Spyware Search and Destroy

Posts Tagged ‘Yourself’

7 Tips You Should Use To Protect Your Computer And Yourself On The Internet

The internet is a scary place. Most of you have probably had experiences with a computer virus at some point. Did the virus make your computer go really slow? Did the virus force you to reinstall your operating system? Sadly, these are some of the more lucky results. It’s possible for viruses to steal your information, send e-mails from your account, and a lot more. Hackers can also do just as much and even more. So how do you go about protecting yourself? Here are 7 tips that will show you how to keep you and your computer safe.

1. Safeguard your information! Be very cautious about giving your personal information out over the internet. You should never give it out to someone in an e-mail. If you plan on buying something online, double check to make sure you are on the official website of that online store. Also, make sure there is an “https” before the URL. This indicates that the website you are on is secure.

2. Be very cautious about clicking hyperlinks in e-mails. It is very common for criminals to pretend to be official businesses, friends, etc., to get you to try to click a hyperlink in an e-mail. What’s the worst that could happen? Well, clicking a hyperlink alone can be enough to infect your computer.

3. Keep your protection software updated! This is probably the most important tip. You need to make sure that your spyware protection and virus protection is up to date. New viruses are being created every day, therefore you need to make sure to update your protection every day. If you aren’t keeping your protection updated, you aren’t really protected from the latest viruses.

4. Take advantage of your browser security features. These days, browsers like Internet Explorer and FireFox come with great security features. Don’t skip out on using these!

5. Don’t give out your passwords to friends! This is so important. Even if a friend has good intensions, what if a friends computer has a virus? Then someone can still get your passwords. There is no reason to give your passwords out. Also, make sure to create a secure password. This means creating a unique password for each website. You also want to use passwords that are a mix of letters and numbers.

6. Backup your computer often! Believe me, if something happens to your computer and you lose all your files, you will wish you did this. Backing up your computer can be done in under an hour, and it will save you many weeks of trying to replace everything if you lost all your files.

7. Get an emergency plan figured out. What if your computer is hacked? What is the first thing you are going to do? Are you going to run a virus scan first? Unplug the internet? Take it to someone to have it looked at? Figure out what you will do so that if the worst happens, your first response is getting the computer fixed instead of figuring out how to.

If you follow these 7 tips, you will have a much more secure computer then you may currently have. I would estimate that 90% of computer users don’t follow these tips. So become one of the 10%, and be on your way to keeping yourself and your computer protected.

Good luck!

Protect yourself from threats and web-dangers with antivirus software

There are many threats to computer users. That is due to the fact that the World Wide Web is no longer a safe place for computer users to “hang out.” That is because there are illegal companies and shady individuals who strive to create terrible programs and viruses that can infect your entire computer system and render it useless! Some of these people do it for fun, while others do it to for advertisement purposes or to sell “virus removal programs.” Whatever the case may be, you are not safe when you browse the Internet, even if you don’t visit threat related websites.

The World Wide Web is saturated with many threats! These threats can come in the form of viruses, worms, Trojans, bots, spyware, key loggers, malice mobile code, root kits, phishing, and even content threats! These days you can simply get a computer virus by clicking on a link or even from visiting your favorite website. This is because the creators of these types of viruses are making it harder and harder for casual Internet users to avoid their handy-work.

However, the good news is that you can protect your computer system from possible threat with the use of an effective antivirus protection program. Trend Micro is one of the leading providers and creators of antivirus software on the market today. They work just as hard as hackers and virus creators do, however, they are working for the betterment of the Internet and for the safety of the computer owner.

The InterSscan Security Suite from Trend Micro is one of the most effective, yet affordable antivirus software utilities available to consumers today. This amazing antivirus protection suite can protect your computer in real time from old, current, and even new computer virus threats. The program is easy to install and can be up, running, and protecting your entire computer network in a matter of minutes! Additionally, it is one of the most reliable, trusted, and affordable antivirus software programs available.

InterScan can provide immediate protection for you computer! It can preempt attacks in real time with what is known as Web Reputation which is powered by Trend Micro’s Smart Protection Network. It can scan HTTP/FTP traffic for common malware and other dangerous web related threats. This antivirus software will screen web pages for malicious mobile code. It does this by validating Java and ActiveX code. This antivirus protection agent can also block outbound data that is sent to known phishing and spyware related websites. It also enforces Internet use policies with URL filtering! There is no better or more effective antivirus software utility available to consumers today!

The InterScan antivirus protection suite also updates daily in order to keep your computer protected from the newest and greatest threats on the web. This will ensure that you are always protected day and night no matter what virus creators may throw your way! InterScan is by and far one of the most powerful, effective, and affordable antivirus protection suites available! That is why more and more people are turning to Trend Micro for all of the their antivirus software needs.

Protecting Yourself and Your Computer While Using Social Networking Sites

Social Networking sites can be a great place to catch up with old friends, meet new people from all over the world, as well as have a place on the Internet that is uniquely your own. But social networking sites can also be hotbeds for harmful computer viruses and malware. So how can you enjoy your time on the social networking sites, yet still protect your computer, as well as your personal information? By using caution, and following some protective measures, you will not only be able to enjoy your experience using social media, but you will not harm your computer, or risk your personal information in the process.

Social Networking sites like Facebook, Myspace, and Twitter have become exceedingly popular for kid and adults, all over the world. But the real question is, is it safe? The answer is yes and no. Ultimately these sites are well protected against viruses and malware, but there are always circumstances where your computer could be vulnerable. However, if you follow the right precautionary measures, and you stay vigilant, as well as informed, you will not only enjoy your social media experience, but protect your computer and personal information as well.

Some ways to stay vigilant while using social media sites is to never divulge any personal information. This means never listing information on these sites such as your phone number, address, social security number, etc. Sometimes using your full name can even put you at risk, which is why using nicknames or name abbreviations aren’t always a bad route to go. Also, be aware that almost anyone all over the world can view your page, as well as pictures you may have on there, and other personal information. If this is something that you want to stay away from, many of these sites offer you an option of making your profile private, so that only your contacts can view your page. By being smart, and protecting your personal information, you can protect yourself from viral predators, as well as anyone else looking to misuse your personal information.

Now that you know how to protect yourself, what about protecting your computer? Protecting your computer from viruses and malware, is much like protecting your personal information: it takes vigilance and proper education. One important step to take is to protect your password and log in information. The most common way for hackers to access your social media accounts is by getting access to your user name and passwords, then sending harmful information from your account. The best way to protect against this is by never divulging this information to anyone. Also, make sure to keep your passwords safe by changing them periodically, and not making them too easy to figure out. Secondly, these networking sites will never ask for your user name or password after you have registered an account with them. If you get an email from one of these sites asking you for your password or username, delete it immediately. Moreover, please be aware that some url shorteners may lead you into trouble. If you don’t know the person sending the link, be careful and make sure your security software has been updated before clicking.

Social Networking sites can be great places to meet people, contact old friends, as well create a unique site to attract like-minded people. But with using anything on the Internet, there are inherent threats and dangers. Protect yourself by using common sense, staying vigilant, as well being informed about new threats and viruses.

If you liked this article, tell all your friends about it. They’ll thank you for it. If you have a blog or website, you can link to it or even post it to your own site (don’t forget to mention www.meetingwave.com as the original source).

Computer Security Terms To Familiarize Yourself With

People today are using computers for a wide array of different activities, and unfortunately this has lead to hackers and scam artists becoming increasingly intelligent with systems. Fortunately, there are a number of computer security programs and downloads that can protect your computer. Here are some terms you will want to familiarize yourself with.

The first term to know is firewall, which works to secure your computer. What it does is restrict information that comes to your computer from other computers, thus providing you with much more control over viruses, programs and worms that other people may send. If you have a high speed connection, have a firewall is an absolute must.

The next computer security term to familiarize yourself with is spyware, which is a rather broad category for malicious software that takes partial control over your computer’s operation without your consent. Spyware essentially monitors your activity on the internet and sends the information to someone else. It can record everything from your keystrokes, history, passwords and other confidential information. Installing anti-spyware is extremely important.

The final term to associate yourself with is virus and anti-virus programs. A virus is a program or code that is loaded onto your computer and can bring your system to a halt. There are simple viruses that can be fixed and more dangerous viruses that will actually bypass security systems. Viruses are typically hidden in programs and activated when you run the program, so be careful what you download. Anti-virus programs can help warn you if a file or program is unsafe. It does this by scanning all incoming and outgoing files for known viruses.

Dirty Little Computer Viruses and How To Protect Yourself

Whether you have learned your lesson from a past experience with a nasty computer virus or have been pressing your luck by surfing the web and downloading various files or opening those email messages sent to you by people you don’t know without any real understanding of just how vulnerable you really are each time you log onto your computer.

You now have the opportunity to discover what steps you can take to avoid such an annoying and many times destructive infestation.

Listed below are some of the guidelines you can follow in order to keep those nasty viruses from making a mess out of your computer and your life.

*Purchase and install a well respected antivirus software program and be sure to set it up so that it automatically runs when the computer starts up each time.

*Make sure to keep your antivirus software up to date by either using the automatic update feature that many come with or make it a habit to manually check at least once or twice a week for updates on your own.

*Set your antivirus program to scan for potential viruses each time you open a word-processing document like the ones that get sent through email. Viruses found in word-processing documents are called Macro Viruses.

*When purchasing software make sure to only buy from vendors that are well known and from ones you trust.

*Resist swapping data with the use of floppy disks or other mobile storage devices between various computers. If exchanging programs between computers is unavoidable just make sure to scan the storage device(s) for viruses before transferring data from one computer to the next.

*If using floppy disks to transfer data make sure to format them before using them for the first time.

*Never use pirated software. This is both illegal and a very good way to invite an unwanted computer virus.

*When downloading software from the internet do so as little as possible. There are many neat programs available on the internet, but unfortunately there are many viruses that go along with them also.

*If you must download programs from the internet ALWAYS scan them for viruses BEFORE opening them up to install on your computer.

*Probably the most important and neglected method of disaster recovery are periodic backups of all important files found on your computer. Should a virus happen to get through your lines of defense you may need to replace the virus corrupted files with fresh ones that have been kept for such an occasion.

Finally, it is not guaranteed that if you follow the above steps that you will not be the victim of a computer virus, but you can sure bet that if followed you will greatly reduce the chance of being an unsuspecting recipient of such an unwanted program.