Always use an antispyware application. Perform on-demand scans regularly to remove spyware that slips through your antispyware protection. Restart your computer after removal of spyware and rescan to make sure no "ticklers", which are designed to reinstall spyware, have resurrected any deleted apps. Activate the real-time blocking abilities of whatever your antispyware application of choice offers.
Update the Spyware Database. Make sure that you regularly update the spyware database that came with your antispyware installation. New spyware is being created every day, and databases the anti-spyware programs use are being updated as well. Most of the antispyware applications available have update functions that will locate, download and install the latest databases automatically. Give your antispyware some backup. In addition to an antispyware application, make sure to run a firewall and an antivirus application to protect yourself against Trojan horses. Beware of peer-to-peer file-sharing services ( Kazaa, Emule etc). Many of the most popular file sharing applications include spyware in their installation procedures. Also, never download any executables via P2P file sharing, because you cannot be absolutely certain what they are. Use a different browser. Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser has a lot of security vulnerabilities, why not try the much safer alternative Firefox! Squash bugs. Web bugs are spies that are activated when you open contaminated HTML e-mail. Get rid of unsolicited e-mail without reading it when you can; turn off the preview pane to delete messages without opening them. In Outlook 2003, Tools | Options, click on the Security tab and select Change Automatic Download Settings. Make sure Don't download pictures or other content automatically in HTML e-mail is checked. Avoid bad online neighborhoods. Just as you would not go walking late at night in a bad part of town, do not go wandering around Web sites with questionable content. Sites that offer pornography, free downloads of copyrighted music and hacked copies of popular software programs are often also distributors of spyware and browser hijackers. Do not install anything without knowing exactly what it is. This means reading the end-user license agreement (EULA) carefully, as some EULAs will actually tell you that if you install the application in question, you have also decided to install some spyware with the software. Protect yourself against drive-by downloads. Make sure your browser settings are stringent enough to protect you. In IE, this means your security settings for the Internet Zone should be at least medium. Do not allow the browser permission to install any ActiveX control you have not requested. |
