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Computer viruses and malware can slow down your PC, damage your files and data, and even rob you of sensitive financial or personal information. You may pick up viruses, spam, and malware without even realizing it while browsing the web. Often times, the viruses operate on your system without you even noticing the damage they are doing. But by taking some simple steps and educating yourself about PC health and keeping your computer safe you can avoid most of the PC dangers out there.

First and foremost it is crucial to keep your computer software up to date; for most users this means allowing Microsoft Windows to auto-update it's software. These updates often contain critical patches to secure and protect against hacker attacks. Software that is kept current is likely to be best protected against ever-changing hacker attacks and virus exploitations on your system.

You'll also want to keep your firewall enabled at all times; most PCs come with this option on by default, as it should be. The firewall prevents a lot of incoming data communications which can be malicious at time and bad for your PC's health. Think of the firewall as a one way door where you can send information out, but only trusted information is allowed in. For both the firewall and auto updates, most PC users using Windows can access the settings for these under Control Panel.

You may think you have to spend money to get decent protection for your PC beyond the two features above, but this is not true. There is a wealth of spam-free programs designed and made for personal use for free. Look for the following programs for easy and good protection. Spybot Search and Destroy is a great free program for blocking and removing spyware and adware as well as some viruses and phishing programs. AdAware is a great program that offers excellent adware removal and also can remove malicious software and programs running on your machine in the background.

AVG is an excellent free anti-virus program that is comparable to paid programs. This program will constantly monitor your computer for virus and hacker threats, remove adware and spyware, and remove viruses that may get through the firewall and monitoring system.

For more advanced users, free programs such as Peer Guardian allow custom protection; it allows users to block and allow specific IP addresses; with the program by default blocking all known sites that may harm your PC.

You can also protect yourself by surfing safely. Never click on unsolicited e-mail, even if it appears to come from your bank or a friend. Sites will never ask for your user-name, password, or personal information via e-mail, IM, or phone. Many scams involving sites such as EBay and PayPal send out fake e-mails tricking users into believing they are legitimate e-mails from these companies. Never give personal or financial information including passwords or account numbers out either.

It is possible to keep your PC running like new and safe on-line, you just need to keep your software up to date, keep your firewalls enabled, and consider getting some of the excellent free anti-virus/anti-spyware programs mentioned above.

Learn more about this author, Maxwell Payne.
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