Top Five ‘Spyware Fighting’ Tips

Whether you realize it or not, there’s a quiet little battle raging on your computer. In one corner you have your faithful PC; in the other are malicious agents such as spyware, adware, malware, viruses, worms, and Trojans. Since the victor of this battle will decide who really controls your computer – use these 5 ‘Spyware Fighting’ tips to make sure you win the battle!

Whether you realize it or not, there’s a quiet little battle raging on your computer. In one corner you have your faithful PC; in the other are malicious agents such as spyware, adware, malware, viruses, worms, and Trojans. Since the victor of this battle will decide who really controls your computer – use these 5 ‘Spyware Fighting’ tips to make sure you win the battle!

Spyware and adware are becoming major problems for onlinesurfers and PC owners. Some highly respected sources such as AOL, Earthlink and Webroot place the rate of infection at 80-90% of all computers. Granted, some of this percentage is taken up by relatively benign tracking cookies, but other types like keyword logging, system monitors, worms and Trojans present a major threat to your privacy and may even do serious damage to your computer.

With the occurrences of Spyware increasing daily, chances are high that you will be going into battle against Spyware very soon – so if you need a battle plan – Try these 5 Tips:

1. Go on the offensive. Fight spyware before it even arrives onyour computer. Make sure you have a good ‘anti-virus software’ program running on your PC. Many ISPs (Internet Service Providers)now offer anti-virus programs or even purchasing a commercial productis to your advantage. Get a program or product that is regularlyupdated to fend off the latest viruses, adware, worms, trojans andspyware.

2. Put up a Firewall. A Firewall should be one of your first lines of defense against spyware. A Firewall is simply a system or gateway designed to prevent unauthorized access to your computer or network. Check out www.zonealarm.com, they provide a free Firewall for individual users. Download their program and place it on your PC.

3. Don’t open Emails and Attachments from people you don’t know. Use common sense, DON’T open any emails from people you don’t know. Especially, do not open any Attachments until they are scanned for spyware andviruses. Many mail servers will do these scans for free.

4. Keep Your Operating System Up to Date. Be aware of what’s on your system – do regular spyware and adware scans to see exactly what’s on your computer. Know your machine! You may be horrified to learn someone may be monitoring your every ‘keystroke’ and every ‘image’ you’ve viewed on your computer. So scan regularly and also make sure you download the newest updates from your Operating System; these often contain patches or fixes for serious breaches of security of your PC.

5. Back-up Your System. If all the above steps fail, nothing is foolproof, any computer that uses the Internet can be hacked, so you need to back-up your important data. You can use floppy disks, CDs or use a second computer that’s not connected to the net just for storage or back-up of your sensitive data/programs. An inexpensive notebook computer can be used to make daily/weekly back-ups of your vital data and programs.

In conclusion, the best defense against any spyware is a strong offense. Be prepared, be aware, but most of all, be battle-ready: have a system in place that will nuke these spyware agents before they even reach your computer. Choose your weapons carefully, be merciless, be thorough and take no prisoners! This is one battle you can’t afford to lose.

Implement and Use these 5 helpful ‘Spyware Fighting’ tips and the Victory is yours!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

To learn more about Spyware and Adware Click Here:Spyware
Remover Guide
Copyright 2005 Titus Hoskins of www.bizwaremagic.com.
This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays
attached.

Written by mellow on November 13th, 2006 with no comments.
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Internet Security – A Beginners Guide

The quest for convenience is a two edged sword. In our quest for speed, efficiency and walking as little as possible, we strive to make life as simple as possible. It was not so log ago that business was done face to face; meetings and paper letters were how we communicated. When we shopped we walked or drove to a store, loaded a trolley or basket and checked out.

Now, we can sit in the comfort of our own home and have face to face meetings through video conferencing, send a letter in less than a second and most importantly, shift our hard earned cash from one bank to another.

But there is a price some pay and it goes beyond the fees and any appropriate software. The more convenient we make life, the more potential avenues for theft and fraud we create.

Internet security is of paramount importance. When you live in a city, you lock your house door, lock the car, engage the alarm and leave lights on when you go out.

We speak of a ‘global village’, but I think this gives a false impression. Life on the internet is not a village – it’s a global city – and city mentality is needed.

So how can you lock up and alarm your virtual doors?

ANITVIRUS

For some reason, there are some people out there who get kicks out of writing little programs that cause computers problems. These range from annoying little bugs to complete computer breakdown. It can either be irritating or catastrophic leading to a loss of all data.

The solution – anti-virus (a virus killer). There are many programs that can spot a virus when it comes via a website or email – and kill it outright – is like cyber-bleach. These programs stay in the background, get updated with the latest threats and jump into action when needed.

SPYWARE

Although spy ware doesn’t usually cause computer meltdown, it can actually be more damaging. Spy ware are other little programs that run in the background of your computer – the monitor you online activity and report back to the sender. The threat? If you’re banking online or dealing with sensitive data, it could be under threat.

Like anti-virus software – there is a host of good spy ware checkers and removers.

It pays to get protected before you need it – there is no use locking the stable door after the horse has bolted. You can see the cyber locksmith at http://online-security-solutions.com

? 2006 Copyright Steve Holloway. You may republish this article as long as it remains unchanged and the resource box is included.

About the Author

Steve Holloway has been in online business for several years. For more information and resources go to Internet Security Guide

Written by mellow on November 13th, 2006 with no comments.
Read more articles on Internet Security.