Internet Security Recommendations

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Run a firewall program and/or device
If you have cable or DSL, use a router — even if you only connect one computer.
Run antivirus (AV) software.
Run anti-spyware software
Run anti-spam software
Read my security software recommendations for the specific programs I recommend
Keep your antivirus signatures updated often. Even better, set the AV program to automatically get updates — all good antivirus programs will do this automatically, even the free ones. Watch the sales and update your AV program each year, or at least pay the subscription fee to get the updated virus signatures – and keep them up to date
Microsoft has made many improvements in Windows for user-friendliness and ease of use; unfortunately many of these have been at the expense of security!
The bad guys love them for this and target their products.

Visit Microsoft’s Windows Update site frequently, or better yet, their Microsoft Update, which is accessable via the Windows Update link
install the security fixes and critical updates, including for XP, using Windows Update
update MS Office apps at http://office.microsoft.com/Downloads/.
change from Windows Update to Microsoft Update to get Windows and Office updates at the same time.

don't execute attachments
if you absolutely must execute attachments
save them & scan them with an up-to-date AV program, first
turn off scripting capabilities in the e-mail program
turn off html capabilities in the email program
consider less vulnerable email programs than Outlook & Outlook Express
if you use Outlook or Outlook Express, check http://office.microsoft.com/Downloads/ for updates to these and also turn off the "preview" panel. If you use the preview panel, it uses Internet Explorer (with all it's security issues) to display any HTML emails.
for a long time, my e-mail program has been Eudora (www.eudora.com ) because it was less vulnerable and because I use a number of email addresses for sending as well as receiving emails. Eudora doesn't segregate these into different users.

set scripting security option to "prompt" or off
set Active-X security options to "prompt" or off
consider less vulnerable browser programs than Internet Explorer
My browser of choice is Mozilla Firefox and my second choice is Opera
I run IE when I have to – at MS’s site and when I have to go to the few other sites that I trust that use ActiveX, which only works with IE.

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