Do to  the alarming number of PCs being infected by Rogue Anti Virus applications I feel the need to talk about the steps required to prevent infection. The common denominator of infected systems that we receive is a complete lack of updates. Updates are your most important defense against the current set of Rogue AV applications. You not only need to do the Windows updates but also all your third party updates. Third party updates include things like Adobe Flash and Reader which have been common vectors of infection. I highly recommend www.filehippo.com and their free update checker at http://www.filehippo.com/updatechecker/ The update checker scans your system and compares your installed applications against their list of down-loadable programs. The application is very lightweight and will alert you whenever an update is available for download.

Windows releases updates every month on Patch Tuesday which is the 2nd Tuesday of the month. We always post a complete list of the current updates and link to other sites with Patch Tuesday info.

Rogue Antispyware at http://rogueantispyware.blogspot.com/ is an excellent source for info about the latest Rogue applications.

The main thing to keep in mind about these new breed of Rogue AV programs is there ability to download more viruses. I have found Trojan Down-loaders on all the Rogue infected PCs that have come in lately. The best thing to do after infection is to disconnect from the network immediately and use another PC to download  virus removal tools.  The longer your infected PC stays running and connected to the network, the worse the infection will become.

The following steps will help prevent infection.

Make sure you do all your updates, both Windows and Third Party updates.

Run a current updated Anti Virus/Anti Spy-ware application like Sunbelt Vipre

Use a browser like Firefox instead of  Microsoft Internet Explorer. I only use Internet Explorer to access sites that still require it.

If you get infected, unplug the network cable immediately and use another PC to download your removal tools. Keep in mind that if you get in over your head, you should call your local computer repair specialist . Sometimes going it alone and trying to repair your PC can actually make it harder for the repair shop to fix the problem later.

So before you head on over to your favorite website, do your updates.

Don’t be an update slacker… oh yeah and have a great day

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