New
malware continues to be introduced at an alarming rate, rising by approximately
5,000% in the last five years. Such growth rates would be a shareholder's dream
but in this case they are simply evidence of the immense profitability of the
hacker industry. Your personal data, online connections or even access to your
PC make the cash registers ring. This makes it more and more lucrative for
resourceful programmers to develop increasingly sophisticated and less easily
detected malware. However there's no need to panic, as we'll show you in this
article how to avoid unnecessary risks and prepare your computer to surf the
web safely in 2013!
1 - Keep Your System up-to-date
While it's true that
update notifications can be irritating, it is nevertheless important that your
PC and all installed programs remain up-to-date. Malware programmers often use
newly discovered software weaknesses (so-called "vulnerabilities") to
smuggle their malware onto your PC via exploits. Therefore it is pertinent to
update your software regularly (especially if it is popular) in order to close
potential security holes as soon as possible. In particular, the following
software on your PC should always be kept up-to-date:
·
OS (Windows operating
system)
·
Your browser: MS
Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome, Opera, etc.
·
Adobe Acrobat Reader
·
Adobe Flash Player
·
Java Runtime
·
Apple Quicktime Video
Player
·
Your media player
(VLC, iTunes, Windows Media Player)
2 - Use Secure Passwords
Even if your PC is as secure as a safe, this is useless if an
unauthorized person gets their hands on the keys. Regardless of whether it's
your Windows login, your email account or a website login: always use secure
passwords! A secure password consists of at least eight characters and contains
a number, an uppercase letter and a special character, such as
"ApL47bAk!". Avoid commonly used words and names and create different
passwords for each of your accounts or logins. If you use the same password everywhere
and a hacker gets their hands on it, they can instantly gain access to all of
your data. To keep track of multiple passwords, we recommend using a password
manager.
3 - Use a Router
It's common these days
for Internet connection packages to include a router. A router enables several
devices to simultaneously use the same Internet connection. From a security
perspective this is a huge advantage, as your PC isn't connected directly to
the Internet which makes it difficult to directly address and attack it. If, for
whatever reason, you still don't have a router, you should consider it a good
investment. The same rules apply to your router - always keep it up-to-date
with regular firmware updates and use a secure admin password.
4 - Avoid File Sharing Websites
Besides the fact that
they mostly offer illegal content, file sharing websites are among the most
common sources of malware infections. Cracked programs or so-called key
generators ("keygens") in particular, are often infected with
malware. It is safer to download software from the manufacturer's website or
from a well known download portal.
5 - Use Restricted User Accounts
Many Windows users use
the administrator account. As an administrator, you have unrestricted access to
all aspects of the system, which allows malware executed as an administrator to
spread with ease. If you have Windows XP you should use an account with
restricted user rights for working and browsing the web. Windows Vista, 7 and 8
come with a built-in and redesigned User Account Control (UAC). Any process
likely to cause damage or be a threat to the security of your system needs the
administrator's permission to do so. Never grant administrator rights to any
unknown or suspicious programs!
6 - Avoid Dubious Websites and E-mail Attachments
Today, most malware is
spread via so-called "drive-by downloads". Modern websites use
technologies that enable continuous communication between your browser and the
web server without asking you, the user, for confirmation. Programmers of
criminal websites rely on this technology to take advantage of security
weaknesses in various browsers. We recommend staying away from any questionable
or shady websites (particularly those that offer file sharing, warez or adult
content) and to keep your browser up-to-date as described in point 1.
E-mail attachments are
another popular way of spreading malware. Use of a good spam filter is the most
effective solution. Always remain wary of e-mails from unknown senders and pay
particular attention to any attachments before opening them; executable files
like .exe are often disguised as documents or images. E-mails with
password-protected zip archives attached almost always contain malware and
can't be checked by virus scanners due to the password protection.
7 – Use WiFi with caution
There are many public WiFi hotspots available free of charge
that allow you to check your e-mails and surf the Internet when you are using
your laptop or smartphone away from home. However, whenever you log into a
website or check your e-mails via an unsecured WiFi connection, others can read
your log-in data. When using public WiFi hotspots, avoid sending confidential
data unless it is absolutely necessary, and even then only over a secure
connection!
You can recognize a
secure connection to a site by the presence of "https://" in the
address bar (HTTPS = Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure). Look for this when
logging in to online banking sites, forums, webmail, ebay or Facebook – in
general, for any login. If you use an e-mail program, you should enable secure
authentication within the software itself. Comprehensive tips on how to use
WiFi networks securely can be found in Emsisoft's knowledge base support by
8 – Beware of download wrappers and preselected check boxes
After downloading
useful software from the web, you may often find a new browser or toolbar has
unexpectedly appeared on your PC. This is generally due to lack of attention
while rapidly clicking on "Next" during installation. Unfortunately
many companies have moved to bundle their software with other programs due to
financial reasons. Confirmation should be required at installation time,
however the corresponding check boxes are generally preselected, meaning you
must untick them in order to avoid installing the additional software. Bear in
mind that each program installed on your PC not only consumes hard drive space
as well as system resources, but also represents a potential source of risk
through exploits.
Download wrappers are
even more insidious. Some download portals resort to them to download the
intended target file. Hence you receive the download wrapper first instead of
the desired file. The wrapper then downloads the desired software onto your PC.
9 – Exercise particular caution with online banking
Internet users are generally more conscious of the risks of
online banking than any other online service. This isn't surprising, because if
criminals get their hands on your login details or even worse your TAN numbers
(one-time passwords used in many countries), they can easily empty your account
from anywhere in the world. Unfortunately this may happen faster than you think
if you don't use good security software.
Even secure
connections are of no use against "man-in-the-browser" attacks.
Careful browsing is not sufficient either, as your PC can be infected via
compromised ad networks on regular websites.
10
- Use Security Software With Real-Time Protection
If you have followed
our advice so far, you will already be quite well protected, however there is
always a small risk remaining. Therefore we recommend the use of anti-virus
software and a firewall. An anti-virus program scans files on your PC whereas a
firewall monitors any incoming and outgoing connections. If there are any
suspicious processes, you will receive an alert warning you about the risk.
Both programs should
provide real-time protection. Regular scans with a virus scanner are of course
important, but they can only detect existing malware infections and may not
always be able to remove them. For More Details Visit Online Pc Optimization support
1-888-351-0703 – McAfee Technical support.Number However, InfoTechline Technical Support is another significant option available for the users, which guides them to fix McAfee Antivirus problems in the best suitable way. At InfoTechline, the technical experts are available to provide enormous numbers of options to repair McAfee Antivirus in the most appropriate way. They are the masters in dealing such problems.
