The number of malware sites are increasing. IBM has reported an increased sophistication with attempts to infect computers. The frightening thing is that some malware is being pushed unknowingly by legitimate sites.

This is a danger to all computer users. However, there is one segment of our readers who are going back to school in a few days and increasing their downloading. As students, these computer users will be downloading for school work and for their own entertainment. You have to know that the downloading puts you at risk. Even visiting some seemingly innocent sites can put you at risk.

It is absolutely not true that if you stay away from so called “bad” sites that you can escape the dangers of malware. Even a file transfer from a friend or classmate could infect your machine. With the expertise and sophistication of today’s criminals, any site can be compromised and turned into a site that delivers malware. This may be a site that you use for school work. Just recently, on June 1, 2009, Ryan Naraine reported that 20,000 sites were “hit with drive-by attack code.”

A drive-by attack means that you don’t have to click anything and malware junk will find its way onto your computer. This garbage will install on your machine without asking for your permission. Then your computer is infected.

Your computer needs a constant watchdog. This is the concept of WinPatrol – and “Scotty” is the watchdog. WinPatrol runs in the background and the watchdog Scotty will give an alert when there are any changes attempted on your machine. Scotty will alert you if you are installing any program. This may be an annoyance, but it is minor. It shows that WinPatrol is doing its job. It will save so much trouble when there is a rogue program trying to install itself on your computer.

WinPatrol is easy on the computer resources and it is on many people’s “must have” list. This is a program that has an excellent history – and countless recommendations over the years. We are recommending this for every student. You must know if some rogue program is trying to install itself on your machine. And WinPatrol will tell you.

WinPatrol has been available for over ten years, thanks to the work of Bill Pytlovany. The improvement functions packed into this program will surprise you.

For the Lockergnome / Chris Pirillo readers, we have an exceptional offer. Until September 5, 2009, we have a ten-dollars-off ($10.00) savings from WinPatrol. We have tried to make this super-affordable to students. We know this is a rough time financially and hopefully this make it an affordable security program for you. Use coupon code: Gnomes when ordering!

Effective for any version of Windows – including Windows 7.

This is a security program that is recommended without any reservation. The people who use this program have nothing but good things to say about it. Bill Pytlovany is an trusted name in computer security. He is a recognized MVP by Microsoft – and he stands behind this product. If there is even a hint of a problem, let us know. We stay in touch with Bill. If you are a business and want this to secure all your desktop and laptop machine, let us know and we will see if Bill can help you.

• Are Hackers Suffering in This Economy?
• Top-Rated Firewall Back by Request
• What is the Best Anti-Spyware Software?
• Protect All of Your Computers at Once
• More Malware on its Way – Protect Yourself
• Geek Savings on WinPatrol
• A Few Moments with Bill Pytlovany
• Special Geek Savings on Sunbelt VIPRE AntiVirus and AntiSpyware
• SUPERAntiSpyware – Special Savings for our Community
• What AntiVirus Do You Use?

Most people now have more than one computer. Some may have a main desktop machine and a laptop for out-of-the-house work. It is baffling why each and every computer that a person owns does not have the same level of protection against malware and spyware. The analogy that comes to mind is that the front door of the house has the best dead-bolt lock on the market while the back door is secured by a hook and eye mechanism.

Protect all your computers! That cannot be stressed enough. In an office setup, all that is needed to compromise security is for one machine to be infected. The details of how that is done is not relevant here but it is not difficult.

Spyware Doctor is a highly rated and award winning program. The offer that is available is that one purchase allows the person to protect three (3) machines. That is more than sufficient for most people. Spyware Doctor has a long track record over many years:

“Spyware Doctor is a top-rated malware & spyware removal utility that detects, removes and protects your PC from thousands of potential spyware, adware, trojans, keyloggers, spybots and tracking threats.”

The awards and recognition goes back for many years. Privacy Guardian is available to clean and prevent tracking of computer activities. This is an excellent program, at an excellent price. However, your first concern should be security.

Malware attacks are not going away. Just today there were reports of web sites being infected with JSRedir-R. That is just one example. Tomorrow, it might be other junk. Unfortunately, this is just the reality of the Internet. Protect yourself.

• Are Hackers Suffering in This Economy?
• What is the Best Anti-Spyware Software?
• Know When Something is Being Installed on Your Machine
• Top-Rated Firewall Back by Request
• More Malware on its Way – Protect Yourself
• Geek Savings on WinPatrol
• Special Geek Savings on Sunbelt VIPRE AntiVirus and AntiSpyware
• SUPERAntiSpyware – Special Savings for our Community
• How to Protect Yourself from Mac OS X Trojans
• Is Your Network Secure?

Some people who spend many hours online fighting malware requested that this top-rated firewall be brought back, as an offer for our readers. It was formerly known as the Kerio Personal Firewall. Now, it is called the Sunbelt Personal Firewall.

This firewall was discussed previously. Not all firewalls are the same. They differ in efficiency. The Sunbelt Personal Firewall blocks unwanted traffic that is incoming but it also monitors what leaves from your machine. That cannot be stressed enough.

Let’s say that for some reason a malware does infect your machine. If that malware starts sending out information from your machine, you want to know that. For example, what is sent out may be your personal information. Furthermore, it may be that your computer is now part of a bot spamming operation. A good firewall, which monitors the outgoing traffic, will give you an additional chance at catching some infection that has occurred on your machine.

This offers expires on May 20, 2009. The Sunbelt Personal Firewall is really a gift at ten dollars. Yes, it is only ten dollars when you use this link and the coupon code SPFLOCKERGNOME when you place your order.

There is one further note from the people who deal with malware, like our very own resident Malware-removal Expert Kat. It is a bit of a shock – but there are still people who do not use a firewall. That may be hard to believe but when these malware fighters inspect logs of what people have on their machines, there isn’t a firewall. At this price, the Sunbelt Personal Firewall is more than affordable protection. Look on your email contact list and see if there is a family member or some newbie who might be just learning about computers. Ask them if they use a firewall. And don’t be surprised if they ask you… “what is that?”. – Then just buy this for them. You’ll be glad you did.

• Free Firewall (or a Bargain) from Sunbelt
• Windows Security Software
• Are Hackers Suffering in This Economy?
• Know When Something is Being Installed on Your Machine
• Special Geek Savings on Sunbelt VIPRE AntiVirus and AntiSpyware
• Vipre Protects Your Computer From Malware
• Prepare for the New School Year by Protecting Your Information
• Save Your Computer from Malware – and Naked Journalists!
• Protect All of Your Computers at Once
• More Malware on its Way – Protect Yourself

Every major news service on the planet is carrying stories about the tragedies and possible escalation of problems concerning the swine flu outbreak. It is a serious problem with the possibility of becoming significantly worse. One of the first responders to this global concern is the hacking / malware community. Hackers and criminals are viewing this swine flu problem as an opportunity. Slick malware may be on its way, if it is not propagating at this very moment. It is only a matter of time. These hackers may be seen as first responders of the very worse kind.

The news is just one venue. Are you on Facebook? Have you joined Twitter? These are just some of the example of social media where people are sharing and clicking on links. If you are on Twitter and have a good number of followers, there are links posted every minute. It would be so easy for a hacker to play the social network and drop some malicious link there. And it will happen more and more often.

You may think you are careful enough. However, no one can be vigilant 100% of the time. There are drive-by downloads that can install things on your machine without your even having to click a link. This is the type of incidence that calls for an excellent security regime on your computer. You should have an Anti-Virus, a Firewall and at least one Anti-Spyware program running at all times. For an Anti-Spyware program, we are recommending SUPERAntiSpyware. We have an excellent deal for you that offers real time protection:

SUPERAntiSpyware has “Real-Time Blocking of threats! Prevent potentially harmful software from installing or re-installing! First Chance Prevention examines over 50 critical points of your system each time your system starts up and shuts down to eliminate threats before they have a chance to infect and infiltrate your system.”

The program offers much, much more and you can read about it at the links provided. This program is being offered at a special rate for our readers. There is a ten dollar ($10.00) savings until May 3, 2009.

Use this link for the discount when buying/.

This is a program that is highly recommended within the security community. People who work on these pages use it and recommend it, too. We use it. We need it and so do you. SUPERAntiSpyware will detect and remove Spyware, Adware, Malware, Trojans, Dialers, Worms, KeyLoggers, Hijackers, Rootkits and many other types of threats. This program is easy to use and it is effective. If you have any problems with SUPERAntiSpyware, let us know. We will tell the founder / director of the company and have any problems addressed. Nick Skrepetos is well known in the security community and he stands behind his products. And if you need this program in large numbers, let us know. We will see if we can help with pricing for your company.

Protect yourself. There are more malware programs coming and these malicious programs are becoming better and better. Let SUPERAntiSpyware give you and your data first class protection.

• Save Your Computer from Malware – and Naked Journalists!
• Are Hackers Suffering in This Economy?
• Malware – Hate to be Correct
• SUPERAntiSpyware – Special Savings for our Community
• What is the Best Anti-Spyware Software?
• Know When Something is Being Installed on Your Machine
• Protect All of Your Computers at Once
• Top-Rated Firewall Back by Request
• Geek Savings on WinPatrol
• Is Your Network Secure?

Security threats seem to be in the news constantly. Just yesterday, it was reported that a phony Facebook application was putting some people in danger of being Identity Theft victims. There are daily examples of security exploits online. I’m not trying to scare you into considering protection software. This is a reminder that there are very real dangers online.

You may think you are careful enough. However, no one can be vigilant 100% of the time. There are drive-by downloads that can install things on your machine without your even having to click a link. This is the type of incidence that calls for an excellent security regime on your computer. Kat recommends using layers of protection. You should have an Anti-Virus, a Firewall, and at least one Anti-Spyware program running at all times. If you’re not sure what Anti-Spyware you should be using, we have an excellent deal for you.

SUPERAntiSpyware is a comprehensive, highly-recommended program. People all over the Security community – Kat included – regularly tout SAS as one of the best pieces of security software you can have in your arsenal.

SUPERAntiSpyware will detect and remove Spyware, Adware, Malware, Trojans, Dialers, Worms, KeyLoggers, Hijackers, Rootkits and many other types of threats. It even has built-in real time protection, to alert you to things attempting to install themselves or make changes on your system.

As a special consideration for our community, you can save $10.00 off the normal price of SUPERAntiSpyware between now and March 3rd, 2009.

You might be interested in the background behind this product. The founder of this product is Nick Skrepetos. Nick is well known for products like Pop-Up Stopper and SuperAdBlocker. These are well known and ’super’ products. He brings decades of experience to the Spyware wars. Nick and his team are in Anti-Spyware forums, and keep tabs on current issues. That is important because dangers may appear daily and protection/security programs must be nimble enough to respond quickly. Nick stands behind this product – and emails/questions are answered.

I know how important it is to you to have a trouble free computer. This program will help… and at this price, it is an excellent value. I have no reservations when I suggest that you have SUPERAntiSpyware on your machine.

• Are Hackers Suffering in This Economy?
• Save Your Computer from Malware – and Naked Journalists!
• More Malware on its Way – Protect Yourself
• What is the Best Anti-Spyware Software?
• Know When Something is Being Installed on Your Machine
• Protect All of Your Computers at Once
• Top-Rated Firewall Back by Request
• Malware – Hate to be Correct
• Special Geek Savings on Sunbelt VIPRE AntiVirus and AntiSpyware
• How to Protect Yourself from Mac OS X Trojans

There’s all sorts of news about trojans being unleashed on Mac OS X. However, there’s only one fool-proof way of protecting yourself from trojans on Mac OS X:

STOP PIRATING SOFTWARE, YOU MORON.

This way, there’s little chance of you installing trojans in the first place. If you were stupid enough to pirate software, you deserve everything that happens to you and your system. Yeah, that goes for Windows users, too – if you pirate content and your system gets hosed, you have nobody but YOURSELF to blame. Stop blaming Microsoft for YOUR problems.

I actually received an email the other day from someone claiming that LimeWire installed viruses on his system. Well, he was right – and yet completely wrong. This recent outbreak of Mac OS X trojans doesn’t illustrate how vulnerable Mac OS X is so much as it shows that users, no matter the platform, can be unethical and stupid.

If you pirated iWork, you got a trojan. If you pirated Adobe CS4, you got a trojan. Either way, you do NOT have my sympathies.

• What is the Best Anti-Spyware Software?
• Protect All of Your Computers at Once
• SUPERAntiSpyware – Special Savings for our Community
• Is Your Network Secure?
• Anti-Spyware
• Top 5 Tips to Avoid Viruses and Spyware
• Trojans vs. Viruses
• Vipre Protects Your Computer From Malware
• Are Hackers Suffering in This Economy?
• Know When Something is Being Installed on Your Machine

This is Rodrigo Anonimo’s submission for the HP Magic Giveaway. Feel free to leave comments for this article as you see fit – your feedback is certainly welcomed! If you’d like to submit your own how-to, what-is, or top-five list, you can send it to me. Views and opinions of this writer are not necessarily my own:

When you think about security, you probably think of your own physical security. There are other kinds of security that you should be concerned about. When you are working on the computer, your personal information can be at risk. You should be concerned about network security, and what can you do to protect yourself. In fact, your credit/debit card is part of some kind of Network. This article explains threats and solutions for a computer network.

Viruses are the first threat to be concerned with when using the Internet. A computer virus is a small application which is downloaded while you visit a web site, or can be embedded in something you download. There are different kinds of viruses, but the most common are Trojan horses and Worms. If you know about the Trojan horse back in history, you should know that it was a threat pretending to be a gift, and that’s what Trojan viruses are. The program claims to do one thing (it may claim to be a game) but instead does damage when you run it, such as corrupting your hard drive. Worms are like bacteria in the human body, and they can reproduce and pass themselves on to other people. The worms have the ability to copy and paste and pass themselves to other computers. A worm is the most risky virus in a network because it can spread to other computers, and make the network crash.

You may be asking yourself, who makes all of these things? People who make the viruses and other security threats call themselves hackers. There are two types of hackers, White Hat hackers and Black Hat hackers. A hacker is someone who modifies something that already exists, and makes changes to it. For example, they can do reverse engineering which allows them to modify an existent computer program to make it work better… or to completely trash it. When one is using the hacked program, their computer can completely crash or the program can spy on the infected computer. The same thing applies to computer hardware.

There are tons of securities tools, but none of them are one hundred percent secure. The best bet is to enable firewalls on your computer to protect yourself from hackers. You must also get an AntiVirus software, to protect yourself from the different types of Viruses. Be careful when you buy your AV software. Make sure you buy from a well-known brand of AV. Also – make sure you have a WPA password for your wireless network. This type of key is harder to crack/hack. The last thing to do is to make sure the operating system is up to date with all security patches and fixes.

You will never know if you are hundred percent secure, and any kind of security is not one hundred percent safe. Having a little knowledge of what dangerous threats can do for a computer can be very helpful.

• Protect All of Your Computers at Once
• Malware – Hate to be Correct
• More Malware on its Way – Protect Yourself
• Geek Savings on WinPatrol
• How to Protect Yourself from Mac OS X Trojans
• What is the Best Anti-Spyware Software?
• Anti-Spyware
• Top 5 Tips to Avoid Viruses and Spyware
• Trojans vs. Viruses
• Vipre Protects Your Computer From Malware

Malware today is complex, and Windows users have had enough. More and more of you are fighting back by learning how to protect yourselves. You take advice from people like Kat, who have years of experience in combating these problems. What programs do you use for protection?

What do you use? Are you happy with it? Have you ever been the victim of a Malware infection?

• Are Hackers Suffering in This Economy?
• Know When Something is Being Installed on Your Machine
• Protect All of Your Computers at Once
• More Malware on its Way – Protect Yourself
• SUPERAntiSpyware – Special Savings for our Community
• How to Protect Yourself from Mac OS X Trojans
• What AntiVirus Do You Use?
• Trojans vs. Viruses
• Vipre Protects Your Computer From Malware
• Top-Rated Firewall Back by Request

Yo! Kat wanted to get your attention – if you’re a Windows user (or know of any). If you know much about her, you know that she’s been doing Malware removal for about six years now. She’s been a Microsoft MVP for the past three years in Windows Security. Security is a passion of hers, so you really need to pay attention to this word of warning.

There is a new and very serious Worm that has been unleashed. Gimmiv.A will drop three files, and then start up a service on unpatched systems. It will also drop and load a few .DLLs onto the machine. The worm will collect system information from the compromised computer, collect passwords from the Windows protected storage and Outlook Express passwords cache, and post collected details to a remote host.

If you are using any Windows systems, I strongly urge you to log into your Windows update today and apply all critical updates. As always, you can check out my Security recommendations, or read another article I wrote explaining many ways you can stay protected.

Please spread the word?

• Know When Something is Being Installed on Your Machine
• Top-Rated Firewall Back by Request
• A Few Moments with Bill Pytlovany
• SUPERAntiSpyware – Special Savings for our Community
• How to Protect Yourself from Mac OS X Trojans
• What is the Best Anti-Spyware Software?
• Firewall and Computer Security
• What Drives Your Productivity?
• Windows 7 – How Soon Should You Upgrade?
• Best Buy and Windows 7

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Tomo sent me a list of his top 5 ways to keep your computer free of Spyware. At the same time, I was lucky enough to receive a savings to pass along to all of you for SuperAntiSpyware!

This is “tomo30″ from your chat room. I wanted to take you up on the top 5 list. This will help people with the best ways to fight spyware.

• Go on the offensive. Fight spyware before it even arrives on your computer. Make sure you have a good ‘anti-virus software’ program running on your PC. Many ISPs (Internet Service Providers) now offer anti-virus programs or even purchasing a commercial product is to your advantage. Get a program or product that is regularly updated to fend off the latest viruses, adware, worms, trojans and spyware. One excellent program is SuperAntiSpyware, which you can save $10.00 on by clicking the link for that to purchase.
• Put up a Firewall. A Firewall should be one of your first lines of defense against spyware. A Firewall is simply a system or gateway designed to prevent unauthorized access to your computer or network. Check out ZoneAlarm or Comodo, they provide a free Firewall for individual users. Download their program and place it on your PC.
• Don’t open Emails and Attachments from people you don’t know. Use common sense, DON’T open any emails from people you don’t know. Especially, do not open any Attachments until they are scanned for spyware and viruses. Many mail servers will do these scans for free.
• Keep Your Operating System Up to Date. Be aware of what’s on your system: do regular spyware and adware scans to see exactly what’s on your computer. Know your machine! You may be horrified to learn someone may be monitoring your every ‘keystroke’ and every ‘image’ you’ve viewed on your computer. So scan regularly and also make sure you download the newest updates from your Operating System; these often contain patches or fixes for serious breaches of security on your PC.
• Back-up Your System. If all the above steps fail, nothing is foolproof, any computer that uses the Internet can be hacked, so you need to back-up your important data. You can use floppy disks, CDs or use a second computer that’s not connected to the net just for storage or back-up of you sensitive data/programs. An inexpensive notebook computer can be used to make daily/weekly back-ups of your vital data and programs.

Be safe, be smart. Make sure to check out the great savings on SuperAntiSpyware!

Here are some more coupons if you’re looking to save on a different antispyware package:

• Trend Micro - 10% off AntiVirus plus AntiSpyware 2010 using coupon code trendtav - Posted on 10/12/09 and Expires on 1/10/10
• Spyware Doctor - 25% off Spyware Doctor using coupon code AlexsCouponsSD25 (EXCLUSIVE) - Posted on 6/4/09 and Expires on 12/31/15
• Trend Micro - 10% Off Trend Micro AntiVirus plus AntiSpyware 2009 - Posted on 4/11/09 and Expires on 12/31/15
• Trend Micro - 10% Off Trend Micro AntiVirus + AntiSpyware 2009 - Posted on 4/11/09 and Expires on 12/31/15
• Webroot - Spy Sweeper Anti-Spyware 3-User Pack only $29.95 - Posted on 1/1/08 and Expires on 12/21/13
• PC Tools Software - 25% off Spyware Doctor using coupon code AlexsCouponsSD25 (EXCLUSIVE) - Posted on 9/24/07 and Expires on 12/31/15
• PC Tools Software - Spyware Doctor Trial Version (download) - Posted on 9/7/07

Find More Coupons

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• Protect All of Your Computers at Once
• Top-Rated Firewall Back by Request
• How to Protect Yourself from Mac OS X Trojans
• Is Your Network Secure?
• What is the Best Anti-Spyware Software?
• Top 5 Tips to Avoid Viruses and Spyware
• Trojans vs. Viruses
• Vipre Protects Your Computer From Malware
• Are Hackers Suffering in This Economy?
• Know When Something is Being Installed on Your Machine

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Eric sent in his top five list of tips for downloading things safely from the Internet. My best advice is to remember that software such as anti-virus programs are your *second* layer of defense against malware. The #1 layer is YOU and your common sense. Here are Eric’s top 5 tips for safe Internet downloading:

Close all other applications while running a setup wizard If you have other applications running, it can cause the install to fail, or critical files to be corrupted… even making uninstallation impossible by normal means. Chris adds: This isn’t completely correct, however it is a good idea to quit other applications. Also, never run more than ONE installer at the same time.

Only download from trusted sites Don’t trust a bunch of random people on YouTube, for instance. If something screams out “free!”, it is likely a scam. Do some research, know what you’re downloading and the site you’re getting it from. Get recommendations from trusted family and friends, and even via some of the excellent computer forums online.

Don’t download anything from “dirty” sites You may be sitting there giggling by now, but adult sites are about 90% of the way computers get infected. Most every one of those sites has malware embedded in them, and even more when you download something from them.

Be careful using P2P programs Ahh, here is the other 10% of the malware. Peer to Peer file sharing. Be smart when downloading anything this way. Check the file sizes, and the titles. Seriously guys. If a file on a Torrent site (for instance) claims to give you Vista for free or turn your PC into a “psp” machine to allow you to game… do you REALLY think it’s true?

Make sure the company you’re downloading from is really legit There are many sites and companies out there who pretend to be Apple, or Microsoft, or any other number of reputable companies. Never download something that claims to be from them from somewhere other than their site, without making sure you know it really did come from them. Also, make sure the site you are going to download from has permission from the content owner to host the file for download.

Use common sense, do your research, and protect yourself. Happy safe computing!

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• Is Your Network Secure?
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• Trojans vs. Viruses
• Vipre Protects Your Computer From Malware
• Are Hackers Suffering in This Economy?
• Know When Something is Being Installed on Your Machine
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http://live.pirillo.com/ – Confused about the differences between a virus, a trojan, adware, and spyware? While they all fall under the category of malware, they are all very different types of digital nasties

.

Have you ever watched the movie Troy with Brad Pitt? It’s the one where the Greeks build a huge wooden horse and hide soldiers inside of it? Yeah – you know the story.

A computer trojan is a lot like that movie. It’s a program installed on your computer (often bundled with another program) that runs in the background. It will open a door to your computer, so to speak, to allow another person to get IN. They can see your files, look at everything on your computer, and even take over your computer and use it for malicious means.

A virus is destructive. It can rewrite your files, overwrite your files, and even wipe out your files. Some viruses can execute themselves to basically cripple your system in a matter of seconds. There are others that simply install themselves quietly, and then send copies of themselves out to everyone in your address book to infect them.

Spyware is a nifty little bugger that likes to… well… SPY on you. For example, those cool toolbars and desktop widgets you install – or a program you downloaded from a file sharing network – often will have spyware bundled with them. This spyware gathers information about you and your surfing habits, and will send it back to the distributor without your knowledge and/or consent.

And of course, we have adware. Adware is just an ad running inside of a program. It installs itself directly onto your computer, and can open new browser windows, redirect your current window, and even hijack your search engine to redirect to its own results. Yes… those annoying popups you can never seem to get rid of are adware.

Everyone has a different opinion on how to get rid of malware. What I’m interested in is knowing how you got infected… and what you did to stop and/or clean your system. Leave us feedback, or visit us in the live chat at live.pirillo.com.

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• What is the Best Anti-Spyware Software?
• Vipre Protects Your Computer From Malware
• Are Hackers Suffering in This Economy?
• Know When Something is Being Installed on Your Machine
• Protect All of Your Computers at Once
• More Malware on its Way – Protect Yourself
• How to Protect Yourself from Mac OS X Trojans
• Is Your Network Secure?
• What AntiVirus Do You Use?
• Anti-Spyware