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The One True Security Strategy

Viruses, Trojans, Spyware and Adware have become practically indistinguishable from one another in function and in sinister purpose in recent years. Therefore it is most useful to refer to them all as “malware”, as in: “evil code.” The little buggers were once designed to vandalize your machine for fun; now malware generally has only an economic motive–

• to turn your ‘puter into a spam-disseminating robot whose address and control is then auctioned off
• to steal your personal information for economic gain
• to force you to buy some worthless remedy to a problem the malware itself created

How then to safeguard oneself?

Three strategies (for now, anyway)

1. Use a Mac (no dangerous malicious code in wide circulation reported at this time for OS X);
2. Run a Linux operating system on your PC instead of Windows (no dangerous malicious code in wide circulation reported at this time for Linux); or
3. Adopt the following security plan for Microsoft Windows

Windows Security Plan

1. Make sure you download and install every Windows security update immediately using Automatic Update. Keep Windows Firewall turned on.
2. Use a daily updated antivirus and keep it absolutely updated. Free antivirus programs such as AVG work just fine.
3. Password protect yourself and other users. Make kids and irresponsible people “limited users” without administrative privileges. Ideally, keep knuckleheads away from your computer.
4. Don’t open unknown emails or chain emails. Ideally, use web-based email like Gmail and ditch your email client.
5. Use Firefox instead of Internet Explorer, or at least use IE7.
6. Most Importantly: Back up all your content (documents, pictures, music and video– not your programs), keep your Windows install/repair disks and application disks ready and live as if any day you may have to do a clean re-install of your operating system. Why? Because modern malware is practically impossible to get rid of without destroying your operating system. Hucksters will tell you otherwise, but once you are infected, it is useless to spend time and money trying to disinfect your machine. Just make sure you have all your documents, database backup files and media files recorded to cd/dvd and slap in the system install disks that came your computer. A fast, fresh, clean computer is less than an hour away– but don’t forget to then install all the Windows updates and a free antivirus program.