Purging Virus Threats From Your PC for Better Protection Online

Protection from virus threats can be a never ending process as virus attacks are largely present online. Even if you keep a sharp watch on threats you may find yourself overlooking one at some point in time.The best way to deal with it is to install a robust antivirus program and keep it updated against the latest online threats. Adware, spyware, malware and Trojans have never ending effects on our daily schedule online thus it seems difficult to keep a track over vulnerable activities. It's an obvious fact that you won't like to install such programs on your PC thus it's important to understand the complexities involved with such threats.

It's certainly more critical to understand which malware is dangerous and which is easy in purging threats from your system. Users start experiencing certain hassles while operating a system without computer virus protection, which may result in slow down of system, crash, data corruption, pop-up windows and slow internet speed. In the worst cases you can even lose your personal information, which is likely to be used for malicious purposes. Online security from spyware and Trojans are the example of some of the few solutions offered by experts.

Such assistance helps an individual to engage proper techniques in order to store and wait for total repair. So be it computer spyware removal or PC diagnostic, dynamic antivirus protection software downloads can help fix the problem efficiently. Viruses manifest themselves with different applications and can destroy the entire system badly. It's essential to stay vigilant all the time whenever you are online as spyware program may use other application in order to perform unauthorized functions. An antivirus program can be a better option as it can really help you detect all the hidden threats and it certainly comes for free. These antivirus programs can be updated for free as there are various versions you can choose from online. Free antivirus programs are good enough to make arrangements for your own system. A real time antivirus program provides automatic protection against database updates, on-demand system scanning, removable media checking and download monitoring very well. The best antivirus program works usually strong and can very help you update the database as the paid ones. Various defense systems can be bundled together to receive the features of the best antivirus protection.

It's important to make informed choices and check the reviews of other various best antivirus software online. Take the most of your virus protect software and solve your purpose perfectly as safety is the basic concern online.

Install a strong cloud anti virus protection software in your PC and protect your system from malicious virus attacks. There are many websites available on Internet that offers best free antivirus download services safely.

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Tips to Stay Safe and Private Online, Particularly When Shopping!

Along with good internet security software, your level of safety when surfing or shopping online depends on maintaining good browsing habits, controlling what information you share online, and reducing the information others collect about you. Here are some simple but important ways enhance your online security and privacy.

To a significant extent, how how safely and privately you browse and shop depends on careful viewing and computer maintenance habits.

Make Sure Your PC, Laptop or Handheld Devices Always has Appropriate Security Software with the Latest Security Updates

Forget about how rushed you are! Always take the time to update your security settings. Depending on your computer use, this could be once a day or once a week.

There are also times that you should double-check that all of your security is the latest available:

Always check for security updates before going online for any online financial transaction, or a transaction when you will be providing personal information, such as renewing your licence or automobile registration
If you get have access to a new application, update your security settings before downloading it. This will lower the chances of downloading an app with nosey or malicious code embedded into it.

Watch Your Cookie Settings

Most everyone needs to use cookies: many sites won't work without them, including Google.com's search engine.

Most cookies are innocuous, but many companies not only information about where you may have visited any given day, other cookies can track your surfing habits for as long as they remain on computer.

It's no coincidence that search engine results ads and sometimes results often mirror the site's you've recently or regularly visited. Some companies maintain tracking data for several years based on a cookie that may have been on your harddrive for only a few hours. It's called data mining and the databases are stocked fill with information.

Here are some ways to reduce how much your activities are tracked online:

Limit your Cookie Settings

Most browsers give you the option of downloading "all cookies," "no cookies," or a combination of "First Party" and "Third Party" cookes. First Party cookies are generally used by the primary site, but you should turn off automatic download of Third Party Cookies. Most of them are downloaded by advertisers or affiliated parties of the site you visited.

Regularly clear out your internet cache, which includes deleting all cookies, every time you initiate and right after you complete an online purchase or online banking or payment transaction.

It's a good idea to just delete all cookies every time you close a browsing session. These cookies just clutter up your computer and provide additional information to others. They have no positive impact on you in any way.

Even though regularly cleaning out cookies vastly reduces the amount of information anyone can learn about you, computers around the world (and most certainly at Google) know a lot about your viewing patterns.

This includes what sites you visit, how often you visit, what news sites you like, and your general age, location and sex. And if you've ever provided it to anyone, they may also know your average household income.

Which brings us to the next good security habit: be vigilant with your personal data.

Use Caution When Giving Out Personal or Financial Info

They can ask whatever they want, but you control your answers. Think before you disclose information. Once you give it out, it could be available to a variety of parties for a very long time.

Think about who you are giving the information to.

Why do they want it?How will it be used?With whom can this information be shared?Do they really even NEED this information?

Bottom Line: Unless there is a legitimate and business reason that a company needs information (such as a store needing your credit card data, address, phone number and email) don't provide it.

And, you should NEVER provide information that makes you the least bit uncomfortable. Some information is necessary, most is not.

For example, lots of sites such as Facebook and email services, ask your age. This makes sense because there are age limits for services.

On the other hand, you'll often be asked for information that service providers and marketers would love to know. But, you don't need to tell them and they can't make you.

If you look closely at any online registration form, you'll note that some questions are subtly marked as required, the others are subtly marked as optional.

The optional information is not required, but many people just fill the answers in without thinking about what will happen to the data. Here are some examples of common questions you should think about before answering.

Ethnicity or religionMarital /Relationship StatusSexual PreferencePersonal or household incomeNumber of children in the homeHousehold education levels

Other information that you should be very wary about sharing includes your social security number, or any banking information.

There are very few things online that can only available in one place. Any information requests that make you uncomfortable mean it's time to leave the site. And make sure you delete your cookies after you do!

Submit Financial or Private Info Only on Secure Sites with HTTPS Prefix

This one is pretty easy if you look at the address bar of your browser.

Servers with secure socket layer protection, encryption and other critical measures that protect your information as it flies through cyberspace should start with HTTPS.

Here's an example: you are viewing a website and for most of your visit the browser begins with "HTTP." When you choose your product and start entering your purchase information, look back at the address bar to make sure that the new address begins with "HTTPS."

Note: Merchants that process payment cards are severely limited to the information they share about customers. Along with stringent security measures, the Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standards (DSS) require that merchants protect information such as customer names, payment preferences, addresses and email addresses, for example.

Don't Expect Your Emails to Remain Private

No matter how secure your computer, email is inherently an unsafe way to transmit certain information. The most extreme caution: never put anything in an email that you wouldn't want your boss, mother, son, or husband to read.

On the serious side, some things just should not be transmitted or stored in emails. These included:

Banking information, including routing and account numbers, but especially online banking user names and passwordsCredit Card information, including numbers, expiration dates or security codes and passwords to your other email accountsPasswords to any online accounts.

Another note: many faxes these days actually end up in an email inbox, which may or may not be better than laying on an unattended desk.

If you're faxing information, know who is monitoring the machine at the other end and ask that they call to let you know they have safely retrieved and stored the information transmitted.

If they can't do this, send the information by certified mail or FedEx.

Don't Stay Logged to Online Sites Or Store User Names/Passwords Online

It's sure convenient to stay logged into to your favorite sites without having to remember your user name and password on a regular basis.

Unfortunately, it's not that safe and it's a habit to avoid. Hackers and others can piggyback these accounts, and take advantage of any lapses in your security to access other accounts.

Know Who You're Doing Business With

Alway be especially cautious when you provide information to any site that does not provide contact information clearly on their website. (Our recommendation: if they don't give you a name, email or phone number, don't give these to the site.)

And don't rely on a contact form. Make sure you see a telephone number and an email address.

Never worked with the company before? No big deal, just email them or give them a call and see what type of response you get. A company you want to do business with will gladly speak with its customers, before and after any sales.

If you're calling a smaller store, you may not get in touch with a human right away, but odds you'll hear from their soon enough and should be able to answer any questions you have about the products you're buying and why they need any information that you might not usually provide.

And if you don't like what you hear, just move along.

AM McElroy has over 20 years experience in corporate communications, technical writing and marketing/sales within the banking/US payments, civil/environmental engineering, internet security, and natural sciences (physics) arenas.

She has an e-commerce sites, http://www.solarflairlighting.com/ and a blog on solar and other renewable energy http://www.solarlightingsmart.com/.

Copyright 2012, AM McElroy, SolarFlairLighting and SolarLightingSmart.

People may copy article in whole or in part from EzineArticles.com ONLY if, in accordance with EzineArticles.com policy, this full Author's Resource box is included with the article, including working links to the two sites noted above. Please note that she aggressively protects her copyrighted articles. Violators will be notified and legal action will be taken when necessary.

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Search Your Name Online: Be Prepared for a Shocking Discovery

Come on, admit it. You've Googled your name. Actually, it's a good idea. You should know what is on the Internet about you.

Usually you'll find such things as what you've written, where you've worked, your Web site, speaking engagements and your blog.

Some say it's just an ego trip.

I disagree. You also want to see if something is inaccurate or downright nasty. If it is on a public site, you might be able to do something about it such as comment.

Nevertheless, there is a lot more about you online than just what you wrote or where you worked

Google is not going to tell you the details of your personal life. Beyond the various free people searches are details you normally wouldn't make public, but they are there for anyone to find.

It's downright scary. Forget about privacy. It's long gone.

I've found people I didn't know except for a first and last name. I had no address, age range, names of relatives, nothing. I performed this questionably ethical process using my home computer and available public free people search engines.

Many think the information is inaccurate. I'm here to tell you most of it is true, current and very, very personal. I know because for this exercise I used myself as the subject.

Below is a list of some popular search engines that you can use for free:

· Ancestry.com: -Need age, gender, year of birth, etc. Very little without these details.

· 411.com: - Mostly accurate information on city only and one "association" with my husband.

· CVgadget: - Will give you a list of a person's social networks

· PeekYou: - Very little information beyond name and city.

· Pipl: - The most comprehensive information for free. Photos, profession, employer, city, state, phone numbers and age.

· Searchbug:- No information available

· Spokeo: - Very limited, but accurate information with a map. Just name and city.

· White Pages: - Name, current and old addresses. Others with similar name and sometimes age. No email or phone number. Will refer user to paid companies.

· Wink People Search: - Very little accurate information beyond name and city.

· Yahoo People: - Mostly a Google search. One address.

· Zaba Search: - Some accurate information on street address, city, state, and age. No email or phone number.

Fee based people search sites:

Several of the free sites will refer to a paid site for more information.

Below are several paid-based sites and what you can find out.

· Intellius.com: Intellius is the largest paid people search engine online. It allows a free search that lists name, city and relatives. Many of the free sites offer more information for a fee. Once you click on the additional information they link to fee level. Intellius offers six different services ranging from $.95 cents to $50.00.

· USA People Search: Starts with free list of names and city. For more information, it offers a limited, time-based option such as a 24-hour, 7-day or 30-day subscription.

· US Search: The free portion gave accurate information on city, state, parents and education. The fee portion offers three different pricing options and services from $.95 cents to $40.00.

I paid the $40.00 to see what kind of information would come back.

- Name, aliases, all previous & current address, current address, phone numbers and my age.

- Relatives, property values, bankruptcy and criminal records.

- All relatives, ages and social network associations.

- Property information including lot size, finished size, house type, tax assessment year, year built, Zillow estimated value, and valuation change from two years ago.

- Available criminal Records. If the records you want are from out of town, you can pay $15 and the site will send a person to retrieve court records and send them either by E-mail or by fax.

There are sites to look up specific criminal records, arrests, sex offender sites, and "skip tracing" for missing people.

Pretty much whatever you are searching for on anyone, it can be found using an online search engine.

Happy hunting.

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Trading Your Information for Free Online Services Again Are You?

In the United States, we believe that every citizen should have the right to choose. If they wish to share their personal lives with everyone else, well then they should be allowed to do that. If they choose not to, then we all cringe when the paparazzi invades the privacy of our favorite celebrities, and yet the reason they do is that the general public is genuinely interested in their lives. Okay so, I'd like to talk to you a little bit about how folks trade their information for free online services.

The article "The Curious Case of Internet Privacy - Free services in exchange for personal information. That's the "privacy bargain" we all strike on the Web. It could be the worst deal ever," posted on June 6, 2012 by Cory Doctorow was very interesting and made some relevant points such as;

"But if it's a bargain, it's a curious, one-sided arrangement. To understand the kind of deal you make with your privacy a hundred times a day, please read and agree with the following: By reading this agreement, you give our company and its partners the unlimited right to intercept and examine your reading choices from this day forward, to sell the insights gleaned thereby, and to retain that information in perpetuity and supply it without limitation to any third party - and this agreement is subject to change at any time."

Right, so people give their information and assume that that particular website will use that information for only good purposes, and perhaps to send them advertisements, and to help pay for those free services through their advertising partners. But who is to say that those advertising partners will not all get together with other advertising partners, sharing that data together, and before you know it you get your information shared with the entire world, when you supposedly just wanted a free app to run on your mobile phone, probably something silly, something cool, or something that really doesn't matter anyway - look at the real cost now?

Well, this is exactly what's happening now, and that last little bit above about; "and this agreement is subject to change at any time," and for any reason without your consent forever into the future as long as you live, and beyond - is yet completely another thing. Do people really agree to have their information given to every company worldwide just for using a free app? Do people really know what they're in for? I would submit to you that they do not, and that the individual who wrote that article is absolutely correct, and I fear that things are getting worse.

There was another interesting article in the Wall Street Journal on June 5, 2012 which indicated that there were companies able to get by the rules at the Apple's App Store about "tracking consumers" by working with other app companies, and then trading the data amongst them. Some of these networked big data information companies are making a ton of money off your personal information, and God only knows who is going to receive that information future. Indeed I hope you will please consider all this and think on it.

Lance Winslow has launched a new provocative series of eBooks on Digital Internet Concepts. Lance Winslow is a retired Founder of a Nationwide Franchise Chain, and now runs the Online Think Tank; http://www.worldthinktank.net/

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The Secret of Online Security Protection

People these days are faced with a wide variety of choices when it comes to protection from viruses and other online threats. There are companies that have developed 100% free antivirus programs that offer basic protection, while some say they provide Internet security and protection from other threats like malware and spyware.

Choosing an antivirus software can be pretty daunting for most ordinary computer users. Many of them don't even know what kind of security they need and tend to get creative in choosing a program over another. Some people are thrown off by complicated software interface and end up settling with a user-friendly but ineffective free antivirus program. Some are fooled into thinking that the expensive programs are the most effective and end up paying too much for a software with features they don't even need.

Many security products allow people to subscribe to protection for a certain period of time. The danger here is that you end up renewing a subscription unknowingly and unwillingly, and shelling out money without intending to.

An antivirus company, for example, may require you to unsubscribe from their service one month before your current subscription expires. While they do send you a reminder of such a rule, they do so very discreetly that you end up ignoring it. Your credit card is then charged with a renewal of the subscription and you are forced to face a bill you are not prepared to pay.

Another problem with these antivirus programs is that their effectiveness in wiping out threats is simply on a decline. Some studies have shown that security software products are about half as effective now as they were the previous year and the percentage continues to decline the following year.

The explanation for this is that viruses and all forms of malware are simply more dangerous today than they were ever before. The people developing these viruses are getting smarter and are learning from their mistakes. Some threats are designed and disguised as simple ads online that fool even the most cautious of users. Other threats are created by well-funded professionals and are designed to bypass any security tool.

One product that can be a solution to your dilemma is using an online free antivirus scanner that has an unprecedented percentage in detecting suspicious files on your infected computer. There are tons of antivirus programs to choose from these days, but this Free Online Computer Virus Scanner is highly recommended.

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Online Virus Scan Options

It will be extremely important to closely review your online virus scan options, especially if you suspect that your computer has become victim to spyware or a virus which can be devastating if left unchecked. The more time and effort you put into looking at your options when it comes to online virus scan options on the web, the better your chances are going to be of getting just what you need in order to ensure that your computer is safe and virus-free. Too many people make the mistake of assuming that there are no viruses on their computer simply because they haven't had any problems yet.

Once you go online and start looking around, you will be able to find some of the very best websites for online virus scanning and they won't cost you a thing. Just make sure to take all the time you need to find what you are looking for when it comes to these scanning services, because you will definitely need to do everything in your power to get what you need in order to make sure that your computer is being protected from possible cyber threats.

With the right online virus scan website, you will be able to get exactly what you need with no problems at all. If you are tired of having to pay a ton of money for anti-virus programs that don't really do anything for your computer, it will be absolutely imperative to make sure that you take enough time to closely review some of your options before making any final decisions at all. This way you will end up getting exactly what you need without having to spend a cent, which is especially good for those who are on a tight budget.

An online virus scan will be able to give you some idea of what you are dealing with when it comes to the viruses that may already be on your computer. In order to make sure that you identify all of these threats, it will be important to select the very best website to use for such scanning. Those who take their time when trying to find the right online virus scan will end up getting just what they need without having to spend any money at all.

You will quickly discover that there are a lot of online virus scan options when it comes to websites that can scan your computer for viruses quickly and efficiently so you know exactly what you have to deal with. Those who let their computer's viruses go unchecked usually end up regretting it later on when the problems become worse and more difficult to deal with. Just make sure that you spend an adequate amount of time looking around online at your options. In the end you will be glad that you did all of this research because of how much it will benefit you. Anyone with a computer should get it scanned for viruses online as soon as possible.

Searching for your online virus scan options? Follow the links to find out where you can get your free online virus scan today.

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Avoiding Virus Threats With Online Computer Repair

Computers today are the backbone of the economy; no one can do without one. The internet and its popularity have grown leaps and bounds in the last ten years. Every single day sees the birth of thousands of new websites and new content. This has begun a new era of the online digital age and also a new era in online computer repair. With the ever rising growth of the internet, a need for protection from unknown content has tremendously increased. This includes protection from viruses and untrustworthy content from websites that can infect computer systems. Online protection from spyware, viruses and malware are some of the few services offered by computer repair services.

This kind of service helps people to avoid taking their systems to stores and then waiting for it to be repaired. The cost of online computer repair is comparatively less and moreover it saves time and energy. With the help of a remote tech support, the customer service agent can help understand the problem. Be it virus removal or computer diagnostics. Online repairs work with great efficiency. The customer service that they provide is exceptional. This really shows in the way they tackle every issue, with an equal perspective.

Viruses manifest themselves as programs and cripple the entire computer system. This makes it very important to stay cautious when using the internet. For example, the Trojan horse, it's a program that appears useful. But, when launched the information can't be used. While at the same time this virus is making use of other programs to perform unauthorized functions. A worm is a virus that manifests itself as a program and keeps making copies of self. It uses any means necessary to drive to drive transfer or emails to create multiple copies and this process keeps repeating itself. Other virus types include bootsector virus, macro virus, memory resident viruses, rootkit virus, polymorphic viruses and logic bombs or time bombs viruses. These are some the many examples of viruses that online computer repair can solve but Trojan horse and worm being the most dangerous.

Online computer servicing has come a long way since it began. The amount of experts that these companies employ is huge. These customer service agents are very passionate in helping people repair their computers, along with providing them a solution. It's usually important to check the cause of the problem before getting in touch with an online computer repair service. Usually the problem could be the antivirus being turned off or some other installed software causing a problem. If the problem still persists, it's better to check with the online services to see what's going on. It's hardly a matter of minutes.

Online computer repairs offer a service like no other. They find solutions for most problems that are imaginable today. Once they are done solving the issue, the problem just never comes back. Online repair services also provide their customers with solution so that they may take good care of their machines for the years to come. But, if there is ever any problem they are always around.

Greg C is the author of this article on Online Computer Repair. Find more information, about Computer Diagnostics here

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How to Do Free Online Computer Scan and Virus Removal

If you suspect a virus infection in your computer and want to remove it immediately, here is your free virus removal guide. It will help you do a free online virus scan for the virus and its related infected files and remove them from your computer.

Instructions:

To run a free online virus scan, you need to download a free utility from a trusted website. You can either choose Trend Micro or BitDefender. Both are trusted websites that offer free online virus scan tools. Below we have mentioned the procedure for downloading and running the tool from Trend Micro's website. The procedure for other tools will remain more or less the same.

Open your web browser and go to Trend Micro's official website (trendmicro.com, prefix 'www.' in the front). Type this address in the address bar and hit Enter. When on the website, click on the For Home tab. there will be two partitions on the main screen. In the second partition under Free Tools, click on the House Call link. Click on the first link Download HouseCall 7.1.

Here is the deal. If your Windows OS is a 32-bit version, then click on the 32-bit version link. If you have a 64-bit version Windows OS, then choose the 64-bit version of the tool. If you don't know the version of your Windows and don't even know how to check it, do this little exercise. If it is Windows XP, click on the Start menu, right click on My Computer, and then select Properties from the drop-down options.

The General tab will be highlighted by default displaying different details related to your computer. Look under the heading System, if you see 'x64 Edition' specifically mentioned under it, your Windows is a 64-bit version. If nothing is mentioned under System, it is a 32bit version. If you have Windows 7 or Vista, click on the Start button, right click on Computer and then choose Properties. You will see the type of version you are running beside System Type.

Now that you are acquainted with the version, download the desired file version of HouseCall. When done, press the Save File button and choose the location of the file. Sometimes, the file is automatically downloaded to the Downloads folder. Browse to the location, look for HousecallLauncher.exe file, and open it. When prompted, hit the Run button to initialize the tool's installation. Wait while the tool downloads all the component updates. Click to select I agree to the terms and conditions and then hit Next. When done, click on the Scan Now button.

Wait until the scan finishes. Be patient as it can take some time. When finished, the tool will display a list of problematic files and their locations. Hit the Fix Problems button to clean up all the virus-infected files. When done, close the window. Since you have now scanned your computer thoroughly for the viruses and have even removed them, you must take a step further to make sure that their traces have not been left in your computer. These traces can lead to the recurrence of the virus and consequent problems.

Download and run Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware Free. Go to malwarebytes.org (prefix 'www.' in the front) and download Anti-Malware Free's latest version. Save the file and run its installation afterwards. When done, open the tool and update it first. Thereafter, perform a full virus scan. Prompt the tool to remove the virus and related infections, which were found during the scan. Exit the tool's window and you are done. Update Anti-Malware regularly to improve its defense against the existing and ever-growing virus threats.

Additional Tips:

If you are using Mozilla Firefox as your web browser, it may prevent you from downloading any such file. Click on the Allow button to let the file download to your computer.

The Author of this article is associated with V tech-squad Inc, V tech-squad Inc. is a cloud based technical support provider to consumers and small businesses. if you have any problem while performing the above steps and need technical assistance for online virus removal, You can reach V tech-squad online technical support at their Toll Free No +1-877-452-9201.

About V tech-squad Inc.

V tech-squad Inc. is a cloud based online technical support provider to consumers and small businesses. V tech-squad provides support to users for issues with their PCs, Mac's, Tablets, Phones such as iPhone and BlackBerry and devices such as MP3 players, Printers, Scanners, Fax, Wireless networking gear, Netflix, Roku boxes and TVs. With an obsessive focus on quality and building technical expertise, V tech-squad continues to maintain an issue resolution rate of more than 90%. V tech-squad's credibility has been tested by more than 10,000 customers. Currently V tech-squad provides support services to consumers and small businesses in United States. For more information on V tech-squad, Inc. visit http://www.vtechsquad.com/.

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