Gamers World Bangladesh Blog

Internet connection is available to the masses of the Bangladeshi people - anyone can access it from their home, office, school, university, cyber cafes at a cheap flat rate. But due to the huge accessibility to the Internet, virus and other malicious attacks have increased two-fold. A lot of us don't even care to use anti-spyware/adware/virus softwares or don't update them regularly and this results in potentially harmful malicious content on our PC without our knowledge.

Therefore I am proud to present this guide on how to protect your computer from these malicious threats.


1. ADWARE

An adware isn't that dangerous, but it still is a nuisance. An adware is just apiece of bad software which displays ads in the hope that you will click on them - they get their revenues from the clicks you make. Although this isn't serious, but it is annoying as it trashes your computer with tons of advertisement, some of which may be inappropriate.

The best (and free!) adware removal software is Lavasoft's Ad-aware Personal, Spybot's Search & Destroy and Microsoft Defender . You can have multiple adware removal tools (unlike a virus checker) installed on your system with little or no problem. Not a single anti-adware software can catch and remove all, so your best bet would be to have a couple of them installed all together at once. Never install adware removal tools from unknown publishers as these install adwares themselves!

Once you have downloaded the appropriate softwares, run a check weekly (at the least) and remember to update often. New adwares are constantly being released and your PC is sitting dumb unless you update. Updating allows newer adwares to be detected and removed by the adware-removal tools. Most of us forget to update our softwares - thinking that we are perfectly safe, but WE ARE NOT! Don't be one of them!

2. SPYWARES

A spyware is a potentially dangerous form of malicious software. It tracks your every move, every key you press, every passwords that you enter - everything that you do on your PC. That means it can find out all your passwords, credit card details, personal information and send it back to its maker. Thousands of accounts are being hacked, credit cards are being forged and identity theft being done this way.

But you do not need to fret at this! The best spyware removal tools are also free. And yes, ad-ware removal tools also scan for spywares, so that you have a two-in-one software. Use the adware removal softwares that I have mentioned and make sure to run a scan frequently and update your software.

3. VIRUSES

Virus stands for Vital Information Resources Under Siege. This is perhaps the most dangerous form form of malicious software that is out there on the internet. Viruses alone causes billions of dollars of damage worldwide. Think about all the important files on your computer - that you have toiled upon day and night or have them for years. If you catch a virus then it may delete all your files, your operating system, and render your computer useless. Some viruses are known to slow down a computer's performance. So if your computer is behaving strangely - frequent crahses, error messages - or has become slow, then you have, most likely, caught a virus. Included in the many types of viruses are:

A. Trojan horses A Trojan horse is just a computer program. The program pretends to do one thing (like claim to be a picture) but actually does damage when one starts it (it can completely erase one's files). Trojan horses cannot replicate automatically.

B. Worms A worm is a piece of software that uses computer networks and security flaws to create copies of itself. A copy of the worm will scan the network for any other machine that has a specific security flaw. It replicates itself to the new machine using the security flaw, and then begins scanning and replicating anew.

C. E-mail viruses An e-mail virus will use an e-mail message as a mode of transport, and usually will copy itself by automatically mailing itself to hundreds of people in the victim's address book.

To remove viruses, you need a good Antivirus program, such as Symantec's Norton Antivirus, BitDefender or McAfee. If you cannot afford a paid antivirus program, then consider yourself getting a free antivirus program such as AVG Antivirus . It is good enough. Of all the important things, remember to scan and update regularly!

General Guidelines to avoid infection:

1. Always use a firewall, such as Zone Alarm. A firewwall is your first line of defence against malicious attacks as it stops the infection from entering your computer.

2. Use a safe browser, such as Mozilla Firefox, or the recently released Internet Explorer 7. A lot of virus outbreaks occur due to holes in Internet Explorer 6.

3. If using Internet Explorer, double-check before you run any Active X controls.

4. Time and time again, remember to update your softwares!

5. Never visit any illegal/crack/warez/serial/porn sites. These are the most likely sources for virus, spyware or adware infections.

6. Never download anything from sources that you do not trust.

7. Never respond to or open spam mails. Never download any attachments in your email from a person you do not know.

8. Use an antivirus software running in the background. These offer real-time protection and stop viruses the moment they try to enter your PC.

9. Patch your operating system regularly, especially if you are using Windows. Bugs and holes through which malicious content could enter, are continually being detected and patched. To make sure you are receiving the latest patches (in Win XP), go to Start>Control Panel>Security Center and make sure that Automatic Update is turned on.

10. Get the latest updates of all the software that you use - it improves performance, stability and system security.

And the best defense of all is to USE YOUR COMMON SENSE.

It is hoped that with these guidelines, you will be able to stop 90% of all malicious attacks. But in the off-chance that you do catch a virus, then don't tear out your hair yet! Try to remove it using a virus scanner or manually delete the file. If all else fails, you may need to perform a complete reformat of your hard drive. But that means backing up all your data, documents, personal files, reinstalling Windows, reinstalling all your softwares and settings and the like.

If you need help, then post a message at our discussion forum at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/gamers-world_bd/ where there are lots of eager members to help you. But if all else fails, and you need immediate assistance, then drop me a line.

-Download Links (Free) -
Lavasoft's Ad-aware - Spybot Search&Destroy - Microsoft Defender - AVG Antivirus - Zone Alarm