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How To Remove Adware and Spyware
Adware and spyware
have reach epidemic proportions. They have turned into
malware due to their viral and very aggressive behavior.
With the threat of identity theft and financial fraud
looming on the Internet, adware and spyware can be more
than just annoying. Here are four methods to remove
or simply avoid adware and spyware without spending
a dime on the latest "anti-virus" software.
1. USE Firefox. If you don't use the
Internet much, than perhaps you don't know much about
Firefox. All you need to know is that it is a browser
that works REALLY well and has great security features.
2. Do NOT USE Internet Explorer. Internet
Explorer is like Swiss cheese. It is open to the world
by default. Microsoft is continually releasing patches
to fix all the flaws in the Internet Explorer 6.X and
lower versions of the browser. Although it can be "secured"
by increasing the security it may loose much of its
functionality once set to maximum security with certain
exploitable features off.
3. Use a software or hardware firewall
(not just Window XP Service Pack 2's firewall). This
may sound expensive and hard to do but it is not. If
you have a DSL or broadband cable connection your Internet
Service Provider (ISP) may have given you a DSL/Cable
router with a firewall built in. All you have to do
is turn it on. This may require you to take a few minutes
to read the manual.
If your ISP did not give you a DSL or
Cable broadband router with a built in firewall you
can spend anywhere from $20 - $60 (or sometimes even
cheaper with a mail-in rebate) to get a router. If you
have DSL you will need a DSL router. If you have Cable
broadband ISP you will need a Cable Router. Brands such
as Linksys have built in firewalls and a feature called
NAT, Network Address Translation, which is very effective
since it hides your real IP address from the Internet.
All routers come with instruction on how to hook them
up. If you want to keep you computer security free,
just use a free software firewall.
4. Remove Spyware/Adware with free Anti-spyware,
anti-adware software. Lavasoft's Adaware and Spybot
Search & Destroy are two excellent methods of cleaning
your system for free. Majorgeeks.com is a popular and
trusted freeware site that has these and many other
excellent spyware/adware cleaning and malware prevention
tools (including free downloadable firewalls).
The best method is to use ALL of the above. Being proactive
by surfing with a decent browser and getting a firewall
is important, but it also helps to know about a couple
of good anti-adware/spyware applications. If you get
hit with a really nasty bit of malware that can not
be cleaned with Adaware or Spybot, find yourself a geek.
There are many great forums on the Internet dedicated
to doing nothing but finding and cleaning such malware.
Chances are if your system is infected with it, hundreds
of others before you have been infected and have already
figured out how to get rid of the malware.
1howto.com
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