Protect Yourself from Threats

Sometimes when I take a computer back to the customer after a full service, I explain that as part of the job I have removed some potentially malicious or unnecessary software.

I particularly look out for programs that I’ve never heard of that that insist on running a scan every time you switch on, and that claim to clean the registry, or defragment your RAM, or some such operation.

At best, they are a waste of time, at worst they bring malware with them, or demand money with menaces.

Sometimes, the customer will look shocked – “I didn’t install that software!” Well, you did, actually. You may not have done it deliberately, but you clicked something somewhere that let the software in.

Sometimes we don’t read all the small print when, for example, updating a vital piece of software. Sometimes, the update comes with the option to download and install some other program(s).

We’ve all done it – yes, I hold up my hands and confess that less haste would have saved me hours of cleaning up afterwards.

But let’s be absolutely clear: software loads on your PC because you let it. This is particularly important to understand when we are dealing with malicious software, especially the type that pretends to be a friendly anti-virus program and pops up unbidden.

This type of program is malicious, in that it can lock up your system, and demand money to un-freeze your PC. There have been a number of variants on this theme, and they get cleverer and more frightening each time they reappear. They have a special knack of looking so plausible, and lure you into trusting them with carefully chosen words like “Microsoft” and “Windows” in the title.

It is possible to take prevention measures against such malicious software. None of the software or hardware security measures is fool proof – we must always remember the human element in all this, and we are all capable of behaving foolishly at times.

But here are some essential measure to take:

• Enable a firewall on your computer;
• Get the latest computer updates for all your installed software from reputable update sites;
• Use up-to-date antivirus software;
• Use caution when opening attachments and accepting file transfers, especially in emails from people or organisations you’ve never heard of;
• Use caution when clicking on links to webpages, by installing WOT or some other website checker;
• Avoid downloading pirated software;
• Use strong passwords.

But even with all the above, it is still possible for malicious software to get through. So, a little more advice:

• Read the small print, look at the tick boxes (to see whether to tick or untick);
• Stay vigilant!

Computers are built by humans and used by humans, so we all make mistakes. Forewarned is forearmed. But when all else fails, there’s always TLC, bringing personal solutions to human frailty.

(My thanks are due to the Windows Secrets Newsletter for prompting my thinking: windowssecrets.com)