Top 10 Ways To Protect Yourself From Computer Viruses

As more and more people are using their computers at school, home, or in the office comfortably it’s only a matter of time before they get infected by a computer virus. So, here I am listing 10 steps that you should follow to protect yourself from computer viruses.

Use a high-quality anti-virus program.

There are various anti-virus computers programs on the market. Some of them are more helpful than others. Look to reputed computer magazines or websites that provide ratings to help you find the anti-virus that matches your requirements.

Always use your anti-virus software.

Make certain your anti-virus software is consistently turned on and scans all incoming and outgoing email messages, and also any software programs that you run. 

Keep your antivirus programs up to date.

Never lag in updating your softwares as soon as any update is available. Most programs come with an annual subscription, so make sure you take benefit of the updates in between. For more advanced programs you can schedule updates or full system scans for “off hours” like 3 AM when you aren’t likely to be operating your computer.

Keep your computer up to date.

From time to time operating systems issue updates to counterbalance security holes. Make sure you check regularly and make sure you are running stable and up to date versions of your software.

Back up your data regularly.

It is common that most windows computer users save their documents in the “My documents” folder. This makes it effortless to back up all of your necessary documents. You should also make weekly or monthly backup copies to CD or USB drives of your important data.

If you use USB drives on public computers like your school computer lab or even a digital photo printing store, make certain you scan them for viruses before using them. Public computers are infamous for not being up to date and properly protected.

Be wary of email attachments.

Treat any email attachment as potentially dangerous. If you weren’t expecting an email from a person, never open attachments from this email. Also, be cautious of attachments from people you know but weren’t hoping. Many computer viruses reproduce themselves by reading the contacts from a computer that is infected.

Use text email if possible.

While HTML emails look prettier and allow you better control over formatting, they also can carry computer viruses. If you use text-based email then the only way to get a virus is by opening an attachment.

Use downloaded freeware and shareware software with caution.

If you are going to download some files or software, try to download them only from popular reputed sources that scan the programs before they are made available to download. To make sure that you are safe, you should scan the program before you install it on your computer.