You try to enter your password on the microwave.
You have 15 phone numbers to reach your family of three.
You consider “mouse elbow” a sports injury.
Your daughter is selling Girl Scout Cookies on her Web site.
The concept of using real money is becoming foreign to you.

In all cases, malware, spyware, and viruses are a result of some action taken by the user (you or a family member that uses your computer). Remember, cyber criminals are incredibly clever and gain access to your computer via some of the most innocent and common activities you are performing; that is why it SEEMS as though it is your computer's fault.

In the book Spam Nation, investigative journalist and cyber security expert Brian Krebs revealed the single most effective (and relied upon) way cybercrime rings gain access to your bank account, credit cards and identity. Ready for it? E-mail. 

Whether it's opening an attachment infected by a virus, or a phishing scam where you unknowingly give up your login to a critical website, e-mail still remains the most popular and reliable way digital thieves can rob you blind, steal your identity and wreak havoc on your network.

#1. Add Memory. One of the most inexpensive and effective ways to improve a computer’s performance is to install more RAM (random access memory). This will speed up the applications installed on your computer and allow you to open and run more programs simultaneously.

I’ve been asked by customers whether or not they should leave their computer on all the time or turn it off when they are not using it.

Several years ago I would have told my clients to turn their machines off to save power. But with the proliferation of viruses and threats over the last few years, I have changed my mind.

We’ve all been told there is no such thing as a free lunch; yet it’s hard to resist the siren’s call of “FREE”. That’s one of the reasons why so many people have free email accounts through Hotmail, MSN, and Gmail.

And while you might not be paying out of pocket for these services, there IS a cost.

E-mail is quickly becoming the #1 way we communicate with friends, family, co-workers, employees, and clients. But be careful! E-mail messages cannot accurately deliver the tone of your message and what you thought was funny sarcasm by be interpreted as an insult to your reader.

What Is Identity Theft?

Now imagine having your entire identity stolen. Your social security number, business ID number, access to your personal and business bank accounts, retirement accounts - swiped out from under you. Your personal and business cards can be maxed out too.

Spyware is Internet jargon for hidden programs that advertisers install on your PC without your permission to spy on you, gather information, and report this information about you and your online activities to a third party.

Spyware is NOT harmless; it can be responsible for delivering a boatload of spam, altering your web browser, slowing down your PC, and serving up a bounty of pop-up ads.

It’s amazing how many things can go wrong with your computer; bad drivers, hardware malfunctions, viruses, software glitches, spyware…and this is only the beginning.

Computer problems always seem to happen at the most inconvenient times and can leave you stranded for hours, even days without a computer.