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The Ultimate Free Guide to Stop Viruses and Spyware

18 Responses (Add) | Saturday, June 23rd, 2007 at 9:00pm

Wanna know how to keep your computer free from viruses, pop-ups, spyware, and other junk? Here’s how to do it without installing a single piece of software:

Tell all the males in your house to quit surfing for porn
Buy CDs and rip the tracks from there
Get a Netflix or Blockbuster account instead of using BitTorrent
Instead of looking for software cracks / serials, look for coupons
Stop operating in Administrator mode

Adhering to these five points (and forcing your family or roommates to do the same) should be enough to cut your risk by 90%, I’m guessing. You could do more to protect yourself, though, if you feel the need to download something:

Download drivers through official (or sanctioned) sources
Avoid unnecessary browser toolbars, plugins, or enhancements – and if you’re not sure if a toolbar is TRULY necessary, don’t install it
Read through every bit of a software installer process to ensure you’re not adding something that you don’t need and/or want – and if you’re not a geek, don’t install ANYTHING without first asking permission
Think twice before clicking on links sent to you by email or IM – especially if they prompt you to log in somewhere or download something else
Surf through OpenDNS servers for automatic Web site typo correction as well as an extra layer of phishing filters

That’s probably worth another 10% as far as protection from spyware / viruses are concerned. If you wanna be super-duper protected, surf the Web with Firefox or move to OS X (sorry, gang) and run Windows apps through Parallels. For more tips on keeping your computer clean, stay tuned to the podcast or our YouTube channel.

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18 Comments

Anti spam and Mail Cleaning Software

May 6th, 2008
at 6:15pm

source:The Ultimate Free Guide to Stop Viruses and…, Chris Pirillo Not exactly what I was looking for, but still a good read.

Morningzoo

November 8th, 2009
at 11:02am

The Ultimate Free Guide to Stop Viruses and Spyware The Telemarketer Game Watching the Shuttle Landing (and other stuff) How Ultimate is Windows Vista Ultimate? The Future of Audio and Video is Here

"The Podshow About Nothing"

November 8th, 2007
at 11:17pm

Giddy Up! *** – I begin to understand how much DRM sucks. – djsteen.tv – Chris Pirillo tells how to stop your computer from getting viruses/attacked [blog/video] – Transformers [Black Lab video] – Don’t forget to submit sweet stuff for show #077! Shows mentioned: The Nodcast. Music: “Google Earth” by Zioneye [PMN] “Mac or PC” by Beau-J & Furia [Get it on iTunes!

Ledokin

November 13th, 2007
at 12:29pm

November 8th, 2009
at 11:02am

[IMG] Chris Pirillo The Ultimate Free Guide to Stop Viruses and Spyware The Telemarketer Game Watching the Shuttle Landing (and other stuff) How Ultimate is Windows Vista Ultimate? The Future of Audio and Video is Here Photo Software – Cutting Through the Noise Don?t Put me on the Do Not Call List

nick

June 23rd, 2007
at 9:20pm

But porn is worth all the spyware and viruses in the world….

Eric Eggertson

June 23rd, 2007
at 10:17pm

I don’t understand the first item. Stop. Surfing. For. Porn. No, I just don’t understand it. Can you explain in non-technical terms?

Bryan Price

June 24th, 2007
at 4:16am

It’s not just the males. It’s the females as well. Especially the teenagers.

tv link

June 24th, 2007
at 10:24am

Lots of great tips, except for the using blockbuster and netflix instead of Torrents. Torrents don’t all have to be illegal, and it’s stupid to assume that all or most of the files contain spyware which is not the case. I mean after Sony’s rootkit incident and DRM on cds, I stand a greater chance of having my computer affected by legally purchased software when compared to the rare risk of some pirated material containing malware.

Allan

June 24th, 2007
at 6:22pm

You forgot apply MS security patches to windows..

Seriously though… Install Comodo’s AV and Firewall… Both free, and comodo is one of the better firewalls as far as leaking goes.

Then you can still surf for porn and use torrents :P

Linda McGowan

June 24th, 2007
at 6:51pm

I have to agree with your suggestion OS X. When I read the title of the article, I thought, “Get a Mac.” As a retired tech coordinator, I get calls frequently from friends and family wanting help with their virus/worm, problems – always Windows!
I do appreciate your newsletters, Pirillo’s picks, etc. Thanks. I have recommended you to many people. I REALLY miss Tech TV.

How To Get Free AntiVirus Software | How To Split An Atom

June 25th, 2007
at 12:56am

[...] Though, I have to say that Chris Pirillo had some really good tips on how to keep yourself from getting virus’ without resorting to software. Here are a few of my favorites. [...]

Pat

June 25th, 2007
at 9:37am

One of your tips for combating virus, spyware, etc. is to use Firefox. But you use Maxthon, don’t you? What Maxthon settings, add-ons, etc. do you use to minimize these kinds of risks?

vargas

June 25th, 2007
at 3:37pm

No torrents? That takes all the fun out of being online! Shoot!

Ian Nock

June 25th, 2007
at 5:06pm

90% of the progress to stopping viruses and spyware is this behaviour change tied to a sudden realisation that you will lose every photo you have taken in the last ten years, every letter, every contact you know, and a whole chunk of your time to maybe get it back – especially since you are amongst those people who do not understand what backups are for.