10 Ways to Protect Against the Dreaded Computer Virus

You may already have had a bad experience with a computer viruses. If this is true then you may have been due to opening an email from some one you didn’t know, or from downloading a ton of different files off the internet. Either way, if you want to ensure this doesn’t happen again, the you should read this article to guard yourself against the annoying computer bugs.

Below are a list of tips that I have put together to help avoid contracting a nasty virus.

1. Get yourself some antivirus software from a respected company such as Norton Antivirus software. You should set it up to run automatically every time you turn your computer on.

2. Make sure to keep your antivirus software up to date by either using the automatic update feature that many come with or make it a habit to manually check at least once or twice a week for updates on your own.

3. The antivirus software can also scan for Macro Viruses. This type of virus is usually hidden in word processing documents that you may receive in an email.

4. Downloading software from the internet should not be done too often. It is very easy to get infected this way, even though there may be lots of great programs available This is very risky.

5. There are many ways to swap data between two different computers. I don’t recommend you do this unless it is unavoidable, and even then you must scan the storage device you are transfering from for viruses.

6. If using floppy disks to transfer data make sure to format them before using them for the first time.

7. When purchasing software, make sure to only buy from vendors that are well known and from ones you trust.

One of the most common ways of catching a virus is to install pirate software. This is illegal and should never be done.

9. If you must download programs from the internet ALWAYS scan them for viruses BEFORE opening them up to install on your computer.

10. Probably the most important and neglected method of disaster recovery are periodic backups of all important files found on your computer. Should a virus happen to get through your lines of defense you may need to replace the virus corrupted files with fresh ones that have been kept for such an occasion.

Following the steps I have laid out won’t guarantee that you will not be infected, but it will make you far less likely of becoming a victim of a dreaded computer virus.
About the Author:
Roberto Beiro is a dynamic writer on the web. You can search for more computer advice from him at his website Old boy articles. There are also 100’s of articles on other subjects like finance advice, and travel advice .