How To Protect Your Computer From New Threats

Protecting your computer from malware isn’t rocket science, but to take the first step towards it, you need to understand the threat. If you use the internet, if you download movies, books and images from it on a regular basis, if you have the habit of visiting all sorts of websites, some of which are unsavory, your computer is at risk from virus infection. They can find a number of ways to creep into your system, through mails, downloads, torrents, links, and even infected sites that you visit. So every computer that is connected to the internet and used by an average person today is vulnerable to attacks.

The thing about viruses is that they are never static. The keep changing form, coming out in new avatars, better equipped to dodge the current anti-virus technology. So what was good for protecting your system last year is just inadequate this year. If you don’t keep up with what is going on in the murky world of viruses and malware, you are putting yourself, your identity, and your data at a needless risk.

So what on earth are you going to do about protecting your computer from Trojans and all the other evil stuff out there? Well, for starters, you can try these tips:

1. Equip your computer

Pretty obvious, you think? But did you know that a good 50% of internet users have absolutely no malware protection on their computers? Like other freaky accidents in life, many of us are smug enough to think that virus attacks only happen to other people, and we are too smart for viruses. Don’t be silly, download a good antivirus as soon as you can!

2. Stay updated

Computer viruses evolve faster than real life microbes, so always be on the top of things by keeping your antivirus updated. Some antivirus softwares have the provision of automatically updating themselves daily or weekly. But if your antivirus doesn’t do that , be sure to click the download button at regular intervals, or you’ll end up with obsolete protection.

3. Be careful what you click on

Do NOT open email attachments from strangers. Do not click on links unless they are from someone you trust. Do not click on suspicious looking adds, unless they are on a reputed site. Try not to visit x-rated sites from your own computer. A little common sense can go a long way in computer protection.

4. Take backup

If things can go wrong, they will. So we cannot stress this enough, but make sure you take regular backup of everything on your computer on an external drive every few weeks. This way, if in spite of protection, your system does get infected, you can format it without much loss.

5. Don’t surf on unprotected networks

Most fast food joints and coffee shops offer free wi fi, but if you use them, you are leaving the doors to your computer wide open for anyone who wants to sneak in. Don’t use wifi on unsecured networks.

6. Don’t keep it simple

We are talking about your passwords, silly. Select passwords that will be difficult for hackers to guess. Change them frequently. And don’t use the same password on all your accounts. That way, even if one of your accounts is compromised, the others are safe.