In an ever changing world of Viruses, Trojans, Worms, and Root kits. It is always wise to just take a step back and evaluate how you are accessing the internet and our you interact with it. By changing just a few things in your routine you can prevent a few headaches in the future. Here are just a few steps you can take to help prevent a virus outbreak on your system, and even your friends systems.
These are in no particular order
* Be cautious with your E-Mail address. Just because a website asks for your E-Mail address does not mean you have to provide it. Make sure you read the privacy agreement before you provide your information. If no such agreement is provided then perhaps you should not give them your information at all. * Use multiple Passwords. Do not use the same password to protect your E-Mail, Banking, Video poker (we will talk about this later), and polly pocket fan club. Use different passwords for different things. For instance polly pocket does not need to have a Highly secure password where as your bank password should contain Capital, Lowercase, and numbers AT LEAST. * Avoid clicking on Ads on social network sites. Sure these ads are there to assist in giving the website money, However these are one of the leading causes for Virus infections on systems today. * Avoid sketchy game sites, There are a lot of game sites out there such as video poker that are there simply to infect your system and gain access to banking information. Do yourself a favor and ignore them. * Go to the search engine itself do not use a tool bar. Many tool bars simply slow down your system. And even a few (My search, Searchway, etc...) in fact carry viruses in them which are a problem from the start. If you want to search for something Just about every browser these days has a search box built right in. * If in doubt ignore it. If you see a pop up box click out of it ignore it. If you see something on a web page that says click here to scan for viruses ignore it. These are just ploys to get you to install something that will harm your computer or cost you money. If something looks strange to you simply ignore it and keep about your business. * Just think about it first. If you see something that you are not sure about think about it for a few minutes. If you see a Join now button. think do you really need this. If not then do not do it. * Always keep your Anti-virus up to date, If you feel that you cannot afford an anti-virus, Think of it like car insurance, you only need it if you have an accident, there are many Free anti virus applications out there that you can download, Microsoft even offers Free anti virus that you can download directly from their website. * Keep your system up to date. It only takes a few minutes once a month to download and install Windows updates. Keep up with them * Scan your computer at least once a month, Personally i run mine once a week however once a month is just fine.
And one last Very important note.
Once infected Always infected, If you find that you have had a rather major infection on your system Find your resource discs and reformat your pc. Its just safer.
