Malware, oh no!

Probably the most frequent type of computer I see is one that is loaded down with virus and spyware. There is so much on the Internet these days that you need to protect your computer from.

The first thing a person can do to protect their system is to have a good virus protection application installed. One that I often recommend is AVG. They have a free version for personal use and it always rates well against the subscription supported applications such as Norton Security Suite. You can find AVG here. They also have a reasonably priced subscription version if you are so inclined.

One application alone is not enough to protect a computer these days. Another application that I recommend is Spybot Search and Destroy. Spybot has been around for quite a while and just keeps getting better. It is free also (supported by donation and other products). There is a scanning section, a preventative section and a live detection system included. More information is available on their site.

Additionally, you must be careful where you take your computer on the Internet. Always know the sites that you visit. If you avoid the more "shady" sections of the Internet, you can avoid much of the trouble too.

Perhaps, you might be thinking that I am shooting my business in the foot by recommending these applications, since it could limit the business that I get. While this may be true, I would rather see my customers/readers protected. In all truthfulness, there is more to cleaning a computer once it gets full of the malware that is out there than just using these applications. Most of the information on how to clean a computer is available, if you search long enough on the Internet, but I realize that many do not have the interest or time to make such a search and that is where I come in. In addiotion, each computer infection seems to be a little different and often requires special handling.

To sum it up, I would be happy to help anyone with the installation and usage of these applications and if you do get caught while unprotected or something slips by, I am always available to help!