Techie Now Articles – Virus Removal Services and Computer Repair

One day you get an email from your bank. You usually get emails from them however this particular email asks you to “verify” the email address you registered and if you don’t do it asap, it threatens to close your account. It sounded urgent, but you have your doubts about it. What do you do?

Emails like this are examples of Phishing, a method of online identity theft. What it does is to deceive you to give your credentials by sending bogus emails that redirects you to a fake website set up to be identical to the official site.

This not only steals personal and financial date, but it can also infect your computer with malware and unintentionally participate in money laundering.

Pretty scary isn’t it? A single phishing email can actually cause a lot of trouble. Here are some tips to avoid getting reeled:

• Always remember that a comapany will never ask your login credentials via email. If you do get an email asking you to “verify” your account and provides you a link to login, do not click on the link. If you hover your mouse over the link, you may notice that it directs to some other website, not the official website of the company.
• Watch out for grammar and typographical errors. These are obvious signs that its a fake/phishing message.
• Generic openings like “dear customer” or “dear player” should sound a warning that it might be a phishing email.
• Make sure that your bank’s website (or any other website for payments or financial transactions) is encrypted. Check the website address, it should begin with Https://www rather than Http://www.
• Update your browser frequently. New browsers like Internet Explorer 9 and Google Chrome have an anti-phishing feature. It helps detect fake sites.
• I’d recommend using different passwords for every online account that you have. If you use the same password it can be a pot of gold if a hacker gets your login credentials.
• When in doubt, don’t click. You can ignore or delete the message or better yet, contact the company directly.

How can Techie Now help?

Phishing emails does not only steal information but it can also be a gateway for malicious software to invade your computers. When in doubt and you needed a professional advice, feel free to contact us at TechieNow.com. Our techies are ready to give you sound recommendations and if a malware removal is needed; our techies will take care of that as well. Check out our virus removal services for more information.

Every new years day reminds us of a fresh start, of a new you. This certainly applies as well to your computers. Just like ourselves, we have to unload some stuff from our computers to last another year.

These simple maintenance tips will help you and your computers start the year right, avoid computer issues and boost your computer’s total performance.

Clean your computer from yester-year’s clutter
As we use our computers, bits and pieces of temporary system files are being stored. Whenever we surf the internet, temporary internet files are continuously downloaded and stored into our hard drives; when we install programs, temporary system files are also kept; when we create documents or presentations, temporary files are stored as well.

Collectively, these bits and pieces of temporary files eat up a large chunk of space in our drive.

The easiest and simplest way of cleaning this is by using Windows’ Disk Cleanup utility that is usually found under Start>>All programs>>Accessories>>System Tools>>Disk Cleanup. Alternatively, you can use your preferred third party cleaning tool to do the job for you.

Audit your programs list
It can be very healthy for your computer as well if you uninstall programs that you don’t really use. Most especially additional anti-virus software that can cause software conflicts on your system.

Common unused programs as well are your browser add-ons like toolbars, not only that it makes your browser look crowded, it slows it down too. Make a rundown of your programs at Control panel>>Add/Remove programs or Programs and Features.

Update programs, virus definitions and windows hotfixes
To spare yourself from annoyances coming from program bugs, it is recommended that you install all updates whenever they are available. Make it a habit to install important Windows updates so as to make your computing more stable and hassle free.

Look into your computer’s security
Ensuring security is always part of your computer usage hygiene. Antivirus software or any other security software has to be kept updated, ongoing (not expired) and working.

Daily scans are recommended, weekly is a must. In the event your paid antivirus subscription had expired (or is almost expiring) please ensure that you see to it that your computer is continuously protected.

There are limitless possibilites for a malware intrusion on your computers and and expired antivirus software may give hackers an easy access to your files.

Clean your computer inside-out
Your computer is a machine that can accumulate a lot of dust over time. Keeping it physically clean allows air to flow, and this helps keep your computer’s temperature levels down.

If you’re using canned air, please follow the instructions listed in the can. If you’re with an expert or you’re knowledgable with computer hardware, also reseat your hardware peripherals and your memory sticks.

Be careful when dealing with computer hardware; mishandling can cause serious damage to your computer.

How can Techie Now help?

These simple computer maintenance tips should be done on your computer every 6months to keep your computer in good working condition. If you’re not very comfortable in doing these yourselves, our techies would be more than happy to help you out with our PC Performance Booster. We’ll take care of your computer as if its our own.