Q: Which all-in-one computer should I buy? I need a computer that is as secure as possible.
A: I agree with you; it is best to have an extremely secure computer. Operating systems such as Mac OS X and Linux are immune to most viruses, malware, etc.
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Q: I installed Norton 360 on an HP notebook and already had Spy Sweeper. Now my computer will not boot-up. Do Spy Sweeper and Norton conflict with one another? How do I fix this?
A: The most likely explanation for your computer’s malfunction is indeed that Norton and Spy Sweeper are conflicting with one another. Security programs tend to conflict with one another whenever they duplicate each other’s functionality. In your case, your computer’s security programs are both trying to protect against spyware. Fortunately, your should be able to repair your computer via the following procedure:
Q: I have a Dell e1505 and I have had some trouble recently with viruses spyware and other unwanted programs on my computer. I have McAfee virus scan, Spybot, and Ad-aware se and ran each program multiple times. Each time I run them they come up with new problems and remove them, but my computer still runs incredibly slow and has random erratic behavior(pop-up adds and installation programs). I was wondering if there is anything I can do myself.
A: I would recommend a pop-up blocker if you don’t already have one. On other thing I would recommend is that you install a HijackThis to get a better look at what software is running on your computer that might be doing bad things. I had similar problems and this seemed to take care of it.
Regarding the slowness of the machine. I would make sure you are also defragmenting your hard drive and running the disk clean up utility. Another good idea is to delete your temporary internet files. I hope that one of these steps helps resolve your issues. You can get more information about these steps at our Windows XP Computer Running Slow article.
Q: My computer continues to advise me that it has been infected with spyware and I cannot seem to get rid of it can you help me?
A: I am sorry to hear that you are having problems with spyware. Spyware (malware/viruses/Trojans) is one of the downsides of the every evolving Internet. More and more people come online every day and with this there are of course a few bad apples intent upon wreaking havoc upon Internet users of all sorts.
Your first defense against the bad guys is setting your Internet Options Security level to a High (or at least Medium) level. To do this, access Start -> Settings -> Control Panel -> Internet Options -> Security tab. Click the Custom Level button. Here you will see the Settings area, which will give you various choices about your browser’s behavior on the Internet. You can change these as you see fit, but you are generally okay if you set the Reset to field to High (or at least Medium), and click Reset. Then click OK.
Next, you want to be sure that you are running security software of some sort; Norton, MacAfee, Windows Live OneCare; it doesn’t really matter what you are running, as long as you are running something. Computers usually come with a security suite pre-installed and active for a trial period. Simply purchasing a license for the pre-installed software is often the easiest way to go.
However, simply running your security software is not enough. You will need to make sure that you update it regularly, usually once a week, but more often when there is a known security threat on the Internet.
To get rid of a pesky piece of spyware, as you seem to have, download a trusted spyware remover such as Spybot. You can find this or another trusted removal tool at Download.com. Simply download the software, run as directed, and gasp at all of the things the software finds on your system. Follow Spybot’s (or other application’s) instructions to dispose of the malware.
I hope this information helps!
Thanks,
Anne
