Online Safety

What do I have to be worried about?

Honestly, a lot of things – spyware, viruses, adware, malware; the list goes on and on.

What is spyware/adware/malware anyway?

Spyware, adware and malware (will be referred to as spyware from here on) are small programs that install on your computer either by piggybacking on top of another piece of software, through Peer2Peer networks (such as the gnutella network or FatsTrack network), or from infected websites.

Some free software makers distribute spyware with their software to recoup the cost of production, while some websites bundle spyware with software that they distribute with out the consent of the author.

Once your computer becomes infected with spyware you may experience pop-up ads, your internet connection may seem slower, your PC may feel sluggish, or may try to trick you to purchase useless software.

My PC has some new virus software on it that is saying I have a whole lot of problems…

You have what is known as a Smitfraud infection. Smitfraud is a malware infection that gets on your computer through infected Adobe Flash online ads and will try to trick you into purchasing the software. Do NOT purchase this software – you are just giving your money away.

If you see something like this:

Then you may want to try running through the free MalwareBytes Antispyware program available below.  If MBAM doesn’t clean it you may need to bring your PC in to have one of our techs remove it.

By running Firefox with the AdBlock Plus add-on you significantly reduce your risk of being infected with Smitfraud.

What you can I do to protect myself?

There is a whole host of software that can be run on your machine to help keep you safe online.  No matter what software you choose to install, we recommend that you run through the Update-Scan-Remove process every week insure you are spyware free. The software that we recommend are:

Spybot Search and Destroy

Spybot Search and Destroy is a piece of free software which will help to remove spyware off of your machine after an infection. It also includes a Immunize option that will help to protect from some common infections.

Malwarebytes Anti-Malware

Malwarebytes is an excellent piece of software that will remove many of the deepest infections from your machine. It comes as a free download, but has a paid version which gives constant protection.

a-squared Free

a-squared Free is a great tool for the removal of spyware and trojan infections. Again, this software is free to use indefinitely, but a paid version is available with constant protection.

Is there anyway to block spyware from installing itself on my machine?

Nothing is 100% effective, but there are some precautions you can take to keep yourself as clean as possible.

Make sure you have a good antivirus package
If you have an internet connection you need to be running an up to date antivirus package.  At G&G Computers we recommend F-Prot Antivirus, it is a lean and light piece of software, with excellent protection, and is very easy to use.  At only $39 per year for up to 5 computers in your home or office, it’s a bargain.  Come in to see us and we can register you a copy.

Ditch Internet Explorer – Firefox is your friend
Internet Explorer is the default web browser on all Windows machines, unfortunately due to its lax security features it is susceptible to more spyware infections than many other browsers.  Firefox is an free open source alternative that when paired with a few extensions will help to not only block many web ads but also will keep many infection off of your machine.

Once you have installed both Firefox and Adblock Plus, please click the three links below to ensure your best protection:

What if I am still having problems with my computer?

Because no protection is 100% you may have an infection that requires the skills of one of our technicians to remove a nasty spyware infection.  If this is so, stop in to our shop and we will get you back up and running as fast a possible.