The internet can be a dangerous place, and there are countless web sites just waiting to serve up a dose of malware. Everyone knows the importance of having antivirus and anti-malware software installed, but simply browsing the internet can direct you straight to web pages that could wreak untold damage to your computer. AVG Secure Search is a security tool that is constantly on the lookout for you, showing you safety rating for any sites you search for.

This browser plugin can be used with Internet Explorer, Firefox and Google Chrome, and it uses a custom Google search to let you know whether sites that appear in your search results are safe, risky or dangerous. You are not prevented from visiting sites that have been flagged up as being dangerous – mistakes do happen, after all, and there will inevitably be times when you need to access a site from the dark side – but warnings are displayed to strongly discourage you from going through with it.

AVG Secure Search

Providing you are not using Chrome, any web site you visit by typing its URL into the address bar will also be checked, as will links that are displayed on other web pages or in applications. There is often no way of knowing whether the links that are posted on the likes of Facebook are safe, but AVG Secure Search can let you know. It’s unfortunate that not all of the features of the tool are available in Chrome, but this is hopefully something that will be addressed in future releases.

Browser toolbars are rarely something that go down well, but you can opt to install one that compliments AVG Secure Search. From here you can not only perform searches – this is helpful if you have chosen not to make secure searches your default search engine – but also quickly access the option to wipe your browsing history. While this may not be the security tool to end all security tools, it is certainly helpful and a great tool to install on your parent’s computer to stop them from infecting their machine.

You can find out more and download a free copy of the program by paying a visit to the AVG Secure Search review page.