AVG has released a new version of its free software: Version 8.  Instead of just an anti-virus software, it includes protection against spyware, e-mail viruses, a links.  The newest form of protection, link scanner, protects against dangerous websites, pop-ups, and downloads.  Also, link scanner will warn you have dangerous links in searched sites all in real time.

AVG can now compete with Norton’s Security, McAfee Security suite, and other all-in-one protection products.  It is still fast, doesn’t slow down your computer, and goes unnoticed until it runs a daily scan or update. 

After 30 days, the e-mail scanning feature turns off, but the virus, spyware, and link protection remain.  Finally, this is the first solid free virus and spyware protection software available.  And we’re definitely on board.

Spyware Doctor is one of the best spyware removal software tools out there.  It detects the most spyware hidden on your computer, and removes it effortlessly.  Whether you have pop-ups, malware, spyware, low-level viruses, or malicious registry links, Spyware Doctor will find it and remove it. 

Here’s the skinny though - Spyware Doctor, by having it loaded on your computer, will slow down your system.  Spyware Doctor constantly looks for malicious info on your computer so its auto-feature really bogs down your speed. 

So, what do you?  Install Spyware Doctor, update it for the latest spyware, run a full scan.  When you’re done removing the spyware, click on the “shutdown” option of Spyware Doctor so it will not be automatically loaded afterwards.  You can even fully remove the program and just install it when necessary.  Once you buy this software, you’ll always have an available license to reload it.

If you’re looking for free music, chances are that you’ve gone to Limewire.  Studies have shown that 20% of P2P, or peer to peer network community go with Limewire.  Limewire’s competitors are:  Kazaa, Bearshare, Napster, and iTunes.  P2P means that free content, such as songs, video and pictures are able to be downloaded for free and also shareable to other members from shared folders. 

Limewire has been popular for 10 year now.  Its network is off the Gnutella network which is the form of the  shared medium.  It now uses Bit Torrent to speed up downloads as it has increasingly upgraded its bandwidth to support the rising subscriber levels.

Please keep in mind that all free downloads will come with some form of spyware, especially if shared on your computer.  Please also have a good anti-spyware and anti-virus software protection package if considering P2P software.

The April Fool’s Worm is in full effect, and you should be on the look-out.  Any email with the subject related to “April Fool’s Day” should be treated with care.  In other words, delete any e-mails with such a subject.

This worm is a remnant of the Storm Worm that was active during Valentine’s Day.  Once the worm is downloaded, it opens up firewall filters to attempt to make calls via ports.

This worm and other may worms may be defended against by having active anti-spyware. 

As of late, spam has increased.  Advertisers and spammers have been more aggressive lately which means more junk coming to your company’s e-mail account.  How do you prevent spam if your company has its own email server?

Client software, such as Cloudmark, is good for personal e-mail accounts.  But, on the company end, the true way to combat spam is to install an anti-spam software on the server.  Then, the software will filter out the bad spammed e-mails before it reaches your email inbox.  This is the true way to avoid spam before it touches your computer.  The e-mail server essentially acts as the gatekeeper.  Keep in mind that the software isn’t as easy as installing it and you’re done.  You should have an e-mail administrator set this up correctly so it filters correctly according to your network. 

The top two company anti-spam software to check out are:  Symantec Premium Anti-Spam and GFI Essentials.

An anti-virus software should be reliable and not slow down your computer.  It should do its job and not even be noticed it is running.  Norton Anti-virus, especially its Internet Security suite, has been very overbearing, sluggish, and sometimes ineffective.  McAfee is a decent, slimming anti-virus software, but make sure you register online or else you might not get ongoing updates. 

Kapersky is an easy installation, and uninstall if necessary, and provides an easy interface.  Some software make it very difficult to figure out how to kick off a manual virus scan or where to find past malicious threats.  Not Kapersky - there is a minimalist, almost Google-like, interface to make everything easy to find.  It was the fastest among its competitors in scanning and installing virus definitions.  Another factor that is very important, but often overlooked, is that Kapersky is not well-known, like Norton, making it stealth-like for those viruses intended to infect more popular security software.

Spyware is one of the biggest nuisances out there for computers.  Why is spyware not banned?  Spyware might come as pop-ups or more popularly as intermittent messages on your computer relaying “Your computer has spyware.”  At the worst, your computer may not start after the next reboot.  At the least, your system will receive pop-ups, spam, and slow internet use.

How come this annoying spyware is not banned?  Well, the Internet is still a free realm that is unregulated.  The only time the Internet is regulated is to make sure adult sites and chat rooms are under control, and not open to under-aged adults.  Other than that, the Internet is still free game for those who solicit e-mails and advertise non-stop pop-ups. 

Petitioners have tried to get numbers of people to sign up to demand spyware to be stopped; however, lawmakers are reluctant to ban such marketing.  Why?  Probably because spyware brings in lots of advertising dollars to those who are looking to get their products out.  Someone out there is asking for his product to be advertised.  Whether directly or indirectly, the products sometimes finds its way in the wrong hands and is advertised maliciously via spyware.  When one party is benefiting and profiting, it is hard to stop such flow and where there is money involved, the government usually looks the other way.  This is just one conspirary theorist’s mind talking.

With the Democratic race neck-and-neck between Obama and Clinton, the spammers have tried to sway sides.  Specifically, spammers are e-mailing a Hilary Clinton video showing her discussing the importance of the March 4th vote in Ohio.  The e-mail has a “Full video.  Download it now!” link that will really cause you trouble if you click it.  Those who clicked this link turned their computers into spam-spewing bots from the Srizbi Trojan horse.  Basically, their computers were sending spam to their contacts and other people on the network.

This is either a sad plea of desperation for the Obama camp, or just a sad ploy by a spammer in general.  Whether politically-motivated or not, this is the first time politics has played into such a malicious virus.   It is quite possible that Obama gave a lump sum of money for advertising purposes, and the advertisers deployed a spam tactic to make Clinton look bad.  Or it could have been some renegade individual performing this wrongdoing, one who sides with Obama.

Whatever the reason, just be on the look-out for this spammed e-mail.  The only way to resolve this is by having a virus removal professional or possibly even reinstalling your operating system if it gets too bad.

As you receive loving Valentine’s emails and electronic postcards, you might also receive a worm!  There is currently a worm outbreak today, including electronic greeting cards.  Be careful what you click as it might download malware to your computer, further infecting your files.  Not only do you get a worm, but your computer becomes part of a storm worm variant where it can, in turn, spread the worm to other computers.

Past Valentine’s worms have included “The I Love You Virus” which was pretty nasty for 1 or 2 years.  If you notice any subject with “Love You” or Valentine’s-related, be sure to double-check who it is coming from.

Sometimes, when these viruses or worms get too bad, you’ll require the help of a professional computer technician to further help.  Please be alert to prevent such malicious content.

Symantec’s Norton Anti-virus software is a solid security product.  However, based on the past few years, our technicians have noticed that installing Norton software has really slowed down computers when the below factors are present:

1. Computer already has a virus or spyware
2. PC doesn’t have a good amount of RAM
3. AOL Software is constantly running in the background

Norton has shown to slow down a Windows computer when installing the software after the above 3 factors are present.  The best time to install Norton is when you first get your new computer or ensuring all viruses, spyware, and adware are removed.  This applies to the Norton Anti-virus and Internet security suites. 

Why is the computer slowed down from these situations?  Norton is a very thorough product to the point where it is always running in the background, constantly running checks on files, and adds a layer of protection which drains the system resources.  Couple that with a current virus, slow RAM, or another background software (i.e. AOL, iTunes) and you should kick your feet up and prepare for a slow ride.