Safe Internet Blog

The shopping season is over and the new year has begun. But keeping safe online is more important than ever. Internet is still something very scary for many users and experts believe that 2010 will be the year of the cyber criminal. The staff at digital defender would like to share some simple tips that anyone can use and that we use in our daily work and private lives to stay safer online.

1. Better be safe than sorry

If something looks too good to be true it probably is. Emails offering to enhance body parts, make you lose weight or offering you the chance to untold riches are 99,99% untrue. Do not answer these emails, just remove them or add them to your spamfilter’s blacklist.

2. Always protect your identity online

Create an email account at gmail, hotmail or whichever free email provider you prefer that you can use when you need to sign up to a services you are not 100% percent sure about. If the site owner starts to spam you or send a lot of unnecessary information then it will intrude in your daily life. You should be very careful whom you share your personal mail address with.

3. Google it before you try it

If you have found a new software that sounds really interesting or a website for that matter and you would really like to try it out, then Google it before you try it. If there are no negative reviews then you are a little bit more safe then before.

4. Https is your friend

When you are paying for something online and it says https and a padlock in the browser line then you are using an encrypted connection. This will make sure that you send the information to the right party and only the people you want to send it to.

5. Never, ever open attached files if you are not 100% sure of what they contain

I remember once I worked at an IT-company where the boss for some reason opened an attached file that was called openme.exe, which was obviously not good. The attached virus destroyed his computer more or less.

6. Create good passwords

Typically most people have one password that they try to use whenever they can, since it is easier to remember that way. But imagine that you would have just one key that would open anything that you owned or worked with. I would not be comfortable with that. There is a lot of good software out there that will help you store multiple passwords and you only need to remember one to access the rest.

7. Keep a backup

When disaster strikes, it’s good to be able to get your valuable pictures, music and other things back. Backup systems today can be used by anyone without any special knowledge and they are getting cheaper by the minute. Online and offline backups have their advantages and disadvantages. Choose one that you like and stick with it.

8. Update your drivers and software

There is no such thing as a 100% secure software. Software is always updated to ensure that any discovered security holes are patched. Having the latest version of your software and drivers also ensures that your computer runs smoothly. If you think this is a lot of work, there are various kinds of software that can handle this for you.

9. Use a good antivirus and antispyware software

This is a hard one. There are a ton of software out there. There are free versions and paid versions, some are included with your computer and some are not. Our recommendations from digital defender is that you should run a software that you feel comfortable with. It should also as a minimum have: a real-time element that always monitors your computer, frequent update and an easy to use interface. Our experience is that if you do not understand your software then you will not use it.

10. USB drives

We move, more and more data around with USB drives and their storage capacity is growing exponentially while prices drop at the same rate. What many people forget is that if you use your drive at a couple of different computers it is a very good change that you have picked up what ever was on that machine (good or bad). Different computers, with different users pick up different sorts of bugs. If move or share information with your USB drive frequently then ensure you scan it.

Cybersecurity is an enormous are and it is impossible to become an expert overnight. We would like to share these simple things to help you surf safer. We hope that you make use of them and wish you a safe online experience in 2010.

Greetings from the digital defender team

http://www.digital-defender.com

Safe Internet Blog antispyware, antivirus, computer protection, cybercrime, cybercriminals, internet, internet security, online, online security, viruses

The shopping season is over and the new year has begun. But keeping safe online is more important than ever. Many experts believe that 2010 will be the year of the cyber criminal and Internet is still something very “scary” for many users out there. The staff at digital defender would like to share some simple tips that anyone can use and that we use in our daily work and private lives to stay safer online.

1. Better be safe than sorry

If something looks too good to be true it probably is. Emails offering to enhance body parts, make you lose weight or offering you the chance to untold riches are 99,99% untrue. Do not answer these emails, just remove them or add them to your spamfilter’s blacklist.

2. Always protect your identity online

Create an email account at gmail, hotmail or whichever free email provider you prefer that you can use when you need to sign up to a services you are not 100% percent sure about. If the site owner starts to spam you or send a lot of unnecessary information then it will intrude in your daily life. You should be very careful whom you share your personal mail address with.

3. Google it before you try it

If you have found a new software that sounds really interesting or a website for that matter and you would really like to try it out, then Google it before you try it. If there are no negative reviews then you are a little bit more safe then before.

4. Https is your friend

When you are paying for something online and it says https and a padlock in the browser line then you are using an encrypted connection. This will ensure that your information is only sent to the party you are trying to send it to.

5. Never, ever open attached files if you are not 100% sure of what they contain

I remember once I worked at an IT-company where the boss for some reason opened an attached file that was called openme.exe, which was obviously not good. The attached virus destroyed his computer more or less.

6. Create good passwords

Typically most people have one password that they try to use whenever they can, since it is easier to remember that way. But imagine that you would have just one key that would open anything that you owned or worked with. I would not be comfortable with that. There is a lot of good software out there that will help you store multiple passwords and you only need to remember one to access the rest.

7. Keep a backup

When disaster strikes, it’s good to be able to get your valuable pictures, music and other things back. Backup systems today can be used by anyone without any special knowledge and they are getting cheaper by the minute. Online and offline backups have their advantages and disadvantages. Choose one that you like and stick with it.

8. Update your drivers and software

There is no such thing as a 100% secure software. Software is always updated to ensure that any discovered security holes are patched. Having the latest version of your software and drivers also ensures that your computer runs smoothly. If you think this is a lot of work, there are various kinds of software that can handle this for you.

9. Use a good antivirus and antispyware software

This is a hard one. There are a ton of software out there. There are free versions and paid versions, some are included with your computer and some are not. Our recommendations from digital defender is that you should run a software that you feel comfortable with. It should also as a minimum have: a real-time element that always monitors your computer, frequent update and an easy to use interface. Our experience is that if you do not understand your software then you will not use it.

10. USB drives

We move, more and more data around with USB drives and their storage capacity is growing exponentially while prices drop at the same rate. What many people forget is that if you use your drive at a couple of different computers it is a very good change that you have picked up what ever was on that machine (good or bad). Different computers, with different users pick up different sorts of bugs. If move or share information with your USB drive frequently then ensure you scan it.

Cybersecurity is an enormous are and it is impossible to become an expert overnight. We would like to share these simple things to help you surf safer. We hope that you make use of them and wish you a safe online experience in 2010.

Greetings from the digital defender team

http://www.digital-defender.com

Safe Internet Blog antispyware, antivirus, computer protection, cybercrime, cybercriminals, internet, internet security, online, online security, viruses

It is understood that once you have your own PC unit attached to an Internet cable, you have to be very wary about viruses and intrusions and all of that. That’s why, you always see to it that you are well-protected and in order to do so, you need the best antivirus program, right? But, before you buy an antivirus program, you should try to read some reviews first. But if you really want to know what the top antivirus programs are, you can try and choose any of these three: NOD Antivirus, Norton antivirus and McAfee antivirus programs.

In my own experience, I have tried these three antivirus programs the first time I have purchased my very first PC. The first of these three that I have chosen first was McAfee antivirus, based on the suggestions of my friends and of course, I was convinced to use McAfee right after I have read a McAfee Antivirus review and everything that they have said about McAfee in this review was true. But as time goes by, I have observed that it’s getting heavy for my equipment with regards to memory consumption.

So, I changed my program to something that is more popular which I considered as the pioneer among the three: the Norton antivirus program. According to Norton antivirus review, if you are looking for a veteran and a reliable type of antivirus, go for this one. Well, I have known the name Norton since the early 80’s where I have come across Norton batch files and other Norton programs. So, I decided to try it. As of this time, I have installed a NOD program and of course, before doing so, I’ve read a NOD antivirus review before deciding on it. The point is, there is no best antivirus. It depends your needs and your PC’s specs but I should say they are really the best, in my own opinion. All you have to do now is pick one which suits your preferences.

Safe Internet Blog antivirus program, antivirus software, computer, mcafee, mcafee antivirus, nod, nod antivirus, nod32, nod32 antivirus, norton, norton antivirus, PC, spyware, viruses

It is already understood that once you have you own computer unit connected to an Internet cable, you always have to be very vigilant because if you don’t, you will be very vulnerable to a lot of different intrusions specifically viruses and spy ware and other computer intrusions. So, that’s why, you need to read a lot of reviews first before you can buy the best of all top anti virus programs which you think is best for you, according to your needs or preferences and of course, your PC’s configuration. For example, if you have heard from other people that Kaspersky is the best, then, go and read a Kaspersky antivirus review first. That way, you might find out if it can also be the best for you or not.

So, what is the best and the top antivirus software for you? Actually, when you are looking for antivirus software, there is not specific best or top or the most effective program because it all depends upon your needs or your configuration, as what has been mentioned above. You can’t expect a McAfee product to run smoothly on your Pentium II, right? And furthermore, you might buy something that can be considered overkill. You can just say that you also need antivirus software just like what your office is using. It’s just like your shirt. You don’t like to buy something small that won’t fit and at the same, you don’t want something too big but just the right size and the best thing to do is to try them out, right? That’s what you have to do when search for the right antivirus software.

However, should you want to see which is popular, you can read an Eset NOD 32 antivirus review and see if this is what you need or you can go for other antivirus programs.

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When it comes to anti virus software, what do you really want? Are you looking for something that is considered as top antivirus software or do you want anything as long as it is user-friendly? It is not a problem when you want to find an anti virus program. The problem is what to choose, right? With several antivirus tools being sold today, you will really have a very complicated time looking for the anti virus you want to have. To help you out, you need to find first a lot of reviews for every best anti virus software that can come up your mind or you can ask around. But the best way to know what the best top antivirus software is, is to download and install a free trial software and use it for a limited number of days. If you think it’s the best one for you, then, you can buy the full version online.

But you have to remember that if someone says that what they have is the best antivirus software, you hve to remember that it may not be the best for you. You see, it really depends on what you want or what you need or it depends on your computer’s specs. You can’t expect, say, a 2009 McAfee Security Suite software to run smoothly on a 386, right? And if you have a super power computer, it would be useless to find and install an inferior anti virus program. There are times, you can consider procuring anti virus security suite program when you decide to purchase one which is intended for big companies and you use it for your own personal use only. Always remember that the best is what you need and not what others need.

So, now that you have some ideas on how to choose the best antivirus program, what are you waiting for?

Safe Internet Blog anti virus, anti-virus software, antivirus, antivirus program, best antivirus porgram, best antivirus software, kaspersky, mcafee, nod32, norton, trend, viruses