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Free
Computer Clean-Up
Fix your computer right now - free tips and advice on how to
clean up your PC or notebook computer. Read our
easy-to-follow steps on how to clean up your computer and the best
computer virus protection. Once you are finished,
make sure you protect your computer from harmful viruses and spyware - learn how
to protect your PC.
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Install and Run Anti-Virus Software
 If you are a US Government employee or
Military Service Member, you are
authorized to receive a free copy of Norton Antivirus Corporate Edition -
please refer to your computer support personnel to receive this free
software. After you install your
Antivirus
software, ensure that you are updating the virus definitions regularly and
that you actually run a scan on your computer regularly (weekly).
Lastly, as most viruses are transmitted by email, ensure that your software
is scanning all incoming emails, attachments, and downloaded files.
"A typical unprotected
PC will come under attack
within 20 minutes of being connected to the Internet."
Total Anti-Virus Protection
To ensure that you keep your computer virus-free, you will need to scan
for viruses on a regular basis - at least once a week. Using a
program such as Norton Anti-Virus, you can easily schedule for weekly
(or other interval) scans. Simply scanning is not enough.
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You should also enable your anti-virus
software to actively scan all incoming emails - most software can even
connect directly to your email program and scan incoming emails as you
receive them (MS Outlook, etc.) Also, set up your anti-virus
software to scan incoming downloaded files too - so that files that your
download off the internet or via a P2P server are scanned before they
can do harm to your computer system. |
Lastly, you will need to consistently
update your virus definitions - if you do not, your virus scans are
virtually worthless. Most commercial anti-virus software programs
will give you free virus definition updates for one year, however, after
that you will need to pay additional fees. If you do not, you will
not be able to download any additional virus definitions and your
program will be out of date. Keep up with your virus definitions -
most anti-virus applications readily show on the screen the last time
the virus definitions were downloaded - so you can see how current they
are.
Read more about
Anti-Virus Software and how to protect your computer.
Free Online Virus Scans
>>Trend Micro House Call -
Free Virus Checker
>>BitDefender -
Free
Online Virus Scanner
>>Freedom
Internet - Free Online Virus Scan
>>Kaspersky
Webscan - Free Online Virus Scanner
Trend Micro's
Housecall is a Web-based
antivirus utility that not only scans your system for viruses and worms
and removes any potential problems it discovers, but it does all this
for free! Housecall does more than simply scan for dangerous code,
however. Unlike many other Web-based scan utilities, Housecall can also
eliminate most viruses or worms it finds. Housecall is more than just a
marketing tool. It's a workhorse. An "Auto Clean" option lets you turn
over all scrubbing functions to Housecall, which carries them off
flawlessly, removing any questionable files or embedded code it
discovers during a scan. Alternatively, you can elect to correct things
yourself after Housecall finishes its scan.
Computer viruses are harmful to your
computer - they can bog down and slow your computer processes, delete
files, and even completely stop your computer from running altogether.
Keeping your computer virus-free is an active, ongoing job. You
will need to update your virus definitions, run regularly scheduled
scans of your computer, and keep an active defense, scanning all
incoming files, emails, and attachments.
A
computer virus is an executable file designed to replicate itself while
avoiding detection. A virus may disguise itself as a legitimate program.
Viruses are often rewritten and adjusted so that they will not be
detected. Anti-virus programs must be updated continuously to look for
new and modified viruses. Viruses are the number one method of computer
vandalism.
Also visit this
Free Online Scanner for PC Health and Safety and
Microsoft Security At Home for tips to Protect your Pc, Protect
yourself and Protect your Family.
More info on how to prevent malware you can also find
here (By Tony Klein)
and here:
http://wiki.castlecops.com/Malware_Prevent...nt_Re-infection
Did you Find a Virus?
The best thing to do is try to let your Virus Protection Program
attempt to either kill the virus - or if it can't do that, at least
quarantine the virus. For more information on specific viruses,
check out Symantec's
Virus Information Website.
This site is also where you can check whether or not an email notice
about a virus is a hoax or a real virus.
If your antivirus software identified a virus by
name, but was unable to eliminate it, type in the name of the virus on
Symantec's
website
and it will tell you step-by-step instructions on how to get rid of this virus
(see red arrow below).
How to Avoid Computer Viruses
There are some simple steps you must take to avoid becoming a victim of
computer viruses. I've listed some of them below. Largely, it boils down
to using good anti-virus software and being aware of how these programs
spread. This simple step can be the difference between surviving the
next virus outbreak and becoming another victim who's lost time, data,
and, of course, money.
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The essential step is to install effective anti-virus software. The
easiest way is to buy one of the two major anti-virus programs - either
Norton Anti-Virus or McAfee Anti-Virus. There are several other
commercial packages that are also respectable, but you'll get the best
support from the user community with one of big guns. My new laptop came
with Norton Anti-Virus installed, and I am very happy with it. It
automatically checks with the Symantec website for new updates, so I'm
protected against the latest threats. |
It works seamlessly with all of the EMail
programs I use, including Outlook Express, Netscape Mail (part of the
Netscape Navigator package), and Qualcomm's Eudora. And by
following the manufacturers' recommendations, everything went very
smoothly when I installed the SP2 upgrade to Windows XP. So, as I say,
I'm happy as a clam with Norton and highly recommend it.
You Must Update Your Virus Definitions!
Updating Norton AntiVirus Definitions
It is important you update your virus definitions weekly to keep up to
date with the latest viruses. If you get an email about a new virus
alert, be sure to update your definitions. To update Norton AntiVirus
definitions you will need to run Live Update.
1. Connect your computer to the Ethernet at school or dial-in from home.
2. A. If you're running Norton Antivirus Corporate Edition: Click Start,
Programs, Norton AntiVirus Corporate Edition , Norton AntiVirus
Corporate Edition.
B. If you're running Symantec Antivirus Corporate Edition: Click Start,
Programs, Symantec Client Security, Symantec Antivirus Corporate Edition
3. Click Live Update.
4. Follow the on-screen prompts to download the latest definitions.
Automatically Schedule Norton AntiVirus Updates
1. Open Norton Antivirus Corporate Edition and choose File, Schedule
Update to access the Schedule Virus Definition Virus Updates popup
window.
2. Click on the Schedule button to display the Virus Definition Update
Schedule and, under Frequency, select the button next to Daily. It is
best to pick a time when you know your computer will be connected to the
Internet via Ethernet or Modem.
Next Steps:
4. Set-Up a Firewall
5. Update your Computer
6. Backup your Data
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