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of spyware and adware running in the background. You can pick these up going to just about any site, even seemingly harmless ones.

These programs can and will download to your computer without your permission and will run in the background at all times; causing your computer's processes to lag and overall performance to decline. These programs are generally used to track where you surf and what you do so that they know what kind of pop-ads to send you. Some are more dangerous though and can track pertinent information that you enter into private websites (banks, online stores, etc.). It is possible that these trackers can get a hold of your credit card and bank account info this way.

If you get online (and who doesn't?), run a spyware-removal program at least once a week! You can find a number of these free online; you should not have to pay for a decent spyware-removal program. They are imperative to have and I do not advise going online without at least one on your system.

Stay Away From:

A lot of people enjoy downloading cutesy, animated screensavers and simple, time-crunching games off of the Internet.

My best advice? Don't. I've had entire computers crash after downloading a seemingly innocent holiday screensaver. While some screensavers are from legit companies, and some games are safe (those from Yahoo!, Pogo, GameZone, etc.), the vast majority of those found from "click here" banners or other dubious means are not. These programs are simply full of ad/spyware that you are willfully downloading into your computer.

A lot of these programs appear innocent, and some even come up as legitimate spyware removal programs themselves when, in fact, they are anything but. Do not download anything from the Internet unless you are 100% certain of its validity and reputation. A good rule of thumb is to never download anything advertised on a pop-up ad.

Also be sure to stay away from gambling and pornographic websites; these sites are usually rife with spyware that will download invisibly to your computer.

I've had entire computers crash after downloading these types of things or going to questionable sites - including screensavers, rebate programs, daily horoscopes or weather bugs. That right there should tell you that this is not something you want installed on your computer; it's not worth it to get a silly screensaver or game you'll only play twice.

Email:

I cannot stress this enough - do not open an attachment in email if you are not expecting one. Even if you know

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