Anti Virus Protection

by Bill Brine

Anti virus protection is pretty much a must have for anyone that uses the internet regularly. I thought I’d save a little money and went without anti virus protection on my notebook when I first got it, and after just two months I had to take it in for a serious set of repairs due to all the damage done to it by viruses. The guy at the repair shop, who also happens to live across the street from me, told me that he’d never seen a computer so riddled with viruses and spyware. When he asked what kind of anti virus protection I’d been using, I said ‘nothing’ and he nearly fainted.

I guess I’d still been in the mindset that viruses are a rare and unlikely phenomenon that only really unlucky people get afflicted with. Sort of like a digital version of Ebola. Sure, Ebola is scary as all heck, but come on. How many people get Ebola every year? What, like five? I remember when viruses first began appearing in the media, some ten or fifteen years ago. Everyone was scared of them but no one actually got one.

Well, apparently viruses have advanced as much as computers have over the years, and you’re now taking a big risk if you don’t have anti virus protection. Fortunately, there are a number of different programs that serve as effective anti virus protection today. My neighbor/computer repair friend signed me up with McAfee, and I used them for a while. They are probably the largest and most recognizable company devoted to anti virus protection software, but there are plenty of other big names as well, such as Symantec’s Norton Antivirus program. There are also some very good free programs available, such as AVG from Grisoft.

I’ve been perfectly happy using AVG's free anti virus protection, and haven’t had any viruses since I installed it. A lot of computers will come with some form of anti virus protection already installed on it, and all you’ll have to do is register for continued protection.

Fortunately in recent years, anti virus protection has extended to the more commonly used email servers as well. Most of the free email account providers, such as Yahoo Mail, Hotmail, or Gmail, will scan any incoming emails and attachments for viruses. Still, it’s a good idea to be wary of emails from people you don’t recognize. I usually don’t even open them and delete them right away.

And very important: NEVER open an email attachment that you are not expecting, even if it comes from someone you know. If you are unsure, save it to your hard drive and scan it with your antivirus program before opening it. Since I started doing that, I have never been infected with any virus sent by email.

If you’re careful and update your anti virus protection regularly, you’ll probably be just fine. A little discipline will go a long way...

Resources: A selection of available software

Shield Pro 2006
$29.99 USD

PAL Emergency Response
$19.99 USD

About the Author

Bill Brine is a recognized author of diverse articles on a wide range of topics relating to internet marketing and online business. At his website www.brincom.com you will find more free articles, and lots of useful tools, advice and services which will assist you in building a successful and profitable online business. Personal consultation and coaching is also available.

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