Gentelmen,
If you take the time to read this 5 part aticle by Ian Richard (aka- Gizmo) of Tech Support Alert he shows you an effective way to protect your PC from Viruses, Malware, and Spyware. And the great thing is he shows you how to do it for free with application that are not resource hogs, and get the job done.
His approach is to use a 4 layer tier of freeware products that when combined will perform as well as the best comercial applications. By using his 4 layer method you can make your PC nearly 100% protected, just as protected as if you purchased the best comercial product suites, but with less resource overhead.
In summary the 4 Layer approach is:
L1. Anti-Virus Scanner (AVG)
L2. Anti-Trojan Scanner (Ewido)
L3. Anti-Spyware Scanner (MS Antispyware which was renamed Windows Defender on 11/4/05 by MS)
L4. Intrusion Detection Program (PrevX or WinPatrol, the freeware version of PrevX1 is now beta code only, so you may be better off using WinPatrol as your freeware ID program.)
Please take the time to read all 5 parts of his article if you are concerned with improving your PC's protection capabilities.
http://www.techsupportalert.com/free-vs-paid-av.htm
http://www.techsupportalert.com/best_shareware_sites.htm
*****************
EDIT:
L5 should be a Firewall, even if your Internet router/modem has a Basic Firewall that blocks unsolicitated inbound requests, you may want to consider a Dynamic Firewall that can also block outbound requests from your PC.
The following was copied from the Zone Alarm Website:
Are there PC firewalls that offer more advanced protection than basic PC firewalls?
Yes. Some PC firewalls offer security features that go beyond basic firewalls:
Dynamic firewalls -
A basic PC firewall keeps your computer's door open to the Internet while monitoring the flow of traffic through that door. But a dynamic PC firewall automatically opens your computer's door to the Internet when needed, allows only authorized traffic through, then immediately shuts the door. As a result, a dynamic PC firewall, such as ZoneAlarm, provides more protection than a basic PC firewall.
Outbound and inbound protection. Many basic PC firewalls only protect your PC from unauthorized inbound communications. But some PC firewalls, such as ZoneAlarm, protect your PC from unauthorized inbound as well as outbound communications.
Suppose a hacker tries to install software on your PC that can capture your bank account information and transmit the data to the hacker. The attempted software installation would be an unauthorized inbound communication. The transmission of your private data to the hacker would be an unauthorized outbound communication.
A basic PC firewall might not catch a hacker's every attempt to access your PC. Should the hacker succeed, your bank account information could then be transmitted to the hacker?unless your PC firewall was capable of automatically blocking unauthorized outbound communications.
For more advanced protection, you should consider a dynamic PC firewall that provides both outbound and inbound protection.
If you take the time to read this 5 part aticle by Ian Richard (aka- Gizmo) of Tech Support Alert he shows you an effective way to protect your PC from Viruses, Malware, and Spyware. And the great thing is he shows you how to do it for free with application that are not resource hogs, and get the job done.
His approach is to use a 4 layer tier of freeware products that when combined will perform as well as the best comercial applications. By using his 4 layer method you can make your PC nearly 100% protected, just as protected as if you purchased the best comercial product suites, but with less resource overhead.
In summary the 4 Layer approach is:
L1. Anti-Virus Scanner (AVG)
L2. Anti-Trojan Scanner (Ewido)
L3. Anti-Spyware Scanner (MS Antispyware which was renamed Windows Defender on 11/4/05 by MS)
L4. Intrusion Detection Program (PrevX or WinPatrol, the freeware version of PrevX1 is now beta code only, so you may be better off using WinPatrol as your freeware ID program.)
Please take the time to read all 5 parts of his article if you are concerned with improving your PC's protection capabilities.
http://www.techsupportalert.com/free-vs-paid-av.htm
http://www.techsupportalert.com/best_shareware_sites.htm
*****************
EDIT:
L5 should be a Firewall, even if your Internet router/modem has a Basic Firewall that blocks unsolicitated inbound requests, you may want to consider a Dynamic Firewall that can also block outbound requests from your PC.
The following was copied from the Zone Alarm Website:
Are there PC firewalls that offer more advanced protection than basic PC firewalls?
Yes. Some PC firewalls offer security features that go beyond basic firewalls:
Dynamic firewalls -
A basic PC firewall keeps your computer's door open to the Internet while monitoring the flow of traffic through that door. But a dynamic PC firewall automatically opens your computer's door to the Internet when needed, allows only authorized traffic through, then immediately shuts the door. As a result, a dynamic PC firewall, such as ZoneAlarm, provides more protection than a basic PC firewall.
Outbound and inbound protection. Many basic PC firewalls only protect your PC from unauthorized inbound communications. But some PC firewalls, such as ZoneAlarm, protect your PC from unauthorized inbound as well as outbound communications.
Suppose a hacker tries to install software on your PC that can capture your bank account information and transmit the data to the hacker. The attempted software installation would be an unauthorized inbound communication. The transmission of your private data to the hacker would be an unauthorized outbound communication.
A basic PC firewall might not catch a hacker's every attempt to access your PC. Should the hacker succeed, your bank account information could then be transmitted to the hacker?unless your PC firewall was capable of automatically blocking unauthorized outbound communications.
For more advanced protection, you should consider a dynamic PC firewall that provides both outbound and inbound protection.
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