With all the online threats such as viruses, spyware, adware & phishing scams lurking somewhere on the internet, you want to stay clear from them as much as you can. What can you do to ensure a safe and worry-free internet surfing experience? Here are some tips to keep you safe, if you are using Microsoft Internet Explorer (v6 or later) like me.
1. Ensure that your IE is updated with all critical & important security patches. If you are using Microsoft Windows XP or 2000, ensure that Automatic Updates under Control Panel is set to Automatic (Recommended) and not turned off. To verify that you have the latest patches installed, go to Add or Remove Programs under Control Panel, ensure Show Updates box is checked, then compare most recently updated patches with that on Microsoft's current Security Bulletin at http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/current.aspx
2. Set maximum security to Restricted Sites zone on IE (the easiest way to do this is to click Tools-Internet Options-Security-Restricted Sites-Custom Level-Reset to High, then disable everything except Pop-up blocker, set Software Channel Permission - High Safety) and add restricted sites to it. You can add a huge pool of restricted sites to IE via SpyAD. Or if you prefer to review restricted sites and customize them before adding to IE, you can use a freeware ZonedOut to import sites from http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm. If you would like a ready-made text list based on the list at MVPS.org for importing into ZonedOut, get it here.
3. For Internet zone security, using Custom Level, reset to High, then set Scripting - Active Scripting AND Scripting of Java Applets to Prompt if desired.
4. Ensure that you have resident anti-virus and anti-spyware scanning in place. If you are a Home User looking for a free anti-virus & anti-spyware solution, I use AVG Anti-virus (get it here http://free.grisoft.com/doc/Get+AVG+FREE/lng/us/tpl/v5), and Microsoft Anti-Spyware (beta) (get it from www.microsoft.com). Aside from resident scanning, ensure that you schedule a complete system scan at least once a week.
5. Ensure that you have a firewall software for your internet connection. If you are a Home User looking for a free software firewall, I use ZoneAlarm (get it here http://download.zonelabs.com/bin/free/1001_cnet_zdnet/zlsSetup_61_737_000_en.exe). I set most programs to prompt for access to the internet, including Outlook Express. If you are new to this software, you can drop me a note, and I will answer you as soon as I can.
6. If you prefer to use Windows Firewall, then ensure that you turn it on from Control Panel, and be selective about what exceptions you allow. A firewall is useless if it permits all kinds of access from the Internet.
7. Ensure that you update all internet-based applications with the latest patches, such as Java Runtime Environment, Flash/Shockwave Players, all media players (Windows, Real, QuickTime). A good place to get news on security updates is Secunia Advisories at http://secunia.com/
category:c4e1_tips
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