I know we keep taking about malware and viruses and they are big issues (I know this because I spend a large part of every week cleaning clients pc’s of infections).  Today I want to cover what you should have installed and what steps you should take on a regular basis to maintain your pc, so that it runs as you would expect it to.

1st Thing – A good Anti-Virus program

     You would be surprised how easy this one is, yet how often I find this rule being broken (As I’m being paid $100 bucks an hour to clean up a mess). Your anti-virus program should be current and should be updated regularly.  There paid programs from Symantec, McAffe, or CA (as well as many others) and Free versions from Avast or Microsoft (as well as many others). If you get a new pc you probably will get an Anti-virus program loaded, but that program may only be licensed for 90 days or 6 months or 1 yr, which means it will only update for that time frame and unless you pay to continue using it, you will no longer be protected from new viruses (There are literally 100’s of new Viruses every week). You should also check your anti-virus program on a regular basis, by opening it, and looking to see if it says that your “definitions status” is up to date and that it shows you as protected (Example below is from Microsoft Security Essentials).

You also need to make sure that your anti-virus software does not say that your “At Risk” or “Not Protected”       You wouldn’t believe how many clients tell me “I have ant-virus installed, I didn’t know I had to update it”.  I have even seen clients who are running anti-virus but get infected and when you look the A/V definition files they are from 2005 (that was the worst one so far and I just saw that in Aug. 2009).

     Now the question I’m sure at least a few of you are asking is what should you use. Well here is current recommendations.

Paid for Products –

Norton Anti-Virus “Gaming Edition” (http://www NULL.symantec NULL.com/norton/norton-antivirus-gaming-edition). I know what it says “Gaming Edition” but from what I have seen, its the version from Symantec that is least likely to slow your computer down while still protecting you.

NOD32 Anti-Virus 4 (http://www NULL.eset NULL.com/products/nod32 NULL.php). In reviews NOD32 always seems to be the one to catch the most viruses. 

Both Symantec (http://www NULL.symantec NULL.com/norton/theme NULL.jsp?themeid=trialware_nav2010&depthpath=0&header=0&inid=us_hho_downloads_navtrial) and ESET (http://www NULL.eset NULL.com/download/free_trial_download_eav NULL.php) have “trial versions” that you can download and install on your machine for free (trials are 30 days) so that you can see how they work and make sure that the software works on your pc without any conflicts.

     As you will see I’m listing Anti-Virus versions, if you look at either of the Symantec (http://www NULL.symantec NULL.com/norton/index NULL.jsp) or ESET (http://www NULL.eset NULL.com/) you will also see listings for “Internet security” or “Smart Security” suites.  In my opinion, I always recommend against a suite package, because you will pay a lot more to get some features you will probably not use, suites are more likely to slow your machine down since they will try and do more than you need (In my opinion its like getting a dead bolt for your door for the Anti-Virus software vs… having an armed guard standing in front of your door for the suite.  Unless you live in a war zone I don’t think you need the armed guard).  Additionally, there is always a chance that if malware does get in, and you have an end all – be all suite that your suite could be disabled by the malware killing all your protection at once.  So I don’t believe in putting all your eggs in one basket. In Part 2 – I will talk about additional software to protect from other malware that is not covered in the Anti-virus software. 

     Remember with paid products, you have to pay for the product and will have to pay on a yearly basis to renew the license so that you can continue to get updates for the product.  So it isn’t a 1 and done situation.

Free Products –

     The fact that there are free Anti-Virus products out there means that you really have no excuse not to be protected.  The main difference between the paid for products above and the free products I’m about to list involves support.  If you pay for the product you will get various support options from the maker of the software, in case you have a problem or need assistance. With free products that support is a lot more limited and if you need assistance you will most likely need to turn to a knowledgeable family member, friend or a tech like myself for assistance.  (Who doesn’t know a teenager they can turn to at a moment like that)

Microsoft Security Essentials (http://www NULL.microsoft NULL.com/security_essentials/). Microsoft Security Essentials provides real-time protection for your home PC that guards against viruses, spyware, and other malicious software.

Avast! (http://www NULL.avast NULL.com/eng/download-avast-home NULL.html)Offers a free version for protection of your pc.     

    Both the Microsoft and Avast! software help secure your pc against threats online.  The Microsoft product only has a free version, while Avast! has both a free and paid for product.  (Full disclosure: I currently choose to protect all my pc’s with Microsoft Security Essentials)

Procedures -

     If you use any of these 4 products you will have a line of defense against infections that travel in cyberspace, however remember some important steps.

• You should only have 1 software product that includes auto-protect installed on your pc (one of the ones I list above or one of your choosing if you pick something else). You should never install more than one that includes auto protect because it will become self-defeating in that when you have more than one software installed with auto-protect, they will each think that the other is a virus and basically work on blocking each other. 
• You need to make sure that your choice  of anti-virus software has auto protect turned on and that it has current definition files for your software choice.
• Once a week – you should run a full scan of your computer with the all files selection on your scan. What I normally do is one night a week I leave my computer on running a scan as I go to bed.  The next morning I just verify the results and if the results show any infection I can address it at that time. A full scan can take up to a couple of hours depending on how many files and how big your hard drive is.

Lastly and most importantly, follow safe computing practices when you are online.

1. Don’t open email attachments or click on links from emails; even if the email is from someone you know because there is a good chance that attachment and email was not actually sent by the person or the person who sent you the email clicked on a link they shouldn’t have and that email was automatically triggered.  (Alert: Hiya:) Email – Just another attempt to get you to click on a link that you REALLY SHOULD NOT! (http://techgeekandmore NULL.com/2009/11/04/alert-hiya-email-just-another-attempt-to-get-you-to-click-on-a-link-that-you-really-should-not/))

2. Don’t download files from places you aren’t absolutely sure are safe. Think of this as the Halloween rule. Your kids go trick or treating and when they get home what do you do, you check the candy so that you make sure its safe before they get to eat any. In cyberspace you need to make sure you know from where you download, don’t just assume that because its in cyberspace its safe.

3. Update all your software regularly.  This one takes a little bit of work.  However, you need to make sure that your operating system (Windows, Mac, or even Linux) gets updates installed when released.  The majority of the time these days, updates involve fixes to the operating system that protect you from something a bad guy is doing.  In addition to the operating system, there are other programs on your pc, that need updating regularly to make sure that the bad guys don’t use those to get into your pc.  Programs like Adobe Acrobat, Adobe Flash, Adobe Shockwave, Real Player, Apple QuickTime, Microsoft Office (and others) all have updates released on a regular basis to correct issues that a bad guy can use to get in.  When its a program that needs an update, image your house as your operating system, you lock your door, and your secure, however the other programs are your windows to your house, and well whoops you forget to lock your window.  Guess what the bad guys can still get in.  All these updates help make sure that your Doors and Windows (No pun intended to Microsoft products) all remain locked to cyber space.

**Coming up in part 2 – We will cover your 2nd layer of defense and what programs you will need for that.