Computer Internet Security: Dealing With Unwanted Visitors

If you are are a computer user of any type, recreational surfer, gamer, or internet marketer, the risk of a computer virus attack should not be totally new to you. Computer internet security is big business these days as evidenced by the many internet security products or internet security systems currently available to help protect your computer and/or network. With anywhere from 100-500 new computer viruses being discovered daily, this is a very profitable niche to be in at this time. Ideally most readers of this article will have some kind of computer internet security installed as most commercially sold computers do come with some sort of antivirus security pre-install and operating systems such as Window XP and Vista do have at least basic onboard programs running that will detect many common viruses, provided you do your updates on a regular basis. Unfortunately these "free" antivirus whether part of your computer O/S, pre-loaded on your computer or available as a download can only provide you with a basic level of protection. Certainly this not the best internet security available, but obviously much better than no virus protection at all. Any type of an antivirus computer internet security system will provide you with some sort of virus infection warning. Most often some sort of a scanning log that tells the computer user what was discovered and steps taken to deal with the virus threat. Unfortunately you get what you pay for with respect to antivirus programs, so the quality of the computer internet security software you have installed will determine just how many viruses types will be identified, (providing you do regular updates), and effectively dealt with. Unfortunately it is very possible that you may have viruses on your computer that your current antivirus program, or lack of one, may not even identify as being present. Despite the huge numbers of viruses lurking in cyberspace or hidden in infected software, there are some common characteristics that will give us strong clues that we have an unwanted visitor residing inside our computer. These clues include:

• Unexplained keyboard problems such as keys suddenly not working or not doing what they normally should.
• Programs loading and running much slower than normal.
• Lost data files or files that mysteriously will no longer open.
• Computer hard drive filling up for no explainable reason.
• Display monitor showing unusual colors or letters moving towards screen bottom.
• Appearance on screen of machine gibberish, silly messages, threats, etc. for no apparent reason.
• E-mails sent from your computer to people in your address book, without your knowledge

Sadly the above list may not be all that is happening to your computer and/or network. Many viruses now operate in the background doing their dirty business without you knowing, such as the infamous "key logger" viruses, that can steal your passwords and credit information, then pass it on to their creator without your knowledge! Obviously when you become aware that there is a strong possibility that your computer and/or network is under attack, STOP using your computer system until you can deal with the threat effectively. This may mean buying and installing a good quality computer internet security software or upgrading what you have to something better. If you are a network user, notify your network administrator immediately of the attack to help prevent the virus infection from spreading to other users. Remember the best computer internet security starts with YOU, the computer owner-operator, and how willing you are to practice safe computing practices and to spend the money on the best internet security software you can afford.