Title: How Much Protection do our Computers Really Need?
Tags: antispyware antimalware Information-Avenue-News IA-News Registry-Mechanic
Blog Entry: This is my response to a comment about all the obession with computer fixit programs: Yes, you do have to watch out for that! For those that get our Information Avenue (IA) newsletter, you will find we spend hours and days testing various programs and only show what we feel is needed based on extensive testing, research and experience. We have companies approach us all the time asking us to affiliate and sell their product, oftentimes with very high commissions, and while we test them, we rarely recommend them or change our recommendation. Programs do change, and we watch closely and continue our testing and evaluating, and if a program is not staying up to par, you can bet we will alert you. Basically, ONE antivirus (we show free ones even though we could affiliate with several companies and push their product), TWO antispyware with one running in the background (we show free ones as well as registered versions), a Reg Cleaner (we recommend Registry Mechanic but ONLY after testing over a dozen of them), and a malware program (free). We agree that many try to push every sort of program stating "its the best" but changing every week, depending on who is paying the best payout. Some so-called "Expert" newsletters are notorious for telling you a program is the "Best Ever!" only to change it each week or month to the new "Best". We know the best in this case is who is paying the highest commission. We could be making a lot of money recommending a 3rd party firewall, but for years and ONLY after extensive testing and research, we still say use Windows Firewall as Shell notes. We were the first tech company to stick our necks out to say you did not need a 3rd party firewall when everyone else was saying you HAD to have one or else! Many reliable techs are now agreeing with us but it took a few years. Cloudeight has a reputation that has been earned the past 10+ years of recommending what is best, only after thorough testing, and if a program we have been recommending is not keeping up to par, we tell you that too. We watch them closely, use them ourselves, and continue to test new programs that come out. For those who are not famliar with Cloudeight Information Avenue tech news you can find out more by clicking here and we hope you will sign up for our free newsletter! 8 Our latest recommendations: Threat Level Yellow - See this page for a warning about Holiday scams and how to avoid being tricked by them. BE ON GUARD - USE YOUR HEAD - AND KEEP YOUR ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE and YOUR ANTI-SPYWARE SOFTWARE UPDATED. Make sure you have an anti-virus installed. Make sure you have at least two good anti-spyware programs installed. And, above all, keep them current. Don't let your updates lapse. Update frequently (at least several times a week). An anti-virus program that is not up-to-date can be worse than having no anti-virus at all. And anti-spyware programs can only be effective if you keep them updated. If you have not already done so, it would be a good time to download and install a toolbar like Web Of Trust to ensure that the site you think you're on is the site you're really on. Site Advisor will also tell you if the site is clean - i.e. has no malware, spyware, or other nefarious downloads. Most importantly, your first line of defense is always your own good, common sense. Trust it. Trust your instincts. If your common sense and instincts tell you something's wrong, something probably is. Common sense is your best defense! The miscreants who produce all the various trojans, adware and spyware are not stupid. They change names, file names, and installation tactics to try to stay a step ahead of the anti-spyware and anti-virus developers. In two words: Update often. Recommended Free Anti-Virus Programs (Never install more than one anti-virus program) AVAST Anti-Virus (free version for personal/home use) AVAST will continue to offer and support their free version. It's great and we use it on our PCs. AntiVir (free personal version available) now compatible with Windows Vista. No anti-virus can protect you if you do not keep it updated. Update your anti-virus at least twice a week or more. Install and use only one anti-virus program. Installing two does not give you twice the protection. On the contrary, installing two could result in reduced protection and many computer problems. Also, it's very important that you keep your Windows updated with the latest patches, fixes, and updates from http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com/ . If you don't have Automatic Update turned on, you should visit the Windows Update site once per week. Recommended Anti-Spyware (install at least two anti-spyware programs for the best protection) Spyware Doctor (commercial software - free trial available - Cloudeight subscribers get 20% off) SUPERantiSpyware (freeware) EXCELLENT! No anti-spyware program can protect you if you if do not keep the spyware definitions updated. We recommend installing and using at least two anti-spyware programs. No one anti-spyware program made can completely protect you from all the potential spyware and adware threats. Recommend browser toolbar to assist you in recognizing Internet threats, phishing sites and malicious software: Web Of Trust (freeware) Always keep your common sense with you when you're on the Internet. Don't be lured into installing free software or signing up for a free service if it seems too good to be true. Read the privacy policy and/or Terms of Service or License Agreement of any free software or free service you're considering. As a rule of thumb, free products and free services which have extremely long, difficult-to-understand agreements filled with legal-speak are most often deceptive in nature. Be careful and stay informed - you'll be just fine. Despite all the hooligans that hide in the shadows of the 'Net, the Web is a wonderful place for us all to enjoy!
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