Know your Anti-Virus Program

Not only is it good to have an Anti-Virus Program installed on all computers, but it is equally important to be trained on how it works. Many IT companies will make sure you have protection. But will sometimes fall short training their customers how use it.

Today they are many fake programs that will pose as legit Anti-Virus programs. Many times, these frustrating programs will perform a quick scan of your PC and guess what... Infections are inevitable found. Once one of these “rouge Antivirus Programs” is done scanning, you will be giving the option to give your credit card information to remove it. This may sound like an obvious scam but it is very deceptive when you are the one behind the keyboard. This is why it’s imperative for you to "Know your Anti-Virus Program". Ask your self right now, do you even know the name of your Antivirus Software?

You should know the name, the color, and the look of the icon in the system tray. Does it change colors when issues arise? What does it look like if it has not received and update in some time? What does it looks like when it’s running a scan? What does it looks like when it has found a problem? In most cases if you are seeing a "fake" Anti-Virus you are already infected and should contact your IT professional.

These days the probability of a malicious file arriving by email via an attachment is not as likely. The problem is more likely the link inside the email. Messages from friends on Facebook that link you to another site are another common source. If something seem out of character for the sender of an email or Facebook post, than either don't click on the link, or contact them to confirm they sent it. If the email looks like it’s from a big company like Microsoft or your Bank and is asking you to give info or click a link with in the message than beware. That link may be faked, and may take you to a site that is unsafe. A way to confirm if a link is safe is to open another browser window, then type the URL directly into the browser (e.g. www.XYZBanklogin). Be safe out there, it takes a few seconds to infect your machine, and can take hours to fix it.