BEST WAYS TO PROTECT YOUR COMPUTER FROM VIRUSES & MALWARE
Development and threat go side-by-side. The same is relevant too when it comes to computer technology. The computer and virus are two sides of the same coin. These systems are always at high risk of several types of notorious types of malware. Today, in this guide, you will learn how we can protect your computer from viruses. So, keep reading on if you really want to safeguard your PC against unwelcome threats.
Nowadays, new viruses and malware are being developed at a rapid pace. Thousands of risk-driven substances come into existence every day. Hackers use them as a prime weapon to attack targeted PCs.
At the same time, we also have lots of preventive actions that we can take to alleviate the risk. Thanks to the advanced technologies and anti-virus programs, which help withstand the virus attacks and minimize their impact to a stunning extent.
This guide will assist you with some elementary yet effective ways to protect your computer from viruses and other harmful programs. But before we proceed, let’s have a brief overview of what the virus actually is and what are various symptoms to recognize in your PC.
What is a Virus?
Well, a computer virus is a kind of software application that travels from computer to computer. They spread quickly through multiple channels, but emails, instant messaging, web portals, and physical hard drives are the favorite sources for their transportation.
Not all PC viruses are destructive. Some are benign, but others can attack your computer system brutally to delete data and break down your PC’s performance. So, having a PC under a virus threat is always a panic point overall.
How to recognize if your PC is infected with a virus?
Whenever your computer is infected with a virus, you will most likely encounter various indicators as written below. However, these issues can also be emerged due to other factors.
- Your PC appears slower than usual
- Suddenly stops responding
- It restarts and shuts down on its own
- Weird error messages start to appear on the screen
- New icons and folders are created on the desktop
- The anti-virus program goes out of order
- System or application software you use regularly are suddenly sluggish to operate
- Disk drives become inaccessible
How to Protect Your Computer from Viruses?
Now is the time to take the final action. This section will elaborate on various authenticated and legitimate ways to safeguard your PC against unwanted virus attacks. Hopefully, these will work for you.
Install an anti-virus application software
This is the most recommended tool to fight computer viruses. In fact, you should buy a competent anti-virus program on the same day you buy a computer to protect your computer from viruses. It is the preliminary action we can take to combat deadly viruses for comprehensive protection.
The operating system and software upgrade
Make sure the OS and software installed on your PC are always up-to-date. Software companies keep launching updates to their applications to make virus attacks ineffective. The latest updates help to counter new viruses as well.
Set Strong Passwords
To protect your computer from viruses & malware it is very important that you must always generate a strong password for your online activities. It should be created carefully by incorporating letters, numbers and special characters. You should compile an 8-character password in length.
Avoid clicking links in emails
It is yet another good precaution to prevent viruses from entering your PC. Unless you know the sender, just avoid following the links in the email. This is one of the widely-used tricks of hackers to kidnap your computer.
Make sure to use a pop-up blocker
To experience risk-free and safer internet surfing, you should use a pop-up blocker. Why this? Well, many pop-ups contain malware and other malicious payloads that can harm your system. Similarly, you can also turn on the User Account Control (UAC) to avoid access without your permission.
Scan the media drives and downloaded content
