Why you really should take Computer Security Seriously

Viruses, malware, spyware, root-kits, e-mail spam; with so many real-world threats to your computer, isn’t it about time you protected it properly?

Computers have evolved so much over the past 10 years. Now more than ever, security is one of the key features operating systems aspire to be fantastic at however for Microsoft’s Windows viruses, malware, Trojan Horses and spyware are an all too common problem.

If you bought yourself a new laptop over the past 12 months or a new desktop computer over the past 12 months then by now you will know that key to maintaining a healthy machine is to have a solid Anti-virus on your computer and always have your Windows Firewall on. If you have implemented these two processes you are 99% better protected than many people out there, as for some people, they would rather chance it and visit websites which they deem as trust worthy thinking that this is perfectly safe to do. The truth of the matter however is that viruses pose a serious risk to a computer users personal and private information, and for business owners data corruption is a problem wide-spread across the world.

Computer viruses

A computer virus is a program that is designed in infect your computer much like a regular virus would the human body in real life. A virus on a computer can do a wealth of damage to your machine, with common symptoms being your computer slowing down as well as infecting other computers around you. If you have a virus and unknowingly allow it to develop on your machine, it could in time completely bring your computer to a halt. To get rid of these critters, it is advised that you install an Anti-virus which will hunt down any known viruses and gobble them up in to a vault. Sometimes however this is not enough, and you will need to run an Anti-virus from a USB drive to ensure that your virus does not attack the Anti-virus.

Malware

Malware is less known as a name than a computer virus, however this type of software can be extremely dangerous to your computer. malware is deceptive and usually pretends to be otherwise legitimate software in order to fool you in to trusting it. The longer you allow malware to stay on your machine the higher the risk of it eating files, corrupting data and just causing chaos on a scale which could in time become irreversible.

Spyware

Spyware is perhaps better known that malware and this type of infestation is rather frustrating to track and get rid of. Spyware is a vicious type of software which collects all of your personal information and sends it back to the program creator (think scrawny little dweeb in his mums basement) to use as he wishes. To get rid of spyware it is best to install a specialist Anti-spyware software which lives and breaths for destroying this rather horrible type of critter.

Above are just three main types of security problem which PC users should be aware of. Aside from these, there are many other risks that you may be exposing your computer to unknowingly. As always we recommend downloading a good Anti-Virus in order to stay safe online, with top picks from us including Avast! and AVG (both are free).

Stay safe, stay cool.

Karl Stockton writes for theprinterdepo.com; be sure to visit them and see their spectacular items, such as the 4700dn hp printer refurbished and available.

About Jakk: Jakk Ogden is a professional self-employed blogger and the founder / owner of Technology Blogged. 22, with a love for good writing, you'll find me playing 'Drag Racing' on my HTC One X and rocking a pair of Grado headphones. If you love technology, be sure to subscribe to my feed for unique editorials. Find me on Google+. View author profile.