• Business and Finance
• Family
• Computers and Internet
• Auto and Trucks
• Education
• Health
• Hobbies
• Home Improvement
• Legal
• Marketing

• Home
• Arthur's Articles Home
• Browse Categories
• Browse Authors
• Submit an Article
• Search for Articles

Home » Computers And Internet Articles » Internet Security How To Avoid Being Infected With Spyware

Internet Security - How To Avoid Being Infected With Spyware

Spyware is more than just annoying - it can cause other programs to not work properly and can cause your computer to become quite unstable. Not to mention the privacy issues it brings up.

Spyware is often installed without your knowledge or consent and in many cases can't be removed from your computer without specialized software tools. When the people that distribute it need to resort to tricking you into installing it, there's obviously very little there to warrant your trust.

The first line of defense against spyware is to be careful installing software. Know what's being downloaded. A large percentage of freeware or shareware programs have spyware embedded in them. Sometimes that's disclosed in the user agreement, but often not.

Check for "spyware free" guarantees on software you download. Obviously, anyone can say something is spyware free even when it isn't, but if a website has gone to the trouble to say so, it is more likely to be safe than if they hadn't.

How can you tell if you have spyware on your system? You may see pop-up advertisements even when you aren't browsing the web. Your homepage may have been changed without your consent. New toolbars are installed on your web browser which you didn't request. Your computer may be sluggish or mysteriously reboot on its own. Though, the last effect is usually a virus.

If you do get infected with spyware, there are ways to get rid of it. A number of companies make software designed to get rid of it. These programs will scan your computer and check through their database of known spyware for any matches. These databases get updated frequently as new forms of spyware are found.

Some of these programs are free while others will cost. The paid versions sometimes have additional features, such as automatic scheduled scans. None of them are 100% foolproof however, so it's a good idea to run more than one of them.

Some kinds of spyware are notoriously difficult to get rid of. They may make changes to your Windows files that help them hide from the scanners. On occasion, you may need to delete them manually to be sure they're gone.

Obviously, this is something that you should only attempt if you are quite knowledgeable. You wouldn't want to remove something that is critical for your computer to operate.

Once the spyware has been removed from your system, you should run scans on a regular basis to keep it clean. Whether you do this manually or use a program that does it automatically on a schedule is up to you (and your pocketbook).

And, of course, beware those tempting looking free offers. You may get more than you bargained for.

And here is another random article you might be interested in...

With Opportunities And Privileges Come Responsibilities

"The greater our opportunities and privileges, the greater our responsibilities," is a statement I have shared with sports teams, businesses, and other groups to whom I have spoken. The statement applies to team leaders as well as team members.

In business, for example, employees are motivated when they are respected and treated fairly in areas such as pay, benefits, and job security. However, the employees need to earn respect, and they need to treat management fairly by performing the right jobs in the right ways. Employees are also motivated when they can gain pride in individual and group accomplishments. Again, this is a mutual action. It's not all up to management, nor is all up to employees. A third thing that motivates employees is camaraderie, which involves good, productive relationships with fellow employees and management â€" another mutual action.

Just recently, I was talking with a business leader who said that every time she approaches a certain employee with correction and guidance the employee responds with, "Are you going to fire me?" Apparently, the job security that most people seem to appreciate is not present in this situation. And it probably shouldn't be present if the employee continually has to be corrected to do the thing that is part of her job description.

Another business leader recently remarked to me, "It's amazing how much people contribute to their own miseries." He went on to explain how some employees have an "everybody owes me" attitude. I have seen this in sports. It's the attitude of "it's never my fault." In the minds of such people, their failures are always the faults of others, or of the weather, or of circumstances. We refer to this as having a "victim attitude."

As a leader, one of the greatest things you can do is establish clearly what you expect from the group and from each individual within the group. Let the members know they will be treated fairly and with respect â€" but not just for being a member of the group. Sometimes, members think they automatically deserve things without giving what they ought to give in return.

On the other hand, if the group and its individuals do not clearly understand expectations, then they should seek clarification. Again, this places responsibility on the shoulders of everybody involved. Another statement I have shared in numerous speeches and previously in this column is, "If it is to be, it is up to me." This is reflected in the lines of an Eagles' song (Already Gone): "So oftentimes it happens we live our lives in chains and we never even know we have the key."

I admire leaders who want to treat people right and who go the extra mile to help people succeed. I try to be such a leader myself. But sometimes, in the words of an elderly man in the Gatlinburg Arts and Crafts Community, "We get bit when we hand feed people." A business leader told me, "Sometimes the things we have done for employees are used against us by these same employees." She wasn't being bitter, just saying that we need to let people know we expect reciprocation when we extend ourselves to help them succeed. She has thinking similar to the good-hearted businessman who said, "It seems sometimes that no good deed goes unpunished."

One of the thoughts in my Winning Thoughts books reads: "Do I trust you? Do you trust me? Mutual trust leads to victory." Another thought in the same book asks the question: "What kind of team would this team be, if everyone thought, acted, performed, just like me?"

The essence of what I am writing about today is simply that the Golden Rule of "Do unto others as you would have others do undo you" should never be a one-way street in business, sports, family, or life.