Security Online

Step 1: Purchase or download virus protection software, a spyware remover, a pop-up blocker, and a firewall

Again, some of these components are free, while others are available in suites of software. If your budget is tight, and you are running Windows, there are several free downloads you can get, such as Microsoft’s Malicious Software Removal Tool and Microsoft Windows Anti Spyware. Visit http://www.microsoft.com for more information on these products.

If you are purchasing your protection, Norton has a variety of protection suites to choose from. You can visit the site at http://www.norton.com to find the product that fills all of your needs. You should also check out McAfee at: http://www.mcafee.com . Whether your protection is free or purchased, it should scan incoming and outgoing email messages, all incoming files, and protect your open ports on your computer. It should also be able to do automatic updates for new virus definitions and software upgrades.

If you are looking for free protection, check out the following:

For virus protection:

AVG http://www.grisoft.com

Avast http://www.avast.com/eng/avast_4_home.html

For Spyware Removal:

Spybot http://www.safer-networking.org/en/index.html

For a free pop-up blocker:

Yahoo Toolbar – http://www.yahoo.com

Your ISP may also provide a free pop-up blocker.

For a free firewall:

Sygate http://smb.sygate.com/products/spf_standard.htm

If you are running Windows XP, you already have a firewall; make sure that your version of Windows XP is updated. This can be done at the Microsoft website at

http://www.microsoft.com . You should also strongly consider a hardware firewall, to compliment your software firewall.

If you are interested in obtaining additional security software, check out the following sites:

For parental control software:

Most parental control software is not free, however, you may have parental controls with some ISP’s, such as America Online (AOL). The best parental control software on the market today is CyberSitter at:

http://www.cybersitter.com/

For software to erase your surfing history:

History Clean http://www.newsoftwares.net/history-clean/

For password encryption:

Roboform http://www.roboform.com/

Although originally meant as a way to fill out forms more easily, without having to constantly retype information, roboform has also implemented password encryption features, which makes it a very valuable product.

For anti-Trojan software:

Not all virus scanners detect Trojan horses. Running additional software that will detect Trojan horses is recommended. Try out Anti-Trojan Elite at:

http://www.remove-trojan.com/

For anti-spam software:

There are numerous anti-spam utilities that can be purchased. There are even services that force anyone who sends you email to authenticate themselves.

However, most ISP’s now have anti spam and anti virus protection on their end, and they will usually catch most of the spam that comes through. Then, email clients, such as Outlook Express also move spam to a junk mail folder. Most online email services, such as Yahoo and Hotmail also use these methods for eliminating spam. However – they don’t catch all of the spam, and some will find its way to your inbox. You might want to try MailWasher at:

http://www.mailwasher.net/

Once you have the software that you want to install, make sure that you read the installation instructions provided by the manufacturer. Most manufacturers offer support if you have any problems. Start with the virus protection, and run a complete virus scan of your system before installing anything else. Make sure that the virus protection software is updated before starting the scan.