Karma Computer The five laws of computing bliss!
By: Errol Williams
Tags: Technology, Tech, Computers, Computers Technology, Laptop Repair

In today’s computer age it is imperative that you take every caution necessary in protecting you and your family from computer thugs trolling the Internet. These modern criminals are very sophisticated and organized in the art of getting access to your computer. Long gone are the days when all you had to worry about was a nasty virus that for one moment ruined your day. Now there are actual legal (At least in the eyes of the country they hale from) companies that have only one thing on their minds — how to steel your information and your money. Here is your best line of defense for having computer bliss:



FIRST LAW — Windows updates:

It is imperative that you keep your computer updated with the latest patches and security fixes. These patches are released the second Tuesday of every month and are called affectionately — patch Tuesday. These patches fix vulnerabilities in the operating system and fix Window issues, improving speed and functionality as well. So, make sure that you set your Windows for auto updates — set it and forget it.



SECOND LAW — Antimalware:

Malware is many things. Some infections gather information on where you go on the Internet or turning on your web cam. It could be your banking info they want or credit card info, it could be anything. In a nutshell, it is designed to gather information on you and that is not acceptable. Malware is software loaded unbeknownst to the user and there are many ways for a user to get infected. There are many antimalware software packages out there however one stands out in particular: Malwarebytes. At the time of this writing the cost is $24.95 per year, protecting you 24/7 and well worth the investment. They offer a free version however please know you must run and update it yourself; this could be dangerous for some people.



THIRD LAW — Antivirus:

Here is a topic we are all familiar with. It has been synonymous with computers since the late 90’s. For a good part of that time it was our only defense from the people who wanted to ruin our week. Today, virus infections are down due to the surge in criminal activity happening worldwide with Malware. However still anti-virus is a must for your computing nirvana.

There are three that I like and recommend. The first is Bit Defender, this is what we distribute through our company and it works very well on a personal and business level. Support is great and really are a godsend when needed. The other two are Vipre and ESET. These three anti-virus packages work very well, and I recommend using anyone of them. If you do not want to spend the money for anti-virus then I recommend only one free version — Microsoft Security Essentials, the others are just loaded with adds and useless bloatware.



FOURTH LAW — Anti-key logger:

Consumer Warning: DO NOT LOAD THIS OR ANY ANTI-KEYLOGGER PROGRAM UNLESS YOU ARE ABSOLUTELY SURE THERE

IS NO MALWARE ON YOUR SYSTEM! If you don’t, this could wreak havoc on your computer. This program is a very strong defense against criminal activity. What it does is it prevents any key-logging program from running on your computer. Key-loggers can get installed from Malware, or maybe from an email you received or Website you have been to. Even

if you remove the infection, there is a good chance that the key-logger could still be there. Anti-Malware might look at it as just another program. The one I like is called Zemana, I have used it for over two years and think it is a great program. It is well worth the $24.95 a

year price tag.



FIFTH LAW — Backups:

I am sure you have been beaten to death hearing this. Back up! I can’t tell my clients enough that it is imperative to back up all their files. It’s not just the fact that you can lose all your data from a bad disk, you need to back up for another and more important reason — Ransomware.

There are different names for it today but still all versions are devastating. One is Crypto Locker, Encrypting your hard drive with a 2048-Bit RSA Key pair. With this nasty variant you have three days to send them money or you would never get your files back.

So that is why you must back up. There are many ways to do this, but the easiest and cheapest way is to use Carbonite. They make it extremely easy for you and this will also give you piece of mind. If you follow these five laws, I promise you, you will have computer bliss….

Written by Errol Williams