Round up: The best free privacy software 2016

Keep your online activity private

The best free privacy software

You don't need to be Edward Snowden to want privacy protection; you might not like your entire life mined by advertisers, you might be planning to sell a hard drive and want to wipe its contents, or you might want to keep your personal information secure when using a public Wi-Fi hotspot.

The apps here cover everything from secure web browsing to secure file erasing, and we've also included tools to make Windows 10 less nosey, and a completely secure OS that you can run from a USB drive.

1. Tor Browser

Divert web traffic through a network of nodes to hide your identity

The Tor network (short for The Onion Router, which describes its multi-layered privacy technology) was designed to enable anonymous internet browsing, and the Firefox-based Tor Browser is by far the quickest and simplest way to start using it.

You browse the web as normal, and the browser uses thousands of relays to disguise where your data's coming from, and provided you practise safe surfing – something the browser warns you about; it can only do so much to protect your privacy if you're sharing personal information online – it delivers secure browsing that's only slightly slower than normal. It's also handy for accessing geoblocked sites that block IP addresses from specific countries.

Tor Browser is our most highly recommended piece of privacy-protecting software, and the tools below can supplement its safeguards to keep your activities even more discreet.

2. CyberGhost VPN

A virtual private network designed for regular file-sharers

CyberGhost VPN is a virtual private network app that re-routes your internet traffic to hide your location and identity, and it's clearly targeted at torrent users and people who want to access geo-blocked services.

It has six elements: anonymous browsing, unblocking streaming sites, protecting your internet connection, torrenting anonymously, unblocking websites and choosing which VPN server to use, but the free version is ad-supported and runs much more slowly than the paid-for premium service.

3. Ghostery

Stop tracking cookies monitoring your browsing

You may not realise it, but your surfing habits are probably being tracked by dozens of websites keen to sell you their products. These tracking cookies are not malicious, but you may not want Amazon and friends collecting your data and knowing exactly what you're thinking of buying. That's where Ghostery comes in. It's available for Chrome, Firefox, Opera, Safari, Android and iOS, and its job is to block the various tracking systems that attempt to follow you around the internet to sell you stuff.

You can simply install it and let it get on with its job, but looking at each site's Ghostery report is a real eye-opener: some sites have so many different trackers and advertising networks it's a miracle their pages ever load. Ghostery also tells you exactly what each company is looking at and likely to do with your data, so if you'd rather not share every click with marketers, its a must-have.

4. KeyScrambler Personal

Avoid hidden keyloggers by spoofing keypresses

KeyScrambler Personal is a tiny app (under 1.5MB) designed to do just one thing: encrypt every letter you type into your web browser to prevent it being intercepted by keylogging software. The free version supports 38 different browsers (but not Microsoft Edge at the time of writing), but other kinds of apps such as email, instant messaging and online gaming require the paid-for versions of the product.

If you worry about keylogging or suspect that you're being logged whenever you type, it's a good way to frustrate the watchmen.

5. AntiSpy for Windows 10

Microsoft wants to harvest your details – don't let it

Windows 10 is the most personal version of Windows yet, with lots of convenient features and the Cortana personal assistant, but Microsoft's efforts to get to know you better have alarmed many privacy activists, who believe that the OS gathers far too much data about you.

If you share their concerns, there are several apps designed to limit the data that Windows 10 gathers. One of the most straightforward is Ashampoo's AntiSpy For Windows 10, which enables you to disable advertising IDs, SmartScreen filtering, whether apps can access your camera and so on.

6. GnuPG

Open source encryption for your files and emails

GnuPG is short for GNU Privacy Guard, and it's the open source version of the venerable PGP (Pretty Good Privacy) tool for encrypting files and emails.

It enables you to encrypt and digitally sign data and documents with technology that's effectively unbreakable, and although GnuPG itself is a command line client (so you'd run it in a DOS window) there are dozens of programs that wrap its encryption in a more welcoming environment, such as Claws Mail and Kleopatra (pictured above). If you're sharing data that simply can't fall into the wrong hands, GnuPG is an important tool.

7. Hotspot Shield

Secure your connection and spoof your location

Hotspot Shield works on Windows from XP onwards, and there are also versions for Mac, Android, iOS and Windows Phone.

It's designed to secure your wireless internet connection and bypass geographical issues, but the free version does come with some significant limitations – so for example you can't use streaming services such as Netflix or Hulu, you can only connect via servers in the US, and you have to see ads that the app injects into web pages. The reasonably priced Elite version removes those restrictions.

8. Tails

A whole operating system dedicated to your privacy

Rather than try to patch an existing operating system, wouldn't it be great if you could have an OS that was designed with privacy in mind? That's what Tails offers, in a package small enough to run from a USB drive or SD card.

It's based on Debian GNU/Linux and includes a browser, instant messaging, email and office apps, all of which have been configured specifically to protect your privacy. As the Tails website puts it, you can use it anywhere and leave no trace. Edward Snowden says it's great.

9. Wise Folder Hider

Sharing a PC with others? Keep them out of your personal files

Designed for Windows XP onwards, Wise Folder Hider does what the name suggests: it hides things on your PC. The free edition enables you to hide files and folders (both locally and on USB drives) and to password-protect them, although it doesn't encrypt anything; for that you'll need the $19.95 Pro version.

If all you need is a way to hide work files from the kids, or the novel you're working on from the boss, then it's a good little app, although if you're truly paranoid you'll want to invest in the Pro version to scramble the files as well as hiding them.

10. Eraser

Shred sensitive data so it can't be recovered – ever

Windows doesn't delete files when you trash them –it simply marks them as okay to write over. That means it's quite easy to recover deleted files from a PC, which isn't ideal if you're Jason Bourne, or if you're selling an old PC to somebody you don't know.

Enter Eraser, which overwrites deleted files again and again and again with carefully selected patterns that render data unrecoverable by any normal person. It's compatible with Windows versions from XP onwards, and does exactly what it promises to do.

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