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The 'virus, spyware and firewall protection advice' page

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How do viruses and spyware find my computer to infect it?

If your computer has uptodate virus and antispyware protection, it does not mean that it is completely, 100% protected against infestations unfortunately. New viruses and spyware are being created regularly, and before your protection programs have discovered and created an 'antidote', everyone's computer is susceptible. To reduce the chance of infestation, do not open email attachments from unknown sources and eliminate high-risk behaviour on the Internet. If you or someone in your family are using file-sharing programs such as Lime Wire or Ares to download music, films or programs, please know that this practice, while not yet illegal in Canada, is illegal in the United States. For this reason and because the Internet has no borders, you may be subject to any Internet-based action originating from the US designed to discourage users from illegal activity. This means that you may end up downloading music, films and programs purposely infected with viruses. Visiting pornographic or questionable websites also poses a greater risk for your computer to contract a virus or download spyware. You may wish to read: How can I safely and legally download music, films and programs to my computer?

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Why is my computer infected if I have virus and spyware protection?

You will find the answer to this question by reading the answer to the question above 'How do viruses and spyware find my computer to infect it?'

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How can I obtain a free antivirus with auto updates and auto scans?

You may wish to print these instructions ahead of time, to make it easier to follow. There are three steps: 1) download Antivir antivirus and note the location you are saving it to. We recommend that you save it to your Desktop. 2) Un-install your current antivirus, by clicking on Start, Control Panel, Add-Remove Programs, find it in the list, click once on it, then click on the Remove button. Respond to all the prompts to completely remove the program from your computer. You will be asked to reboot once it is un-installed. Accept and permit the reboot operation to proceed. 3) Install the Antivir program by double-clicking on the program icon that you downloaded in the first step. Agree to all the steps during the installation. You will be asked if you wish to update: click on Yes, but make sure ahead of time that your Internet connection is active. Note that with Antivir, daily updates are done automatically under one condition: your Internet connection must be always active, such as if you have a router or a cable modem. Otherwise, if you need to manually activate your Internet connection, as is the case with a DSL connection without a router, you will need to manually update Antivir. If you forget, the program will remind you every couple of days on start up of your computer. To manually update the program, you place your mouse cursor on the Antivir icon in your System Tray (the group of icons at the bottom-right of your screen). You right-click the icon, and left-click Start Update. During the update process, you can continue to use your computer. You will be served with an advertisement promoting the Premium version of Antivir that you can close immediately using the top-right 'X' or on the OK button of the ad. The update process is not quick, but it does not slow down your computer. If you want us to carry out these steps for you, give us a call. Usually this can be done remotely in about 15 minutes, i.e. approx. $22.50 plus HST. This is actually cheaper than buying most commercial antivirus programs.

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How can I obtain spyware and firewall protection?

For protection against spyware, all users should have Spybot Search and Destroy installed. It is free, and can easily be programmed to update and scan on a regular basis. If you do not currently have this program installed and are going to install it, we recommend that you un-check the Tea Timer option during installation. It is a well-intentioned part of the program, but it will annoy you with pop-ups and questions that you should not have to answer. Spybot S&D also has the advantage of not always running its main program in the background, so your computer is not slowed down. It only runs its main part when you open it. The rest of the time, it only runs little programs through your browser to protect you. If you consider yourself, or your family, high-risk users*, we recommend that you also install Windows Defender. Note that this program will always run in the background and it will slow down your computer.

*What is a high-risk user? Please read the answer to the question above How do viruses and spyware find my computer to infect it?

As far as a firewall is concerned, your Windows xp or Vista already has one built in. If you feel that the inbound-only firewall that is provided by Windows xp and Vista is not sufficient for you, consider adding a router, that also acts as a hardware firewall. You can obtain additional software-based firewalls, but they will slow down your computer, and they are not recommended.

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