With the growing use of the Internet and Emails, Viruses and Spyware are becoming much more of a problem. Taking some simple measures, such as installing Anti-Virus and Anti-Spyware software can help.


What are Viruses?
Virus are pieces of software which are able to copy themselves to   a   computer and 'infect' it. The majority of Viruses don't actually do any damage to   the  computer, but can cause annoying problems. Anti-virus software   running  on your computer  will detect and remove any viruses before they infect your machine.

We would highly recommend installing Anti-Virus software as viruses are becoming more of a nuisance and can cause problems with Emails and web broswing (as well as affecting other programmes).

There are a number of Anti-Virus software that are available, provided by companies such as Norton, McAfee and Panda. Often the software also comes with things like Anti-Spam, Anti-Spyware and Internet Security programmes which will help keep your machine safe.

If you would prefer not to buy Anti-Virus software, you can download a free Anti-Virus package from AVG:

Download from here: http://free.grisoft.com/freeweb.php/doc/2/

Please note, AVG is free for personal use only (See notes on their site for details on licensing)


What is Spyware/Adware?
Spyware and Adware are similar to viruses in that they are pieces of software that spread from computer to computer. However Spyware intend   to collect personal information (ip address, email address, domain names etc.) which they use in order to bombard your computer with spam mail. Some other spyware will hi-jack the internet explorer home page or will start pop-ups everytime you click on an internet link. Although spyware infection doesn't have as a result the destruction of data (like viruses) the majority of them becomes a nuisance. Spyware can cause things like slow connections effecting web browsing and emails, in some cases   by  hijack ing  your browser   it can  take you to unwanted sites.

There are some Anti-Spyware out there that you can buy and again there are a number which are available for free:

We recommend you download and install both of the following:

Spybot Search & Destroy: www.safer-networking.org/en/index.html

Lavasoft Ad-Aware: www.lavasoftusa.com/software/adaware/

Unfortunately we are not able to provide support on any the software listed here. All the software has documentation and details on how to install it on their websites.