Cybersecurity is essential in this day and age when all of our lives are tightly knit to the world wide web. Work, keeping in touch with friends, shopping, staying informed — everything can be done online in one way or another. However, if you are not diligent, then you will end up lacking privacy and giving out all of your data and information to everyone willing to scrape it up. Ever wondered why the ads you see on one website are eerily related to what you’re doing on another site? It’s because your browsing data is sold to data companies, which create a profile about you and your interests. This doesn’t seem so bad at first, except you don’t have any control over what gets shared. Otherwise, here’s a list of the best free security software products that respect your privacy and improve your digital security against cybersecurity threats.

Brave is a free and open-source chromium-based browser that is all about privacy and security. It blocks ads and trackers that collect your data and sell it to the highest bidder. These blocks also give you the benefit of less background processes and improved browser performance. But something has to keep the lights on, even for websites, which is why you can opt into privacy-respecting ads that reward you with special tokens that are used to support content creators on the web. If that’s not enough, then wait until you hear about their new feature that will generate unique digital fingerprints every time you browse. This technique makes you even harder to track.

A good browser is the first thing you need to choose because a lot of the default settings on the mainstream ones leave you lacking privacy. You can download Brave for either Windows, MacOS or Linux here.

NordLocker is a file encryption service, built with security and efficiency in mind. It allows you to safely store your most important files, regardless if you keep them on your desktop or tucked away in cloud storage. And if you send out files often then encrypting them should become a standard security practice for you, or else you run the risk of becoming a victim of cybersecurity threats.

NordLocker is easy to use and lets you decide who gains access to your files and keeps unwanted onlookers at bay. The free version enables you to encrypt up to 2GB of data without any file format restrictions. Once encrypted, the files can be modified without the need to decipher them individually; all you need is to unlock the special folders with your password. You might think that 2GB is a small amount, but it’s actually more than enough to protect your most important personal documents.

NordLocker is currently available for Windows and MacOS. Check out the free version and encrypt up to 2GB.

You can never have too many layers of encryption protecting you, which is why you should secure your email communication by choosing an end-to-end encrypted email provider like ProtonMail. No personal information is needed when creating your inbox to maximize your anonymity and communicate safely online. If that’s not enough, then you can rest assured that your privacy is under excellent protection with strict Swiss privacy laws. And in case you’re still not convinced, then you are more than welcome to scrutinize the tech yourself because everything is open-source.

All of this comes with a limitation of only 500MB of encrypted storage for free users, so make sure that you don’t send bulky files through email, use some form of cloud storage or file transfer instead. Regardless, you can sign up for the free plan here.

One of the most common security flaws among internet users is the reuse of passwords on multiple websites, which makes it easy for hackers to target you if even one site leaks your log-in credentials. For this reason, using a password manager should be standard security practice for everyone. NordPass is an excellent choice because it is an advanced password manager that is also free, multi-platform, and audited by a third party. It allows you to safely store all of your passwords in a secure vault. The free version does limit you to only one device and excludes the secure password sharing feature, but the slight inconvenience is no excuse for lousy cybersecurity habits.

You only need an email address to try out NordPass for free, so go ahead and see what it has to offer.

It is becoming painfully apparent that most people think that Google is somehow synonymous with search engines, but that is far from the truth. Even though Google does provide a lot of detailed information from simple queries, this does not excuse their lack of respect for our privacy. Instead, it would be best if you opted for more secure options like DuckDuckGo, who have been around for more than ten years with the sole intent of informing us about the importance of online privacy. Or, if you feel like giving back to our planet instead, go with Ecosia, which uses ad revenue money to plant trees around the world.

Conclusion

These cybersecurity tools are just the tip of the iceberg in the journey of reclaiming our data and privacy back. It holds a lot of value, and we should do everything that we can to protect it from various cybersecurity threats and control who has access to it. However, not all tools are good enough to use when free. For example, when choosing a VPN for security, it is better to opt for something paid, as VPN’s don’t get ad revenue and have servers to maintain. A VPN is especially important because it can hide your location and secure your entire internet traffic, which is why you shouldn’t entrust it all to a free service and find a premium one instead. Overall, when it comes to online privacy, the extra steps you take go a long way.