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[ Anti-Virus ] - -
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| This page contains advice and details on how to secure you machine (PC,
laptop, server). There are many ways of doing this but in general most of
it can be done for FREE (for home use). The page is split into sections
(Anti-virus, Spyware, Firewalls & Offical Links. Each one provide a brief
description of the subject followed by sites and links to software and utilities
that help solve the problem. Below is a virus map (courtesy of McAfee). You can navigate to areas of the world to see how bad the situation is in your country and then double click to zoom in. McAfee Virus Map |
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Anti-VirusComputer Virus There is quite a range of anti-virus software and in general they all do quite a good job. We can highly recommend AVG Free which is made by Grisoft and they have recently released some anti-spyware software and so can provide complete protection. Deciding on anti-virus software is a personal choice, some have quite technical interfaces but offer more configurations, some just sit in the corner quitely doing their job. We do suggest that you have a good look around the web site of any anti-virus company before you make your decision. Check out their recovery tools, databases, other downloads and of course their support. Some offer a lot more than just software, but whatever your choice it does provide piece of mind and the occasional pop-up saying a virus has been found, is actually quite reassuring.There are many people out there that believe that viruses and anti-viruses were created to provided its own market, and that the people that build the viruses are supported buy the anti-virus comapanies. Whether this is true or not doesn't matter when you can be protected for Free and is there any point in taking the risk? Even if you pay for a full product the amount divided over the year is nothing compared with piece of mind. If you want to check your PC without installing anything there are online scanners for most security checks. Please note that most of these require the installation of an add-in which will appear at the top of the web page. These must be installed for the scan to work. Below is a table of Anti-virus software companies in NO particular order. They all offer different things, but most important is that some provide FREE software. This is generally a basic service, but is still better than having nothing. We are not responsible for any other sites, software, scanners or downloads. Where possible we have checked and tested the links and to our knowledge none hav |
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| Name | Description | Download |
| AVG & AVG Free (Grisoft) | ||
|---|---|---|
| AVG Free | A great anti-virus program for protecting your computer system. Monitors all files in & out of your system, regular updates, very reliable Site Link: Grisoft AVG Free |
Download |
| AVG Online Scan | AVG Do not provide and online scanner. Site Link: AVG UK |
Not Available |
| AVG Free products | AVG Anti-Rootkit Free - For the detection and removal of Rootkits. Site Link: Free Rootkit Removal |
AVG Rootkit |
| McAfee | ||
| McAfee | McAfee provide a do NOT provide a free version only a 30 day trial.
Most of there products are combined offering internet security and virus
protection. Their 'Total Protection' package covers nearly everything:-
Stops Viruses, Blocks Spyware, Stops Hackers, Cleans clutter, Backs Up &
Restores Files, Secures your Identity, Prevents Spam & E-mail Scams, Protects
Children Online, Eliminates Network Hassles and Protects your Wireless networks.
They also have created an Anit-virus USB Key, which is handy if you are always on the move. Site Link: McAfee Products Site Link: McAfee Downloads |
McAfee Free |
| McAfee Online Scan | Scan your PC with McAfee online scanner without installing software
(although an ActiveX plug-in is required). They also offer a WiFi Scanner
to check your wireless network for insecurities. Site Link: McAfee WiFi Scanner Site Link: Virus Glossary |
McAfee PC Scan |
| McAfee Utilities | McAfee Site Advisor is a nice bit of kit that can be installed for Free
and provides online protection. It tests the Web to help keep you safe from spyware, spam, viruses and online scams Site Link: Site Advisor Site Link: Support Center |
Removal Tools |
| McAfee Ads | ||
| Panda Security | ||
| Panda | Panda do not do a FREE version only a Shareware/trial version Site Link: Panda Trial |
Shareware |
| Panda Online Scan | Scan your PC with Panda without installing software (although a plug-in
may be required). Site Link: Panda Scanner |
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| Panda Utilities | Panda provider a great selection of removal tools. So if a virus has
been reported you can get the specific removal tool for that virus.
Site Link: Virus Removal Tools |
Panda Virus Removal |
| Panda Ads |
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| Kaspersky | ||
| Kaspersky | Kaspersky do NOT do a free version any more, which is a shame because
it was one of the most configurable. They now offer only a 30 day trial
version, which then requires yearly subscriptions. They also offer a version
for mobiles, smartphones and pocket PC's Site Link: Kaspersky |
Downloads |
| Kaspersky Online Scan | Scan your PC with Kaspersky online sacnner without installing software
(although a plug-in may be required). They offer 2 types of scan one for
individual files and one for a complete machine scan. Site Link: Kaspersky PC Scan. Site Link: Kaspersky File Scan |
File Scan |
| Kaspersky Utilities | Kaspersky provider a large selection of removal tools. So if a virus
has been reported you can get the specific removal tool for that virus.
If you are realy interested in virus then give their encyclopedia a browse.
Site Link: Virus Encyclopedia Site Link: Virus Removal Tools |
Virus Removal |
| Kaspersky Ads |
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| Avira | ||
| Avira FREE | Avira provide a FREE version for personal use and this version provides
Protection against viruses, worms and Trojans. Protection against expensive
dialers and phishing Detects and deletes rootkits. They also provide a complete range from basic user, office, workstation, servers, and even a version for mobiles, smartphones and pocket PC's. All accompanied by a nice range of support and recovery tools. Site Link: Avira Products |
Avira Free |
| Avira Online Scan | Scan your PC with Avira online scanner without installing software (although
a plug-in may be required). They offer 2 types of scan one for individual
files and one for a complete machine scan. Site Link: Avira PC Scan. Site Link: Avira File Scan |
Avira File Scan |
| Avira Utilities | Avira provides a nice selection of tools both for recovery and protection.
Site Link: Recovery Tools |
Support Tools |
| Avira Ads |
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| Trend Mico | ||
| Trend Micro | Trend Micro provides a Trial versions of almost all its software with
trials runing for either 30 or 60 days. They offer a wide range of software
for Home & office, Mobiles, Small, Medium & Large Businesses. There is a
nice range of tools, (some of them are FREE) at their Trend secure site.
Site Link: Trend Micro International Site Link: Trend Micro UK |
Trend Secure |
| Trend Micro Online Scan | Scan your PC with Trend Micro online scanner no software to install,
but a plug-in install is required. HouseCall is a FREE Web-based tool designed
to scan your PC for a wide range of Internet security threats including
viruses, worms, Trojans, and spyware. It also detects system vulnerabilities
and provides a link so you can easily download missing security patches.
After each scan, HouseCall delivers a detailed report, which identifies
security threats detected on your computer. Site Link: TrendMicro PC Scan. |
Online Scan |
| Trend Micro Utilities | Trend Micro provides a small selection of various tools. Free Tools
and Services: HouseCall� Free Scan - TrendSecure - Hijack This - TrendProtect
- CWShredder - Transaction Guard. Transaction Guard --- FREE software that protects you against spyware while performing sensitive online tasks on a public computer, like Internet banking or other financial transactions. Site Link: Tansaction Guard HijackThis� --- A FREE utility which quickly scans your Windows computer to find settings that may have been changed by spyware, malware or other unwanted programs. HijackThis creates a report, or log file, with the results of the scan. Site Link: Hijack This TrendProtect� --- A FREE browser plug-in that helps you avoid Web pages with unwanted content and hidden threats. TrendProtect rates the current page and pages listed in Google, MSN, and Yahoo search results. You can use the rating to decide if you want to visit or avoid a given Web page. To rate Web pages, TrendProtect refers to an extensive database that covers the following information for billions of Web pages Site Link: Trend Protect Trend Micro� CWShredder� --- Trend Micro CWShredder is the premier tool to find and remove traces of CoolWebSearch � the name for a wide range of insidious browser hijackers� from your PC. Site Link: CW Shredder |
Trend Secure |
| Trend Micro Ads |
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| Avast | ||
| Avast | Avast provide a free version for home users and have done for a long
time. Most of there products are combined offering internet security and
virus protection. Their 'Total Protection' package covers nearly everything:-
Stops Viruses, Blocks Spyware, Stops Hackers, Cleans clutter, Backs Up &
Restores Files, Secures your Identity, Prevents Spam & E-mail Scams, Protects
Children Online, Eliminates Network Hassles and Protects your Wireless networks.
They also have created an Anit-virus USB Key, which is handy if you are always on the move. Site Link: Avast Products Site Link: Avast Anti-Virus Free Download Page |
Avast Free |
| Avast Online Scan | Scan your PC with Avast online scanner without installing software (although
an ActiveX plug-in is required). Site Link: Avast Site Link: Virus Glossary |
Avast Online Scan |
| Avast Utilities | Avast Site Advisor is a nice bit of kit that can be installed for Free
and provides online protection. It tests the Web to help keep you safe from spyware, spam, viruses and online scams Site Link: Avast Site Link: Avast Support Center |
Removal Tools |
| Avast Ads |
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| Lavasoft | ||
| Lavasoft | Lavasoft have been providing protection for many years now.
They do not appear to offer a Free version of their Anti-Virus
or at present a seperate anti-virus program, but this is due to change
as - Lavasoft Anti-Virus Helix is coming soon - They have a selection of products coving most types of internet security and protection. Their 'Lavasoft Pro' package covers nearly everything. The one thing that lets it down is the yearly subscription, which is cheap, but it is a hassle. There is nothing wrong with the prices, if fact they are very competative when compared with others. Site Link: Lavasoft Products Comparrison Page |
Lavasoft Homepage |
| Lavasoft Online Advice | The following links are to their very useful advice pages: Site Link: Security Software Basics page. Providing information on being safe. Site Link: Family Protection For explaining and educating everyone with questions and tests. Site Link: Online Saftey More great information on safety. They have a very good colllection of pages aimed at keeping you amd your family safe, covering most aspects of security and protection. Many types of security problems are explained amongst these pages, covering:- What is Spyware? - The History of Spyware - Phishing - Botnets - Zlob Trojans - Firewalls - Our Connected World - Protecting Your Identity - Threat Analysis Index etc. Their home page provides a straight forward view of the current state of viurs levels and the most important things to look out for. Site Link: Lavasoft Security Center Site Link: Virus Glossary |
Lavasoft Home page |
| Lavasoft Utilities | Lavasoft offers quite a few utility programs. - Lavasoft File Shredder - - Lavasoft Digital Lock - - Lavasoft's Registry Tuner - Site Link: Lavasoft Site Link: Lavasoft Support Center |
Homepage |
| Lavsoft Ads |
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| More to come.... | ||
Anti-SpywareThe spyware industry is continualy growing and there are many reasons for this, but the main one is advertising! A small utility put on your PC to collect information about the sites you visit and the products you buy, thus creating a profile of your life-style. This information is worth a lot of money to the right people. They can send you details of products you are more likely to buy and gain more sales with less effort. However, some of these little programs are more interested in collecting details of your contacts, usernames & passwords, credit cards and bank account details and identity information. This data collection is the what the criminals are after as they can then use your identity to steal money or purchase items costing you (or the banks) a fortune. The latest spyware can now be hidden in U-tube video's, so be careful if you are downloading them. Watching them online should be ok, but as with anything you download there is the risk of spyware or viruses, so scan them first or check a spyware list. This is available from www.SpywareGuide.com You can also use the search box below to check software and sites for spyware. 
Some spyware is actually part of a license agreement which is shown when you install software. For example have you installed some software only to find you have another toolbar in Internet explorer or a search box on your taskbar? Things like this are part of the license and you didn't read it! Well most people don't. But there is a nice utility that will do some of it for you and give you an idea of what is included in the license. This is not a substitute for reading the whole thing. It is available from EULA Analyzer.(License scanner) Recovering from stolen data is harder and more expensive than you might think, so is it worth taking the risk? No, not when they are Free and readily available. We can highly recommend Spybot as we have been using it for years and every time we scan a customers PC they are surprised at how many items it finds. Spyware is installed from so many different sources that it doesn't take long for them to start affecting your PC resources. Remember they are programs and as such require processor and memory time, browser resources, internet connection and data transfer. Is your PC working slowly? Takes ages to start? Does your browser take a long time to load? Then we suggest that you give your machine a scan... Download or Download from Spybot or Online Scan at Spyware Guide |
| Name | Description | Download |
| Spybot | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spybot - Search & Destroy | One of the best program on the entire web! It is Free and updates are
available regularly. Protects your machine from all sorts of spyware, bugs,
adware and general nasties. Immunize is a great little utilitu built into
Spybot and blocks all the bad sites on the Internet. If you haven't got
it, get it, its FREE. Click
here to Download it. Site Link: Safer-Networking.org (SpyBot) |
Download Spybot Download |
| Other Utilities | Spybot or (Safer Networking) also have a few other utilities that can
help find the nasties that hide in you system. Spybot - Search & Destroy - - Protect yourself against spyware 1.5.1 RunAlyzer - - - Shows all the spots where malware tries to hide Site Link: RunAlyzer FileAlyzer - - - Understand files by analysing their structure Site Link: FileAlyzer RegAlyzer - - - Browse and search the registry Site Link: RegAlyzer NetAlyzer - - - Tool to gather network info, trace routes, manage whois queries. Site Link: NetAlyzer TagsRevisited - - - A very flexible information tool and music tag editor and organiser Site link: Tags Revisited |
RunAlyzer FileAlyzer RegAlyzer NetAlyzer TagsRevisited LangEditor |
| Microsoft Defender | ||
| Microsoft Defender | Microsoft Defender is a spyware protection utility which is FREE from
Microsoft, but does require a validation check to make sure you have a legal
operating system. Defender sits in the right hand corner of your taskbar
and updates and checks your system on a regular basis. This can sometimes
slow your system, but you can change the schedule time to suit you. Site Link: Defender Page Site Link: Support & Training Site Link: How to use Defender |
Download
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| Other Utilities | These links take you to Microsoft's OneCare Tools. There are a range
of tools to help protect you and your machine. The OneCare package is avialable
for a 90 trial and if you like it can be purchased from Microsoft. Windows Live OneCare: All-in-one security and performance for your PC, Anti-virus, Antispyware, Anti-phishing Firewall, Performance tune-ups and Backup and restore utility. Site Link: Microsoft Saftey Scanner Site Link: Microsoft Protection Scanner Site Link: Microsoft CleanUp Scan Site Link: Microsoft TuneUp Scan Site Link: Windows Live OneCare Site Link: Microsoft Online Security Tools |
OneCare Download |
FirewallsFirewalls - What are they and do I need one? The simple answer is Yes. Firewalls come in 2 types, hardware and software. If you have a modern modem or router then you probably have a firewall built into it already. This just leaves the question of whether you have turned it on? A firewall is simply a program or hardware device that filters the information coming through your Internet connection and into your network. It is a process that stops data from the internet being allowed access to your network or other computing components. I say components as even network hardware can be accessed through your internet connection. E.G: Printers, Network storage, routers, modems, PC's Laptops, Mobile devices, Wireless devices, anything that has a connection to the network wired or wireless. So if you are using Internet Explorer, it would require both out-going and in-coming streams. As the user you would have requested this stream and so it is allowed. However an in-coming source from the internet on its own may be disallowed. The control of both software and hardware firewalls work on a set off rules. These can usually be changed to suit different situations. You may have been asked when using a program if it may be added to the list and if you allow this, it allows the program to access the internet and allow data streams in both directions. 
Software Firewalls - Do I need one?Well again the simple answer is NO, (Not if you have windows) but many would argue with that. Why? Becasue there are many software firewalls available, but Windows has it built in, so why buy another? Many would say that Windows Firewall is not very good and a third party one is better. Well that may be the case, but I have installed many of them and every time I encounter problems. I also feel that if you have a hardware firewall and a software firewall built-in that anything that determind to get in wouldn't be stopped by another one!Still this is personal choice and everyone has that option. If you decide you do want one, then I have listed them below, but please do a search and read other reports before using them, especially if you intend on paying for them. Also please make sure you turn off or uninstall windows firewall befire trying to install another and never try and run several on the same machine. You have been warned.Try FirewallGuide.comthey have a selection of comparrison guides and their section on '31 Personal Firewalls Gone or Fading Away' If you must get yourself a new firewall then I suggest you either try a FREE one or only pay for a well established company one. As the Firewall Guide states, they are dying out. |
| Name | Description | Download |
| Zone Alarm | Free for Personal use - One of the first A well established company. Zone Alarm has been around for a very long time | Zone Alarm-Homepage |
| Firewall Links | ||
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| How Stuff Works - Firewall | ||
Get Safe Online
Details on how to stay safe. Protecting your PC, Yourself and your business.Card Watch
Card Watch provides information on how to prevent the fraudlent use of cards 
