A little clarification....

I have frequented this board in the past and on occassion posted as well. I've been offline for the past couple of months and just got reconnected recently. After going thru the messages I came across a post where a visitor asked about his AVG antivirus and why it didn't quarantine a trojan it had found. AVG simply sent him to Symantec for more info.

The responses for the most part were good. One, however, has me just a bit concerned. This person advised the original visitor to get Spybot S&D and Adaware. Now, both of these programs are excellent and it is my opinion that EVERYONE should have them or ones comparable to rid their machines of spyware and adware.

Note I said "Adware and spyware" NOT viruses, worms or trojans.

This is the reason I felt compelled to post. There is a misconception that anti-virus programs will take care of any nasty that finds it's way into your pc. This is a common misconception and one that leads many to believe they are protected with just an AV program. Let me make this very clear. YOU ARE NOT PROTECTED WITH JUST AN AV PROGRAM! (sorry to 'yell', but I want people to remember this) Anti-virus programs are only designed to rid pc's of VIRUSES. They will not find or fix spyware, adware or trojan horses. While they may DETECT a suspected trojan and inform you, they cannot get rid of it because they are not designed to.

Having at least two spyware/adware programs like the ones mentioned, can help keep your pc clean. Make no mistake: If ALL you have to protect your machine is an AV program (no matter how good it is) I can guarantee you have spyware and/or adware on it right now. Even if you also have a firewall, it is still not enough.

Along with a good AV and firewall, plus at least two spyware/adware removers, you need a good trojan remover. In addition, having programs such as SywareBlaster and Spyware Guard (they work together to PREVENT things from getting in) which monitor what is coming in and going out.

Since Internet Explorer is so vulnerable to attack, getting another browser such as Mozilla Firefox or Opera for example, can help as well. Using a Hosts file such as MVPHosts blocks unwanted parasites and IEspyad adds a comprehensive list of restricted sites for those who just can't do without IE. Tweaking IE to be more secure can help too. There is also a program called BHO Demon that alerts you when a browser helper object tries to make changes.

The most important thing, though, is to make sure your Windows is updated and you have ALL CRITICAL updates. If you don't, well, you're just asking for trouble.

I am in the process of starting a non-profit organization aimed at the education and aid for those whose pc's have been compromised by these types of programs. I have dedicated myself to educate all about the very serious threats that are being designed and released EVERY DAY. That's right, this stuff comes out that often. That is why nowadays all pc's need to be locked up as tight as you can get it.

But, it's your money and your investment. Isn't it worth protecting?

Oh, and before someone asks 'Isn't there a program that will take care of everything?' The answer is NO! That would be a perfect world; but then if it were a perfect world, there wouldn't be any spyware, malware, viruses or trojans, now would it?