to

  • Malwarebytes Employee Pieter

    Scanning

    Detection and quarantine

    How signature matching and behavior monitoring differ, why a scan can flag a file your antivirus ignored,
    and how to read a results list without deleting something Windows still needs.

  • Malwarebytes Employee Uriya

    Removal

    Cleaning an infected PC

    Safe mode, startup entries, scheduled tasks and browser resets, in the order that actually works. We also cover the awkward cases: malware that blocks installers, and infections that survive a quarantine because a second component keeps restoring them.

  • Malwarebytes Employee Arpy

    Setup

    Installing without surprises

    Where to get software safely, why look-alike download pages are the single most common way readers infect a healthy machine, and how to configure a scanner so it coexists with Windows Security instead of fighting it for CPU time.

  • Malwarebytes Employee Ashley

    Scams

    Recognizing the pattern

    Refund traps, fake support calls, browser notification spam and phishing that copies a brand you already use. Each explainer shows the tells in the message itself, so the check takes seconds and does not depend on any software being installed first.

  • Malwarebytes Employee Russell

    Privacy

    Reducing what you expose

    What a VPN does and does not hide, which browser settings cut tracking with no real downside, and how much of your data is already public through ordinary directories.

  • Malwarebytes Employee Laura

    Updates

    Keeping Windows current

    Unpatched software is the quietest risk on most home PCs. We cover Windows Update behavior, the third-party apps worth checking by hand, and why end-of-support versions limit what any security tool can realistically do for you.

  • Malwarebytes Employee Nilay

    Backups

    Surviving ransomware

    A working backup is the only reliable answer to file-encrypting malware. We explain versioned copies, why a permanently attached drive is not enough, and how to test that a restore really works before you need it.

  • Malwarebytes CEO Marcin

    About us

    Editorial independence

    Malware-Bytes.net is an independent publication about Windows security. We are not the vendor, we do not distribute software, and we say plainly when a question can only be answered by official support.

  • Malwarebytes Employee Pieter

    Scanning

    Detection and quarantine

    How signature matching and behavior monitoring differ, why a scan can flag a file your antivirus ignored,
    and how to read a results list without deleting something Windows still needs.

  • Malwarebytes Employee Uriya

    Removal

    Cleaning an infected PC

    Safe mode, startup entries, scheduled tasks and browser resets, in the order that actually works. We also cover the awkward cases: malware that blocks installers, and infections that survive a quarantine because a second component keeps restoring them.

  • Malwarebytes Employee Arpy

    Setup

    Installing without surprises

    Where to get software safely, why look-alike download pages are the single most common way readers infect a healthy machine, and how to configure a scanner so it coexists with Windows Security instead of fighting it for CPU time.

  • Malwarebytes Employee Ashley

    Scams

    Recognizing the pattern

    Refund traps, fake support calls, browser notification spam and phishing that copies a brand you already use. Each explainer shows the tells in the message itself, so the check takes seconds and does not depend on any software being installed first.

  • Malwarebytes Employee Russell

    Privacy

    Reducing what you expose

    What a VPN does and does not hide, which browser settings cut tracking with no real downside, and how much of your data is already public through ordinary directories.

  • Malwarebytes Employee Laura

    Updates

    Keeping Windows current

    Unpatched software is the quietest risk on most home PCs. We cover Windows Update behavior, the third-party apps worth checking by hand, and why end-of-support versions limit what any security tool can realistically do for you.

  • Malwarebytes Employee Nilay

    Backups

    Surviving ransomware

    A working backup is the only reliable answer to file-encrypting malware. We explain versioned copies, why a permanently attached drive is not enough, and how to test that a restore really works before you need it.

  • Malwarebytes CEO Marcin

    About us

    Editorial independence

    Malware-Bytes.net is an independent publication about Windows security. We are not the vendor, we do not distribute software, and we say plainly when a question can only be answered by official support.

  • Malwarebytes Employee Pieter

    Scanning

    Detection and quarantine

    How signature matching and behavior monitoring differ, why a scan can flag a file your antivirus ignored,
    and how to read a results list without deleting something Windows still needs.

  • Malwarebytes Employee Uriya

    Removal

    Cleaning an infected PC

    Safe mode, startup entries, scheduled tasks and browser resets, in the order that actually works. We also cover the awkward cases: malware that blocks installers, and infections that survive a quarantine because a second component keeps restoring them.

  • Malwarebytes Employee Arpy

    Setup

    Installing without surprises

    Where to get software safely, why look-alike download pages are the single most common way readers infect a healthy machine, and how to configure a scanner so it coexists with Windows Security instead of fighting it for CPU time.

  • Malwarebytes Employee Ashley

    Scams

    Recognizing the pattern

    Refund traps, fake support calls, browser notification spam and phishing that copies a brand you already use. Each explainer shows the tells in the message itself, so the check takes seconds and does not depend on any software being installed first.

Start with the Windows guide

Read the guide

Malware-Bytes.net - independent Windows security guides and explainers.

COMPUTER SECURITY

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PRIVACY PROTECTION

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IDENTITY PROTECTION

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Windows security, explained weekly

New guides on malware scanning, cleanup and Windows hardening land in our updates list. No sales pitches, no vendor sponsorship.

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