Basically everyone that owns a PC has at least heard of viruses, but not everyone knows what they really are and how they can attacks your computer. A virus is a small program that can duplicate itself and it invades systems by e-mail attachments, shared files or a Floppy disk. Viruses are created for various reasons, and they can prove to be a dangerous joke or some massive destruction.

As a result, a virus?s effects can vary from activity attacks till total system stop. The virus Wazzu for example attaches itself to word documents and inserts the word ?wazzu? somewhere inside the Word document after rearranging entire rows and placing all letters type randomly.

Other viruses can be more serious, threatening to destroy all data or to delete the hard drive. Such a virus is spread by e-mail mostly. An example would be Worm.ExploreZip, a virus that takes over the Pc and automatically responds to all e-mail messages. It can also send attachments that can delete various types of files.

Viruses don?t and can?t invade a computer without being activated somehow by the user. So you must take a few precautions such as not opening attachments from unfamiliar sources and of course, using some anti-virus software.

Virus types

Getting familiarized with known viruses it will help you prevent an infection.

Virus ? a program that attaches itself to .exe files. Each type the program its launched, the virus spreads and attaches to other programs as well. In case these viruses get into share type folders, they can target all computers from the network. Also you are exposed to this virus type when downloading software over the Internet.

Macro- are viruses contained by Marcos for programs such as Office, Word, Excel etc. They are the most common virus types and link themselves to files generated by these programs becoming very hard to detect.

Boot sector viruses ? are viruses that attack only a certain type of files from hard and floppy disks that launch when you boot your PC. This is the type of viruses that you can get through a floppy disk.

Quick Note: Taking the Nonsense out of looking for the right spyware remover

If you really want to take the work out of looking for that right Spyware Protection from a Spybot go to the Internet and get a Free Spybot Download or a Spybot Search and Destroy

to prevent your vital information from being ripped from your computer.

Trojans ? are not viruses by definition, because they don?t spread. Nevertheless they have the same destroying potential if they are not detected. They usually get to you from an e-mail with a vague title or a fun promise. Once released, the Trojan will let loose a series of attackers that can destroy the hard disk.

When downloading video codecs, you may just get Virus Labs 2009 for free.

The anti-virus I’m talking about is better than anything else out there. It can detect any virus or malware threat as soon as it appears, uses no part of your Computer, is completely free, and doesn’t require you do download Internet updates! You’ve had it your whole life and use it everyday. What is it?

Common sense!

I often hear people talk about how many viruses and malware they get. I, on the hand, keep my AVG anti-virus off a good portion of the time and get very few viruses or malware. Instead, I use common sense. Below is a general overview of how to use common sense as an anti virus.

I never download email attachments from anyone unless I’m expecting one. I usually don’t miss out on much, either. Aunt Marge’s family pictures were never interesting anyway.

I am always careful before clicking on links in emails from places such as Amazon, PayPal, and Ebay that I’m not expecting. If I am very curious about an email, I just search the subject on Google and am able to find out whether it’s a security threat or not.

I use Firefox as my primary web browser. Internet Explorer has too many security holes. Though Firefox has security holes, they’re not exploited like IE’s security holes are and are generally patched much faster.

I notice when my computer acts unusual. If you use your computer frequently, you should know when it accesses the hard drive and what applications give you a high CPU usage. If I notice anything out of the ordinary, I always check my Task Manager for any unusual processes.

Know what processes usually run on your PC (press CTRL+ALT+DELETE and then click processes to see). You don’t need to memorize them, but be familiar with them. If you suspect your computer is infected with a virus or adware, you’ll usually see a process or two in the task manager that are unfamiliar. If ever unsure about what a process is, search it on Google to find out more about it.

If you are into downloading things that cause the RIAA to get upset, don’t use P2P clients such as Limewire, WinMX, Grokster, or Kazaa. When using bittorrent, make sure you read a torrent’s comments before downloading to make sure there are no viruses in it. If you absolutely must stay with P2P clients such as Limewire, keep a second computer (it can be anything, even something ten years old) for downloading your files. Scan the files for viruses before moving them to your main computer.

If you must download something that you think could contain a virus, always scan the file with an anti-virus before opening.

Don’t become paranoid. The threat of viruses and malware is taken too seriously by many. While everyone should take precautions against viruses, there’s no need to be a “virusphobe”

This guide is by no means meant to be a substitution for an anti-virus. In fact, I strongly recommend you use one. In addition, the best judge of what security measures you need to take is you. Everyone’s computer is different so everyone has different security needs.

As a Wii fanatic, the best way to get a Wii game is to have it free of charge and a lot of web sites nowadays are giving out these Wii games free for downloading. However, downloading these games for free should be done with extra caution because just like other free downloads online such as music, video or other files, they come with risks as consequences for its free of cost feature resulting to a waste of time and spending more money.

Downsides of Free Wii Games

The most immense threat about downloading free games for your Wii is the threat of getting spyware and viruses on your computer. This can turn out to be a really serious problem for you if you are not extra careful in choosing the right download sites that offer games free of these spyware and viruses. Even if there are remedies for these virus attacks, it would be a totally different matter once the viruses infect your game console and end up paying a technician to repair your Wii for you.

Another downside of downloading free games in unsafe web sites is the possibility that the files you are downloading are damaged. Downloading a game takes a lot of time and it would really be frustrating that you get to realize the damage only after the download has been completed. You just wasted your time waiting for the completion of the download only to find out that the game file is actually damaged.

Safe Downloading

If you really want to save cost without the hassle of putting up with spyware or viruses and the probability that what you are downloading is damaged, then you must be extra careful in picking out the web site where you will be downloading your Wii games. Just because a web site is offering a Wii game download free of charge does not necessarily mean that this web site is unsecured or unsafe for you, your computer and your game console. There are still sites that are safe and it all depends on how you choose your downloading site.

There are sites that offer subscriptions and do not require you to pay for each downloaded game or require you to pay a monthly membership fee. You only need to pay once in these sites in order to have full access of their database for free. For a one time payment, you will be able to download all of the games that you want to have on your Wii console and the best thing is that you are not constrained by a bandwidth limit thus making it possible for you to download Wii games as many times as you want.

However, if you do not want a one time payment, you can just stick to becoming a member of particular download site. These sites also contain large databases of Wii games and not only that; you can also download music and movies in these sites.

The great thing about a site that offers subscriptions is that it guarantees Wii users that their games are virus free and absolutely genuine. For a little amount, you will be freeing yourself from all the stress of spyware, viruses and damaged files. Now, you wont have to worry about spending so much just to get your computer repaired and you Wii as well and you will not be wasting your time and effort downloading for games that do not live up to your expectations.

We have all heard the term Trojan Horse, but what exactly is it? A Trojan Horse is a destructive program that masquerades as a harmless application. Unlike viruses, Trojan Horses do not replicate themselves, but they can be just as destructive. One of the most dangerous examples of a Trojan is a program that promises to rid your computer of viruses but instead introduces viruses into your computer.

The Trojan can be tricky. Who hasn?t been online and had an advertisement pop up claiming to be able to rid your computer of some nasty virus? Or, even more frightening, you receive an email that claims to be alerting you to a new virus that can threaten your computer. The sender promises to quickly eradicate, or protect, your computer from viruses if you simply download their ?free?, attached software into your computer. You may be skeptical but the software looks legitimate and the company sounds reputable. You proceed to take them up on their offer and download the software. In doing so, you have just potentially exposed yourself to a massive headache and your computer to a laundry list of ailments.

When a Trojan is activated, numerous things can happen. Some Trojans are more annoying than malicious. Some of the less annoying Trojans may choose to change your desktop settings or add silly desktop icons. The more serious Trojans can erase or overwrite data on your computer, corrupt files, spread other malware such as viruses, spy on the user of a computer and secretly report data like browsing habits to other people, log keystrokes to steal information such as passwords and credit card numbers, phish for bank account details (which can be used for criminal activities), and even install a backdoor into your computer system so that they can come and go as they please.

To increase your odds of not encountering a Trojan, follow these guidelines.

Remain diligent

Trojans can infect your computer through rogue websites, instant messaging, and emails with attachments. Do not download anything into your computer unless you are 100 percent sure of its sender or source.

Ensure that your operating system is always up-to-date. If you are running a Microsoft Windows operating system, this is essential.

Install reliable anti-virus software. It is also important that you download any updates frequently to catch all new Trojan Horses, viruses, and worms. Be sure that the anti-virus program that you choose can also scan e-mails and files downloaded through the internet.

Consider installing a firewall. A firewall is a system that prevents unauthorized use and access to your computer. A firewall is not going to eliminate your computer virus problems, but when used in conjunction with regular operating system updates and reliable anti-virus software, it can provide additional security and protection for your computer.

Nothing can guarantee the security of your computer 100 percent. However, you can continue to improve your computer’s security and decrease the possibility of infection by consistently following these guidelines.

Today, more and more people have been using their PCs to perform various things, from investing to shopping. Clearly, our lives are already getting influenced by this technology.

Unfortunately, malicious programs erupt daily and they are getting more complex. That is why as a PC user you should stay alert and use some common sense to keep your computer virus-free, especially if your PC is connected to the internet 24 hours a day.

Some reputable security companies such as Symantec provide the latest virus alerts on their websites. Just make sure to keep yourself informed by visiting such sites frequently. This way, you will be more aware about the latest threats and will always be able to know how to avoid them.

Computer viruses can spread fast and they are hard to eradicate. They can be brought from the internet by downloading a file. A free downloadable file may contain an unfavorable program. Keep in mind that although not all viruses inflict damage they can still cause annoying problems so it is highly recommended to exercise caution every time you want to download a file from an unknown source.

Viruses can also be brought from the internet as attachments to emails. As a general rule, do not open an attachment coming from someone you do not know. Even if the attachment is from a reputable source, it is still wise to scan it first before downloading or opening it.

The behaviors of viruses vary. Many which only show messages or pictures do not really harm anything. However, others are extremely dangerous. That is why it is a good idea to install an antivirus program on your PC. Such program can detect the presence of viruses in your computer and then disinfect the infected files or delete the ones that can not be disinfected.

Many antivirus programs can be purchased at a low cost. Some are often prepackaged with an anti-spyware software and a personal firewall. Normally, you are allowed to download the trial version of an antivirus program to test its abilities. Whatever antivirus software that you will choose, just make sure to only use the one created by a reputable company that provides ongoing support and updates.

Some security companies even provide antivirus programs which can be downloaded for free. Free downloadable antivirus programs usually come with some limitations compared with the paid versions. Moreover, the companies which created such programs normally do not provide technical support. However free antivirus software still make a good choice for many home computer users.

After installing an antivirus program on your PC, you should also make sure to configure it properly. For instance, it is a good idea to configure the program to start automatically each time you boot your computer and to perform automatic updates as new viruses erupt daily. Just be familiar with the features offered.

As a computer user you should protect your PC from the threat of a virus. Fortunately good virus protection can be accomplished without having to spend much money. Many security software are very affordable these days. Some can even be downloaded for free, with no further obligation necessary. Just choose the one which fits your needs.

It’s really annoying when you just can’t finish a task on time because of your PC’s very low performance. Then you’ve decided to try restarting it only to notice that the boot-up seems to take a lifetime! You might also want to take a second look on your files for some might be deleted. Some programs won’t run anymore, and sometimes, your hard disk drive is reformatted without your intention! Those are just a few headaches a virus infection gives you; not to mention the cost of having a repairman to help you out. Don’t worry too much, there’s a free virus fix on computers you can do.

A pc gets infected by viruses, ad ware, spy ware, keyloggers, Trojan horses and privacy invasions through the internet, from computers of the same network, removable media or even in e-mails. Virus can disguise as e-mail attachments that replicates itself by sending the same infected e-mail to the people in your address book. The viruses rapidly multiplies itself and consumes a big space in your computer’s memory causing it to slow down or worse, crash. It’s like germs that only aim to destroy your computer’s normal functionality. When caught to such stressful situation, here’s a free virus fix on computers you can try:

1) As soon as you see that your computer is acting weird or slowing down, you can choose to do system restore and use a previous date where there still has no abnormalities in your computer.

2) Remove all its connections to any network and the Internet to make sure that the virus won’t be able to spread towards other computers.

3) Get an anti-virus program. The top anti-virus downloads that are free virus fix on computers are Grisoft AVG Anti-Virus and Avast, both available and free of charge to home users. Then run a full system scan. After the scan, you might be prompted to restart the computer. Once you restart it, run a scan again to be sure that the virus has been totally removed.

4) If the anti-virus program can only detect the viruses but won’t be able to remove them, try downloading a different program using a non-infected computer.

5) You can also make a backup of all data you can’t afford to lose then reinstall the whole operating system.

6) Run a registry cleaner afterwards.

Take note of the provided free virus fix on computers. Nevertheless, as the saying goes, prevention is still better than cure. So take note of a few precautions to make sure that you can never have headaches fixing your computer later. After installing your computer’s operating system, install reliable anti-virus software abruptly. Then make sure that the anti virus is updated, and perform a scan on a daily basis. For every removable medium you connect to your computer, never regret to perform a scan.

When an email from an unknown sender is received, do not open it. That may contain viruses that will automatically scatter on your system as soon as you open or download the attachments, if there’s any. Download firewall programs that can help secure your computer. Do regular backups of your data, in case you might encounter systems errors due to virus infections. Moreover, secure your local area connection. Check other workstations connected and make sure that nobody is infected. Be extra careful in downloading any software or files from the internet. But at times when you won’t be able to escape, just remember the free virus fix on computers cited above.

Protecting your computer from a virus is getting harder and harder each day. While it may border on the paranoid, it goes without saying that you can?t leave your guard down for one second. Even corporate giant Microsoft has found its own systems compromised on more than one occasion.

Remember the “good old days”, before the advent of the Internet and downloadable programs? Life was simple then in terms of computer viruses. With the primary way in which a virus could be transmitted being limited to floppy disks, the ability to catch and eradicate the virus was a lot easier. By today?s standards, it used to take quite a while before a virus was able to infect a computer and slow down the system. The antivirus software of that time was typically able to identify and eradicate viruses before they caused too much damage. Additionally, computer users were pretty savvy on how to protect themselves in terms of scanning all floppy disks before copying them to our desktop.

The Internet helped change all that. The Internet provided a conduit by which viruses could move from host to host with lightening speed. No longer could a computer user just worry about floppy disks as points of entry, but they now had to worry about email, email attachments, peer-to-peer file sharing, instant messaging, and software downloads. Today?s viruses can attack through multiple entry points, spread without human intervention, and take full advantage of vulnerabilities within a system or program. With technology advancing everyday, and the convergence of computers with other mobile devices, the potential of new types of threats also increase.

Protecting Your Computer
Luckily, the advancement of antivirus software has kept pace with current virus threats. Antivirus software is essential to a computer?s ability to fend off viruses and other malicious programs. These products are designed to protect against the ability of a virus to enter a computer through email, web browsers, file servers and desktops. Additionally, these programs offer a centralized control feature that handle deployment, configuration and updating.
A computer user should remain diligent and follow a few simple steps to protect against the threat of a virus:

1. Evaluate your current computer security system.
With the threat of a new generation of viruses able to attack in a multitude of ways, the approach of having just one antivirus software version has become outdated. You need to be confident that you have protected all aspects of your computer system from the desktop to the network, and from the gateway to the server. Consider a more comprehensive security system which includes several features including antivirus, firewall, content filtering, and intrusion detection. This type of system will make it more difficult for the virus to penetrate your system.
2. Only install antivirus software created by a well-known, reputable company.
Because new viruses erupt daily, it is important that you regularly update your antivirus software. Become familiar with the software?s real-time scan feature and configure it to start automatically each time you boot your computer. This will protect your system by automatically checking your computer each time it is powered up.
3. Make it a habit to always scan all new programs or files no matter from where they originate.
4. Exercise caution when opening binary, Word, or Excel documents of unknown sources especially if they were received during an online chat or as an attachment to an email.
5. Perform regular backups in case your system is corrupted. It may be the only way to recover your data if infected.

Recommended Antivirus Software
There are numerous applications available to consumers. With a little research, you can pick the program that is right for you. Many programs provide a trial version which allows you to download the program and test its abilities. However, be aware that some anti-virus programs can be difficult to uninstall. As a precaution make sure to set up a System Restore point before installing.

Here are a few programs which typically receive high marks in terms of cost, effectiveness, ease of use, and customer service.

The Shield Pro 2005? provides virus protection and hacker security through ongoing support and updates. When a virus breaks out, The Shield Pro 2005? promises to provide a patch within 2-3 hours and a fix for the virus within 5 hours. You can set your computer to update viruses weekly and run a complete virus scan.

BitDefender 9 Standard provides antivirus protection, as well as Peer-2-Peer Applications protection, full email protection, and heuristics in a virtual environment. This provides a new security layer that keeps the operating system safe from unknown viruses by detecting malicious pieces of code for which signatures have not been released yet.

Kaspersky Anti-Virus Personal 5.0 program is simple to install and use. The user only needs to choose from three levels of protection. It allows updates as frequently as every hour while promising not to disrupt your computer. The program also offers a two-tier email protection feature and round-the-clock technical support.

PC-cillin Internet Security combines antivirus security and a personal firewall?for comprehensive protection against viruses, worms, Trojans, and hackers. It also detects and removes spyware and blocks spam. It even guards against identity theft by blocking phishing and pharming attacks.

AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition is a free downloadable antivirus program that has received high marks for its reliability. In the past, free downloadable antivirus programs have been viewed skeptically because of issues relating to its reliability. However, AVG from Grisoft, remains one of the best-known free anti-virus programs available. While AVG can not be installed on a server operating system and there is no technical support, it still makes a good choice for many home computer users. The best part is that since it is free, you can try it with no further obligation necessary.

Anybody who has Nintendo Wii wishes for more games to play on his console. If you go to your favorite search engine and typed free wii download sites or wii torrent sites you will see lots of wii download sites that offers free wii games and media downloads. At that moment you will think that you are on the top of the world and you will not buy another wii game or movie. Let me tell you that joining these sites is the biggest mistake you can ever make.

To fully understand what I am taking about let’s look closely on these sites and how they work (and most importantly how do they make money). There is a general rule everybody should know “there is nothing for free in life”. So what is the catch, let’s look at the bigger picture of free wii download sites.

First free wii download sites are no doubt has a lot of traffic to their sites. In order to change this traffic to money they sell ads. The first thing they will do is give your personal information like name, email, gender…etc to dozen advertising companies that will load your email inbox with lots of ads and annoying emails that you even can’t unsubscribe from their mailing list.

You probably think”ok, let’s make a new email account, join free wii sites and forget that email account”. I’m sorry to tell you, it’s not that easy.

You can’t download any free wii downloads until you install the sites software. Probably this is the most dangerous thing. If you think that free wii download sites will settle for posting ads on emails you are absolutely wrong. The software you will install contains programs and tracers to monitor your internet surfing and send it to advertising companies or third parties. The collected information will be used to send annoying pop-up offering or even redirect you to pages that have products and offers matched to your surfing.

Mark my words “Every free downloading site’s software contains spyware, adware and viruses”. Even some free wii download sites have a warning on their home page saying malware may exist on some downloads. This is a very important issue; malware is the general name of a computer virus. The software you’ve installed is with no doubt contains malware, spyware and adware in it and even anti-virus can’t detect. People just do the wrong thing again and again.

If you joined free wii download sites there is no doubt your computer will be infected with viruses and begin to run slow and have lots of other problems. These viruses, spyware and malware are designed to send your information. These information can be used by hackers to steal credit card or bank account details and that will cause a financial disaster to you.

So in a nutshell what will you have from free wii download sites? Viruses, Trojans, spyware, adware and other malware that even anti-virus can’t detect, or even if detected them and erase them you will lose your access to the download. Sooner or later your information will be misused and may cause a financial disaster or identity theft. In 2008 alone 8.5 million identity theft was discovered in the US, how many the undiscovered?

You will get absolutely nothing but troubles if you joined free wii download sites. After all this do you still want to join free wii download sites?

If you like to find legitimate, safe wii download sites visit my review at http://www.squidoo.com/Wii-Download-Sites-Review for more information. or visit http://www.squidoo.com/Wii-Games-Download-Sites for more information about wii.

What do you search for when you are looking for online bootleg movie downloads for free? Odds are you have found a few good downloads in your conquest, but the fact of the matter is that many of the downloads available today either contain advertising or poor quality. File sharing has become very popular and has somehow made it under the legal radar. Currently, it is not illegal to participate in file sharing, but the laws are becoming more strict as time progresses. If you are interested in downloading your favorite hard-to-find movies, without adware, spyware, or advertisements, then you might want to read further.

Unwanted Advertising

If you haven’t encountered them yet, sooner or later you will see interlaced advertising within free movie downloads. Basically, a company promoting product sales pastes in a video ad of their products or website into the regular movie. For example, a website selling Iron Man action figures, may add advertisements about their website and merchandise to some online bootleg movie downloads of the movie Ironman. Sometimes, the actual movie isn’t even complete. Sometimes you can just pay close attention to the file size and simply go for the larger file downloads, but this doesn’t always work. The largest file size movie download may contain things you definitely do not want such as adware and spyware.

Download Tips

Despite how eager you may be to open and view a fresh free movie download, you should take the time to play it safe. It only takes a few moments to scan a file for viruses and unwanted adware, but repairing the damage and loss in computer performance may take months. Just about every internet service provider offers some form of anti-virus software. Usually, you can just right-click on the file once it is downloaded and select “Scan for Viruses.” This technique will help reduce the risk of enjoying online bootleg movie downloads for the most part.

Virus Safety

Some people do not believe adware and spyware are as big of a threat as they actually can be. If you ever make purchases online or pay bills online, then a virus can easily grab your personal information. If your goal was to save money downloading movies instead of buying them, then you just paid the ultimate price if a virus extracts your personal information. Be very selective when it comes to selecting a file sharing service or site.

The Good News

Fortunately, there are some websites offering online bootleg movie downloads for free without viruses, download requirements, or unwanted advertising. Believe it or not, there are a few websites out there that are serious about high quality file sharing without viruses or adware. These sites usually maintain a staff for reviewing download listings or some form of blacklisting for poor quality downloads. Additionally, the level of download quality is much higher and you can often download movies in DVD or HD quality. Most of these sites even provide you with software for burning DVDs, which will help you keep the menus and chapter selections just like the original copy.