Double-click the My Computer" icon; Hover over any CD-ROM or DVD-ROM you have with the mouse and right-click selecting "Properties"; The Tabs going across the top select "AutoPlay" using the drop down window for each choice ie. Pictures, and Mixed Content choose "take no action" and click "Apply" not "Ok" until you have done this for each choice. You may do this for each device you use; for example, A USB device would need to be programmed not to auto play and USB drives are the most popular place to be because the bad guys know you are going to transfer the USB stick from computer to computer.

Important information from the Federal Trade Commission, the nation’s consumer protection agency: annualcreditreport.com is the ONLY authorized online source for you to get a free credit report under federal law. You can get a free report from each of the three national credit reporting companies every 12 months. Some other sites claim to offer "free" credit reports, but may charge you for another product if you accept a "free" report. READ MORE

They're small programs originally conceived to be helpful but like other aspects of Internet technology, they've become better known for more sinister uses. “Bots” are software robots that automate tasks on a computer. Hundreds of thousands of PC users or maybe millions, depending on which estimate you're relying on have unknowingly been infected by such code. READ MORE

Keeping your virus and firewall software current and up-to-date virus definitions. Also your Spyware removal tools are just as important. Not all Spyware software is good make sure you hear good reviews from more than one or two people before just installing and using the software. PLEASE READ THIS!

Click "Start" double-click "My Computer" hover your mouse over the "C:\" drive and right-click select "Properties" Select the "Tools" tab, select "Defragment Now", then "Defragment" the process starts. Do not restart the computer or install any programs. You should not do anything while defraging. Turn off your screen saver and your "Power Settings" while this process is running. You can stop your screen saver and power settings by right-clicking on the Desktop and selecting "Properties" then the "Screen Saver" tab. Select "None" for the Screensaver and then click "Power" and select "None" or "Always On" for Desktop computers. For laptop computers you should only change the "While Powered On" section.

To learn how and why you should protect yourself while connected to the Internet please read this article published by cert.org. This article will help you get a better understanding of what is going on and how they are doing it. Please Read

Computer technology has changed quite a bit over the past 20 years. People who would normally never touch a computer now utilize such a device almost every day to get their work done. They use email and surf the web regularly. These folks all need to take computer security seriously. Read More and Here

Are you certain that the site you are looking at is what it appears to be?
Is it coming from the company it claims to?  Read More

If you need help picking a secure password Click Here

To view the list Click Here.

If you use Microsoft Outlook Express to send and recieve e-mail, there are a couple of things you can do to minimize your exposure to virus-infected e-mail attachments, and prevent the spread of any viruses you do pick up.
1. Choose Tools > Options from the Outlook Express menu bar.
2. In the Options dialog box, click on the Security tab.
3. Choose Restricted sites zone (more secure).
4. Choose Warn me when other applications try to send mail as me.
5. Choose Do not allow attachments to be saved or opened that could potentially be a virus.
6. Choose the third option, Block images and other external content in HTML e-mail.
7. click OK.