General PC Hygeine

Keep your Windows PC clean and safe

Keeping a Windows PC clear of viruses, Trojans and other assorted crap isn't rocket science, but it does require a little bit of effort and attention to detail.

First, you must allow Windows to receive and install critical updates from Microsoft, which publishes them on the first Tuesday of every month, with occasional ad hoc patches made available when a serious security threat is detected such as the animated cursors vulnerability detailed here http://tinyurl.com/37atv4

To set your Vista machine to receive automatic updates, go to the Control Panel, click on Windows Updates and check this window

I have Windows set to tell me what the updates are before I install them. A beginner or someone not confident with computers should tick the Install Updates Automatically. You only need to install updates that are marked Critical – optional updates tend to be drivers (the software that controls third-party devices such as printers, scanners and graphics cards) and are generally better acquired from the manufacturer's website, not Microsoft.

Second, you must have security software installed on your computer, and you must keep it up to date. You could choose one of the big paid-for suites such as Norton Internet Security http://tinyurl.com/2vhvap or McAfee Internet Security http://tinyurl.com/2pbn5z. New computers often come with a trial version of one of these suites.

The upside of these packages is that they will provide pretty much all the security you need. The downside is that they generally give you a year of free updates and then you have to pay a further fee or upgrade the software. One common cause of infections is people not bothering to renew their subscription to these suites and so they donÕt get the most up-to-date antivirus definitions.

Another downside of the suites is that they are big and can be a drain on your system.

You can go for free software. If you do, you should uninstall McAfee or Norton if they are on your system as having more than one antivirus program can cause conflicts and problems. Warning: uninstalling these can be a pain because they infiltrate themselves deeply into your PC. Both companies provide removal tools. McAfee's is here http://tinyurl.com/7b5jm and NortonÕs is here http://tinyurl.com/6oq8f.

There are two excellent free antivirus programs: Avast and AVG. Make sure you choose the free versions rather than the trial versions, which will nag you to pay for them.

AVG http://free.grisoft.com/doc/1

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

You also need a firewall. Windows XP's inbuilt firewall isn't adequate as it only blocks inbound traffic and won't stop a malicious program contacting a server without your knowledge. I suggest using ZoneAlarm's excellent free firewall in its stead, which you can get from here http://tinyurl.com/rak67 Make sure you click on the 'I only want basic ZoneAlarm protection' to get the free version.

Once you've installed ZoneAlarm, be warned, it will be annoying for a couple of days while you teach it what it can allow to access the web. It will throw up a window asking your permission to allow a file to access the web each time something new wants to do so: check that it's something you recognise before you OK it. Mostly you will recognise the files: it will be things like iexplore.exe (which is Internet Explorer) and msinn.exe (which is Outlook Express). If you don't recognise what is asking for permission, Google the name.exe file: you'll quickly find out if it's legit.

If you're using Vista, there is as yet (April) no compatible free firewall, but the Vista inbuilt firewall is perfectly adequate as it blocks both inbound and outbound traffic. Furthermore, if you use a router, you have a further hardware firewall.

Next you need antispyware. Vista includes an application called Windows Defender, which runs by default on start-up, scans in realtime and updates itself automatically. If you use XP, this is a good program to add to your arsenal, and you can download it from here http://tinyurl.com/dyvaw

Next is a series of programs that will scan your machine when you tell it to but which do not run in real time, ie they wonÕt keep an eye on what you download unless you tell them to scan something.

Superantispyware http://www.superantispyware.com/

A Squared (excellent Trojan remover) http://www.emsisoft.com/en/software/free/

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

Adaware http://tinyurl.com/5kgsl

The latter four need to be run regularly - I suggest once a week; and before you scan you must go online and check for updates. They canÕt pick up new viruses, worms etc if their databases aren't up to date.

Safe browsing

I also suggest using Firefox as your browser rather than Internet Explorer. IE has improved with version 7, but Firefox blocks some malicious scripts from running by default, lessening your potential exposure to malware that sneakily downloads and installs in the background. You can get Firefox from here http://www.mozilla.com

Firefox is developed by the open-source community rather than by a big company and so geeks all over the world have built extensions to it to add functionality. Many are geeky, cosmetic or simply useless, but there are a few that are well worth adding.

You need never see another ad with the adblock extension https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/10 and the associated filter https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/1136 You could also install NoScript, which stops all Javascripts from running, though you might find it a pain to allow websites one by one. However, it does up your security significantly https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/722

You can significantly reduce your exposure to interweb-borne crap by being careful about your browsing habits. If you visit porn sites, for God's sake use Firefox with the above extensions. Unscrupulous porn sites are notorious for hosting scripts that download and install malicious software without your knowledge or permission.

If you download a free program from the internet, read the terms and conditions. You might find a clause buried that says it's installing 'supplementary software' – which can be at best adware that tracks your surfing habits or at worse a keylogger Trojan. In general it's not a good idea to download free software – if in doubt, Google the name of the program before you install it and see if there are any known issues with it. Or ask in a specialist PC forum – www.pcadvisor is a friendly and helpful computer forum and will help you with questions about potentially dodgy software. Be especially careful of free games, screensavers, cursors and suchlike: they are notorious for containing malware. Scan anything you download before you run or install it with all your antimalware programs.

Be equally careful with warez, or cracked programs. There is no such thing as a free copy of Photoshop. That kind of thing tends to include malware.

If you download music and movies via the peer-to-peer programs such as Limewire or Frostwire be aware that malware files can masquerade as mp3 files or whatever. Scan anything you download before you double-click on it. Torrents are a bit safer because of the way they arrive on your PC, but in principle anything downloaded from the net that bypasses copyright protection is potentially a threat to your PC.

Never accept any file sent to you via MSN unless you are 100 per cent sure of its source.MSN is a notorious vector for malware.

Never click on a banner that says 'you have spyware!' or 'you have won a million pounds!' or similar. Never click OK to anything on the internet unless you are absolutely sure it's safe. If in doubt, don't click.

If you have kids, set up limited user accounts for them. The parental controls in Vista are excellent and allow you to define the programs they can use, the websites they can visit, how long they can be on the PC etc etc. Never allow a child, particularly a clever teen, to use your PC in administrator mode.

Parental controls in Vista are accessed via the Control Panel. If youÕre using XP, I suggest you install something like Net Nanny http://tinyurl.com/2qe4u8 It's not free, but it's £17 well spent.

Above all, use a STRONG password that your anklebiters won't be able to crack.

If you use online banking, it is particularly important to safeguard your PC. Never click on a link in an email that says it comes from your bank or from any financial institution, especially if it says you need to verify your details: this is a classic phishing tactic, and catches out thousands of people every day. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phishing

Remember, no bank or financial company such as PayPal will ever ask you for your personal details such as your PIN or your passwords.