How to protect yourself!

[evilfantasy]

I've never seen one guide that's been complete, there's always at least one thing left out.

So true. I adjust mine constantly in an effort to keep it current.
It's also a struggle to keep it thorough yet not too large so it won't turn people away from using it.

I have put alot effort into helping at Computer Hope yet have not once linked to any of my articles from here. If you are here to help then help here. That's my view.

S_R_S is touching on security views to combat human intruders. No security setup can stop people from clicking their mouse. The mouse is the biggest piece of malware ever created.

[patio]

So far none of my readers have complained about the readability of the site.

I took a look that lasted 20 seconds...if i have to change browser settings to read things i don't stick around long.

[TheEmperor]

why would you have to change the browser settings? The only browser related issue I've had is with IE's noncompliant rendering messing up my sidebar sometimes. Everyone else using both firefox and IE report no problems and have been universally approving of the sites look and feel.

[dairyman]

why would you have to change the browser settings? The only browser related issue I've had is with IE's noncompliant rendering messing up my sidebar sometimes. Everyone else using both firefox and IE report no problems and have been universally approving of the sites look and feel.

This is not true. I've had problems with Firefox and IE. (ESPECIALLY Internet Explorer) I tried to download from a serial site and got hijacked. I installed the Yahoo! Toolbar and it crashed Internet Explorer. But the only problem I've had with Firefox is FF crashing while I had SiteHound enabled.

[TheEmperor]

No no, we were talking specifically about my website as the thread seems to have been mildly hijacked.
I've seen all kinds of insanity out of IE and firefox when you're indiscriminate about what you install and where you go...

[S_R_S5]

I changed some of it.
Any more suggestions let me know.

[TheEmperor]

I've never seen one guide that's been complete, there's always at least one thing left out.

So true. I adjust mine constantly in an effort to keep it current.
It's also a struggle to keep it thorough yet not too large so it won't turn people away from using it.

I have put alot effort into helping at Computer Hope yet have not once linked to any of my articles from here. If you are here to help then help here. That's my view.

S_R_S is touching on security views to combat human intruders. No security setup can stop people from clicking their mouse. The mouse is the biggest piece of malware ever created.

So you're saying that you have valuable, well written articles that you refuse to share with the community? To me that just seems counterproductive to the whole idea of writing the article in the first place. If it's helpful then get it out to the widest possible audience.

[evilfantasy]

If there were a situation that warranted it I would. So far I have been able to take care of everything in-house. This is a big site with a lot of information. Look around and you will see. http://www.computerhope.com/vlist.htm

[Deerpark]

There are 2 main types of hackers.  The first kind is the kind we are all afraid of. We think and talk of these people as "Script kiddies" they use programs programmers make and use them to hurt people. Most of the computer crimes are happening by these people. Most of them are young and trouble makers.

I've got a problem with this part. This is to be honest an outdated view on the malware community.
The ones who create and spread most of the malware today are not teenagers with more spare time than common sense. They are professionals who earn a living this way and trust me, malware is BIG business. You can actually buy hosting solutions specifically for the purpose of spamming or spreading malware. You can buy tools for spreading spam, setting up phising sites and so on. You can buy undetectable trojans (undetectable in the sense that at the time of puchase no AV solution will detect it).
So don't underestimate these people as mere troublemakers. Malware today is well organized crime.

[Calum]

why would you have to change the browser settings? The only browser related issue I've had is with IE's noncompliant rendering messing up my sidebar sometimes. Everyone else using both firefox and IE report no problems and have been universally approving of the sites look and feel.

I would change my browser settings if I had to look at more than a few pages on your site to change the background and text to white and black respectively.  That's the easiest to read, and it wouldn't give me a headache as white on black does.
It's nothing to do with incorrect display, just that I detest the look of the site.  Just my own personal opinion, I really don't like dark backgrounds on any site.

[evilfantasy]

Here  are some programs I use and like to protect myself:

Symantec antivirus, (Virus protection)
Macafee, (virus protection)
Norton, (virus protection, not many people here like it ;p)

Norton and Symantec are the same thing so no need to list it twice. Also you make it sound like you use all at the same time. There should be a line about only using one AV and one firewall at a time because it can cause conflicts. People like free programs so you should include a few of these also. AVG or Avast are among the best free AVs. You should also mention using Windows Defender or even better WinPatrol 2007.