Life and times of a new farmer/homesteader
On computer safety... {
02:49
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Monday, January 1, 2007
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I'm not talking about keeping young eyes from seeing the wrong things
here; I don't know much about that, so I couldn't talk about it with
any expertise anyways. I am talking about spyware, adware,
viruses, trojan horses, and other rogue programs. The dangers of
surfing the web are not limited to online content.Does your computer run slower than it used to? Do you get alot of pop-up ads? Spam? Wierd warning messages? You probably have one or more programs on your computer that are responsible. You don't need to be aware of downloading these for you to do just that. They can piggyback on other programs, come in on e-mail, or even load at websites that seem otherwise normal. I would strongly suggest that everyone have three specific utilities (programs) on your computer that help keep this from happening. They are a virus checker, a spyware scanner, and a firewall. As it happens, you can at least two of these for free, and one for a free one month trial (at least.) Oh, I'm not affiliated with any of the programs or websites I am going to mention. I'm just making suggestions I think would be of use to the casual computer user. These programs are for computers running M.S. Windows. The Virus checker is the hardest one to get for free. I have yet to find a free virus checker that works well for me. I have recently downloaded a free trial version of "VirIT Lite." I got my copy from: gamehippo.com Warning: this is a freeware game site. Not all the stuff on here is suitable for kids. They have a list of programs on the left side of the screen. Toward the bottom there is a grouping called "freeware utilities." I have used both programs for virus checking, and both work very well. One is a much larger download than the other. Not really suitable for a dial-up connection, but good none-the-less. Even with only a month of trial, it's worth it. I hadn't scanned my computer for some time and found 12 trojan horses on my harddrive. Since scanning, I have seen a dramatic increase in speed, and a sudden lack of wierd warning messages and far less spam in my e-mail. Keep this program running. It doesn't catch everything the first time, and every once in a while it will alert me to a trojan horse going active, and lets me clean it without it doing further damage. I use it every time I download a new program, and I scan once every couple days for good luck. The next program I would like to discuss is a spyware scanner. I use "Ad-aware." You can also get this on the site mentioned above. It is free, forever, although not all features are available without paying for it. I don't find I need anything more than the free features. I update and scan once a week, and I always find something, even if it's just tracking cookies. When you first scan, you may notice (as I did) a sudden lack of pop-up ads, etc. The two programs mentioned so far overlap in some ways, which is fine. You won't catch everything, but you'll catch enough that it will make a difference. Over time, maybe you will catch everything. Keep in mind that bad people are always looking for new ways to exploit computers, so these good companies have to keep up with them. There will always be a gap. The third program I would suggest is a firewall. I use "Zone Alarm." You can get it from their site: www.zonelabs.com This is also free. It can also be tricky to use, especially at first. It monitors all coming and going activity on your internet connection. When you first install it, it will ask you if it is ok to allow internet access for every program that tries to access the internet. This includes Internet Explorer, your e-mail program, your messenger, your virus checker, your spyware scanner, etc. etc. It also asks if anything you don't want accessing your computer or internet, coming and going, should be allowed. Most stuff is self expanitory, but not all. It will ask "is it ok for program IEupdater.exe to access the internet?" You can choose yes or no, and a checkbox that says "remember this setting." You just opened Internet Explorer, so you figure that its updater is looking for updates. No problem, check yes, maybe remember, and let it update. It will ask "Is it ok for process34157.com to access the internet?" I have no idea! Check no for now, and look it up on the internet. If you can't find anything about it, it's probably bad. It will ask "Is it ok for web address 167.x.x.x to access your computer from the internet?" No! Definitely not! Check no, and check remember this setting. This program is useful for everyone, and necessary for people that leave their internet on all the time (i.e.: if you have a cable modem, or a dsl line, or are part of an intranet and never shut it off.) The only other thing I would suggest is to upgrade your security features on your browser. Or use Mozilla Firefox. Turn off cookies and active x, block pop-ups, etc. Also, get all security updates for your operating system and web applications. As a homesteader, I use my computer for communicating with friends and family, research, news, blogging, business, shopping, and entertainment. It makes life easier, and in some ways more efficient (although some ways less so, if I am to be totally honest...) I could live without it, but it is a very useful tool, and I wouldn't want to. Knowing my computer is mostly safe from the harm of malicious programs is comforting. I can't do everything to make it secure, but I will do my best to do my most. A computer is a tool, just like a tractor or a saw or a washing machine. Keep yours in good working order and it will last a long time and be a joy to work with. Neglect it, and, well you wouldn't want to use a dull knife, would you? The only way a computer can ever be totally safe is if you never turn it on. Now if someone could figure out how to keep my dial-up connection from disconnecting while I'm blogging.... Hope all this helps, Raymond { Last Page } { Page 161 of 181 } { Next Page } |
