Get Blur lifetime privacy protection for $43.99

When most people think about security, they think about keeping viruses and spyware off their PC. But that's only half the battle: to really protect yourself in today's world, you need to keep a tight, impenetrable leash on your passwords, credit cards, phone numbers and the like.

Abine's Blur offers exactly this sort of privacy protection, usually to the tune of $39 per year. However, for a limited time, StackSocial is offering a Blur Premium lifetime subscription for $43.99 when you apply discount code BLURSPECIAL at checkout.

Please note that this is for US customers only, as using Blur requires an address verification, and that's not supported by most non-US banks.

Blur was designed to help you surf and shop the Web in total privacy. It does this via browser plug-ins (available for Chrome, Firefox, IE, Opera and Safari) that afford four main features: password management, masked email addresses, masked credit cards, and tracker blocking.

I'm not going to go into exhaustive detail on all this, other than to highlight the two "masking" features. As you go about your Web business, Blur can generate temporary, disposable email addresses and credit card numbers -- the idea being to reduce spam and prevent hackers from ever stealing your real credit card. Those features alone are probably worth the price of admission.

There's also a mobile component in the form of Blur apps for Android and iOS. You get all the same features as the desktop version, though you'll need to use Blur's built-in mobile browser if you want the password goodies. (That's not uncommon.) The Blur app also affords the option of a masked phone number, which will autoforward calls to your actual number and let you make anonymous outgoing calls.

CNET hasn't reviewed Blur, so I highly recommend reading PC Mag's review -- which, spoiler alert, culminated in an Editors' Choice pick. For my part, I reviewed Abine's DoNotTrackMe last year, from which many elements were rolled into the newer Blur product. I found it very comprehensive but with a bit of a learning curve.

Of course, sometimes protecting your privacy takes a little work. And a lifetime subscription to Blur for a couple bucks more than the price of a one-year subscription? To me, that's a no-brainer. If you're serious about online safety, this is a killer deal.

Bonus deal: In case you missed it the last time around, Vantrue (via Amazon) is once again offering the Ausdom M06 over-ear Bluetooth headphones for $39.99, shipped when you apply coupon code QTLPT74K at checkout. The M06 doubles as a headset for hands-free calling and includes a cable for jacking into non-Bluetooth audio souces. Take note, though: quantities are limited.