Surf But Be Safe

It seems difficult to believe that just 10 years ago very few people had actually heard of the internet, let alone actually used it. But now there is almost no one that does not use the internet on a regular basis, and it is now as much a part of life as the television and the radio, or even more so. However, what many people do not yet realize is that surfing the internet can be dangerous for your computer unless you take some precautions, including making sure that you do a regular scan for viruses, making sure you have a firewall installed, and checking that your computer does not have any Adware.

The good thing is that it is now very easy to scan for viruses by buying one of the many commercially available antivirus software packages. What a virus scan does it essentially scan your computer's hard disk to make sure that no viruses are present, and then if there are any should delete them automatically and then give you a report to tell you what it has done. The good thing about many virus software packages is that they can be set to to scan your hard disk automatically at a prearranged time, usually once a week, so you do not even need to remember to do it.

A firewall is a way of actually stopping a virus getting onto your computer in the first place, since this will actually restrict access to outside networks to your hard disk and will refuse access to anything which it thinks can be a danger. Many antivirus software packages already have a firewall as part of the setup, but some do not, and so when you buy one it is good checking that there is actually a firewall element to the virus software to make sure that your computer stays as safe as possible.

It used to be just a case of protecting your hard disk from viruses, but there is a more recent bogeyman on the internet scene and that is that of adware. In its most benign form this simply will show ads whenever you surf the internet, and will give revenue to the advertiser. But in its most malignant form it can actually help to collect personal information and this could include credit card numbers. It goes without saying that ensuring your computer is clean of this type of software is a top priority, and again that you should make sure that any antivirus software you buy has an anti-adware module as standard.

As you can see there are many things to think about in order to keep your computer safe, but by keeping the points above in mind when you go to purchase your antivirus software or other type of computer protection package, you can be assured that you will keep your computer safe as it is possible to be.