Computer Security Tips To Optimize And Protect Your Computers

Computer security is as an essential part of our life as threats to computers keep on growing everyday. As the computer technology advances, security threats are becoming sophisticated. These threats could cause a disaster, making your computer to crash or malfunction. These threats could erase your important data, files, computer programs and softwares. Hence, these could cost you a lot of money, time and energy.

Computer security threats

There are many types of threats to computer security especially those connected in the internet. These include viruses, spywares, worms, Trojan horses, (Denial-of-Service) DoS and (Distributed Denial-of-Service) DDoS attacks.

• Virus is a malicious code that causes malfunction, infect or corrupt files in the computer.
  
• Worm is made of small code that spreads over the network nodes of the victim's computer. It sends itself, to other computers included in the contact list of the victim's computer. It consumes significant resources of the computers and the network.
  
• Trojan horse is a harmful code, embedded in a harmless software. The name of Trojan horse was adopted from the Greek mythology where the Greeks built a giant horse and stuffed several soldiers inside secretly during their war against Trojans (people of Troy). The horse was offered as gift to the Trojans by the Greeks who sailed away from Troy as sign of retreat. The Trojans pulled the giant horse inside the city and celebrated the victory against the Greeks. When they were all drunk and fell asleep. The Greek soldiers inside the horse got out and opened the city gate and successfully captured Troy.
  
• DoS and DdoS attacks are attacks on a computer system or network that causes a loss of service to users, typically the loss of network connectivity and services by consuming the bandwidth of the victim network or overloading the computational resources of the victim system.
  
• Spyware is a software that secretly collects personal information about users without their consent by logging keystrokes, recording Internet web browsing history, and scanning documents on the computer's hard disk for marketing and fraudulent purposes. This is often used interchangeably with adware and malware.
  

Common protection against computer security threats

To protect your computer from the computer security threats, you have to install detection and prevention software. You have to observe some preventive measures in using your computer, as follows:

• Install an antivirus software like McAfee, Computer Associates Antivirus, Trend Micro and Norton Antivirus. Other best free antiviruses are AVG and Avast. These antivirus software will detect, prevent and clean viruses, worms and Trojan horses existing and non-existing in your personal or office computers. Activate the real-time scanning of viruses. Activate the virus scanning of emails and its attachments before opening.
  
• Install firewall software with the right parameters to prevent and detect intrusions and attacks to your computer. Use firewall software like Zonelabs and Computer Associates Personal Firewall.
  
• Install anti-spyware software like Computer Associates PestPatrol Anti-Spyware, Zone Labs and Trend Micro to prevent and detect spywares existing and non-existing in your computers. Activate real-time scanning of spywares or adware. The best free anti-spywares include Spybot, Adaware and Windows Antispyware.
  
• Regularly update your operating systems softwares, antivirus, anti-spyware, firewall and other security software at least on a daily basis to patch vulnerabilities of your computer. Use internet security suite like those mentioned above for easy use.
  
• Configure your router properly to prevent an unauthorized access in your system.
  
• Be careful in opening emails. Ensure that you know the source and it is not a spam or fake. Spam emails are the common sources of viruses and malwares. Before opening or downloading, scan email attachments, which are the common way of spreading viruses or malwares.
  
• Regulary scan your computer for viruses and spywares at least on a daily basis.
  

  

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