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Malware Prevention
There are several things you can do to
keep viruses
and spyware off of
your PC. The first thing you should do is load a good antivirus and
antispyware program. The subscription must be kept up to date and you
should run scans of your hard drive every week or so. Most programs can
be scheduled to run these scans. If you leave your PC on at night, this
would be the time to have the scans run.
The next step is to update Windows.
This can be done by going to Microsoft's Update
Website. You can set your PC for Automatic
Updates . This patches many of the security vulnerabilities
in Windows and Internet Explorer.
Now that Windows is up to date, you can
load Windows Defender
onto your PC if you have not already done so. Windows Defender is a
free antispyware program made by Microsoft. By default, it runs at 2:00
AM and scans your PC. It keeps it's definitions up to date.
It
runs in the background and needs very little user knowledge or
assistance in detecting or removing spyware.
The next step is to install a firewall.
Many of the
antivirus programs that can be purchased today come packaged as a suite
of programs ( antivirus, antispyware, firewall, antispam..). Most of
these programs have to be taught what outside programs have permission
to access your computer. When they are first installed, you get a lot
of
notices and questions concerning programs wanting access. When problems
arise, it can block access to the Internet or any network shares you
may have. You may need a service call to get this problem resolved.
Windows XP with Service Pack 2 has a firewall. It is considered by most
to be less secure than the firewalls that are packaged with the
suites. Windows firewall monitors access in one direction
only.
It does not monitor programs on your PC wanting to access or download
programs from the Internet. When it malfunctions though, it does not
block access to the Internet.
Running scans to detect viruses and/or
spyware can
be very time consuming. This time can be even more if you have multiple
people logging onto the PC with their own login name. To keep the
computer clean, you will have to log in as each user one at a time and
run the scans. An other option is to load a program
called Hijack This. It does not scan
your PC for viruses. It looks in all the areas where the viruses and
spyware hides and reports all programs that are loaded. Hijack This can
be configured to run at boot up and can be configured to ignore all
programs that are not a threat. The best time to load this program is
when the computer is new and you are positive there is no spyware on
it. Upon boot up, Hijack This will notify you of any newly installed
software. You then can decide to allow the software to load or to
remove it.
If you are not already running Internet
Explorer 7, you can go to McAfee's Website
and download Site Advisor. Site Advisor loads into the toolbar and
notifies you if the Website you want to go to is known to modify
browser security, download spyware or send a lot of spam. It is a lot
easier to keep the spyware off of your system if you know what websites
to avoid.
Lastly, you can install a program
called Klick Safe. It maintains
your Internet Explorer 6 security settings. It
loads a program in the system tray, the icon looks like a
lock.
The program has two security settings, high and medium. On high,
nothing can be downloaded. On medium, you can download programs but
security settings are high enough to keep the Malware off. It can also
remind you that you are in medium security mode and prompt you to put
the PC back in high security mode. If you are on a safe site,
with two clicks of the mouse, you can add that site to your
trusted zone.
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