6 Tips to Avoid Viruses on The Internet | Total Security

Viruses, worms, Trojans, malware, ransomware, and the like have one thing in common: Nobody wants them on their PC or Mac.

Virus protection is a key concern for every internet user. And with good reason too - viruses can steal valuable data, delete files and slow down computers or even completely paralyze them.

Cybercriminals have learned a lot over the years, making it harder to identify sources of infection. These six tips will help you identify viruses more easily on the Internet.

1. Install Antivirus Software

Let's face it: if you want to avoid catching a virus on the internet, antivirus software is a must-have tool. Online threats have evolved and lie in wait for you in everyday activities, such as online banking, shopping, and surfing.

Viruses are one of those online threats. That is why you must protect your device from them. Protegent Total Security provides powerful, layered protection for your device - all in a single solution. Not only can you protect yourself against viruses and ransomware, but also against phishing and other online threats when you go about your various activities on the Internet.

This is what a win-win solution looks like.

2. Be Careful of Email Attachments

There are reasons why email providers like Gmail and Outlook ask your permission before downloading attachments: they can be dangerous. While these services usually have anti-virus protection built-in, viruses hidden in email attachments can bypass these defenses.

Cyber ​​criminals who want to spread a virus often send an email with an infected attachment to as large a group of people as possible in the hope that someone will be found among them who will open it. If your plan works, the virus installs itself immediately in the background and gets to work.

If you receive an email attachment from an unknown sender, or if the appearance of the email suggests a phishing attempt, your best bet is to ignore the message. Only download files from an email if you absolutely trust the source.

You should also deactivate the image preview in your e-mail software. This function can be found in the options or settings of the program. Some viruses can dock on image files and are installed automatically as soon as the e-mail is opened. However, by configuring your settings to only show images from trusted sources, you can prevent yourself from accidentally catching a virus this way.

3. Install the Latest Patches for Operating Systems and Applications

Vendors such as Microsoft and Adobe regularly release software updates to improve the security of their computers and software. Without these patches, cyber criminals can exploit security vulnerabilities and force a device to download a virus.

Such software security gaps represent a cyber threat that lurks covertly on many computers, even if users are careful not to catch viruses on the Internet. Only one thing can help against this risk: regular updates. Update your software as soon as a patch is available.

4. Stay Away from Dodgy Websites

Surfing the internet is a popular activity. In the UK alone, users spend an average of one day per week on the Internet, according to an  Ofcom study.

The hunt for the best meme or the next cult series can take you to the most whimsical corners of the internet - which can also be risky at times. There are over 1.5 billion websites worldwide, and not all of them were set up with the best of intentions. Web sites that act as sources of infection use a variety of tools to download a virus to your computer - such as B. Drive-by downloads that install silently, malicious ads, and misleading links that trick you into clicking.

Avoid clicking on website links with suspicious names. For example, combinations of letters and numbers that don't make words are a warning sign. Also, beware of websites that have trusted brands like Google in their addresses in slightly different forms. If the URL contains special characters that don't belong there, it is probably a fake website.

5. Stay Away from Pirated Software

We don't want to give a moral sermon about piracy - free use of games, films, or applications that everyone else has to pay for. The fact is: Downloading cracked and illegal software copies are not uncommon. But users should know that this puts their computer at risk.

Pirated software is obtained either through hard-to-find websites or peer-to-peer sharing. In both cases, you come across users who are only looking for their favorite film, as well as those who are intent on spreading a virus.

Viruses can be easily hidden in applications without built-in virus protection, which can be downloaded for free. Sometimes the software doesn't contain any content at all - except for the virus.

Free downloads should be used with caution. And if you should download pirated files, be sure to use antivirus software.

6. Make Backups of Your Computer

The following tip does not help against a virus on the Internet to capture, but it helps to limit the damage and avoid stress when it was supposed to get this far.

Regular cloud backups allow you to keep copies of your important files and documents in a location that is virus-protected. If your computer is infected by a virus that cannot be easily removed without damaging your files, you can then delete everything on the device and restore it to the state it was before the infection.