How to Avoid a Malware Infestation on your PC
Posted by Derek · May 7th, 2008… and save the computer-savvy folks a lot of time.
One of the areas where PC’s are considerably less user friendly than Mac’s is in the realm of Malware. While Malware still threatens Mac users, their operating systems are much more stable and can better reduce the amount of alien information trafficking around the file system. PC’s are easier to target; that is why 95% of Malware is targeted toward the PC platform. Before I tell you how to prevent Malware effectively on the PC, I better define it.
There are lots of words thrown around when it comes to things you don’t want on your computer: Viruses, Adware, and Spyware. Here are the differences:
- Viruses are computer programs that, like a organic virus, can reproduce on your computer and spread to other computers via e-mail, flash drives, and shared files.
- Adware is software that is installed on your computer to show you advertisements.
- Spyware is software which is installed on your computer to spy on your activities and report this data to people willing to pay for it.
Malware is sort of an umbrella phrase that covers all software whose perceived intent is malicious (Malware is a combination of the words Malicious and Software). This includes Adware, Spyware, viruses, etc.
So now that you know what it is how do you prevent it from happening to you? Here are so tips for preventing Malware on your PC:
1. You should have a good virus scanner running on your PC. Norton and McAfee are the most common, but there are many free virus scanners that work very well also (look at the Free Basic Protection at http://free.grisoft.com/). No virus scan will work unless you update it very frequently. All virus scanners have the option to get updates… DO IT! Virus definitions change every week and if you aren’t up to date your virus software is worthless.
2. You need more than a virus scanner. Most virus scans can detect viruses and Trojans, but most of them don’t detect adware and spyware. Spybot is a free program for detecting spyware/adware. Check it out at http://www.safer-networking.org/en/spybotsd/index.html. Run this in conjunction with your Virus scanner.
3. Don’t open anything you don’t recognize, whether it be e-mail or a pop-up window claiming there is an error on your PC. These companies try to trick you by making small browser windows that look like errors pop up claiming something is wrong. ALWAYS close these windows by click on the “X” in the top right corner, never click on the “Close” button on the window!
4. Use Firefox as your browser. Firefox is a free browser that in my opinion is much better than Internet Explorer for many reasons, one of them being it does a better job with its built-in tools at blocking pop-ups and active X installers before they become a problem. You can download it here: http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/
If you stick to these tricks you will save yourself a lot of heartache (and save your computer-wise nephew, niece, son, daughter a lot of time) by dealing with Malware before it becomes a problem. If you have any other tips or tricks about these issues, they would sure make a great MindBite!
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Tags: Malware | Posted in Life and Learning |
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May 7th, 2008 at 2:20 pm
Great point, once you have it there can be persistent trouble. I like these tools to get rid of it:
AdAware
http://www.lavasoftusa.com/
Spybot Search & Destroy
http://www.safer-networking.org/en/index.html