Dealing with Worms and Viruses: Tips for PC Users

Useful Links

  • Scan your PC for viruses for free: security.symantec.com
  • Free Virus/Worm removal tools Free Removal Tools
  • Keep Windows based PC's patched with Automatic Updates or visit Windows Update from Internet Explorer to ensure the latest patches are applied.
  • Use a Desktop Firewall. Windows XP and Vista have one built in or you can use a free third party Firewall like ZoneAlarm or Comodo Firewall
  • Keep an up to date anti virus package on your system. Unfortunately the definition files for most of the major vendors products have ballooned to the point that keeping an anti-virus program running can adversely impact system performance. For those careful enough to manually scan downloaded files before running them Clamwin is a great free antivirus program. Perfomance impact is minimal because it is doesn't do automatic memory resident scans. However, that means it is up to you to manually scan any suspect file before running them. Not recommended for novice users.

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