Bitdefender, a provider of antivirus solutions, has launched Safepay, a free desktop app that shields online transactions from growing criminal threats to help bring back confidence to online surfing and shopping.

Bitdefender Safepay, a hacker-proof hardened browser, protects sensitive data from the full array of threats posed to sensitive banking and financial data, including hackers, phishing, packet sniffing, man-in-the-browser attacks, man-in-the-middle attack, Trojans, tampering and more.

Safepay shields e-shopping and online banking transactions from any spying, detects and blocks ID theft, prevents hostile screenshots of data, bars criminals from tracking keystrokes, detects fraudulent web sites and scans web traffic to foil stealth attacks before they even reach the browser.

"As millions more Internet users turn to the convenience and versatility of online banking, cyber-criminals have been hitting them hard with an array of tricks, scams and malware that can be bewildering," said Bitdefender chief security strategist Catalin Cosoi. "So we designed a product to change all that. Safepay protects ebankers and shoppers from all types of online threats, all the time."

Safepay, which has won praise from PC Mag and other expert sites, is also available in a premium version, which features Hotspot Protection, creating a barrier of privacy even on public Wi-Fi hotspots.

Safepay, which has won praise from PC Mag and other expert sites, is also available in a premium version, which features Hotspot Protection, creating a barrier of privacy even on public Wi-Fi hotspots.