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We see it every week. Someone calls and says they have a message that says their computer has been infected by a virus. The alert looks very real to the untrained eye.

Even if you are suspicious and click the "x" in the right hand corner, you have just been attacked and either the computer becomes unusable or you are assaulted by a barrage of pop-ups and advertsing.

The other option may be to purchase their fake antivirus software, which likely contains trojans and/or spyware. Oh sure the computer may seem usuable for a while, but it is compromised and your security is shot at this point.

This story about malware (MALicious softWARE) is so common that, sadly, we have to ofer our conolences and start a huge process of scrubbing the computer clean.

It is Tech Brainy Consultings policy to charge as little as possible for virus cleaning in comparion to the massive hours of work it is to properly clean a system and likely repair the damaged system as well. So we are not excited to have the extra work in these cases.

See out antivirus page: http://techbrainy.com/Computer_Virus_Cleaning_Antivirus

Here are some tips to defend yourself against antivirus software:

1. If you use Internet Explorer as a browser, consider using Firefox instead. Hackers often target vulnerabilities in Internet Explorer.

2. Use good firewall, Antivirus, and antispyware software and keep them updated!

3. Do not open email attachments unless you know the source and are expecting it.

4. Do not click on unfimiliar pop-ups, especially for anti-virus or anti-spyware software, especially a program that sounds too good to be true or that says you are infe.

5. If a virus alert appears on your screen, do NOT touch it. Don't use your mouse to eliminate or scan for viruses, and DON'T use your mouse to close the window. Instead, hit control + alt + delete to view a list of programs currently running. Delete the "rogue" from the list of running programs.

6. Avoid downloading "free" software, freeware, or share from an unreliable source. We exclusively use C/net's Download.com.

Unfortunately, as we say Free is always more expensive. A lot of freeware comes packaged with spyware and adware. You have to ask yourself, why are they offering this software for free. We guarantee that it is not because they are software good samaritans. It is almost 100% for profit or gain on some level.

7. Avoid shady or questionable websites. Many of these automatically download malicious software onto your computer.

8. Reset your current security settings to a higher level, espcially if you are using Internet Explorer.

9. There are some good fake software out there that resemble real software, but look carefully and sspiciously, there are generally small discrepancies..

10. Check against this list of fake, or rogue, anti-virus and anti-spyware products.

http://www.spywarewarrior.com/rogue_anti-spyware.htm

If your computer is infected by rogue software, stop work and contact us as soon as possible. Don't keep using the computer. This may further damage your machine and provide identity thieves with more information about you.We are here to help.

Call 949-305-5991

Tech Brainy Consulting, Inc.
See our Blog @ http://techbrainy.com/content/beware-fake-antivirus-programs