SOURCE: support.com

 

REDWOOD CITY, CA--(Marketwire - June 30, 2009) - Who hasn't received that frantic call from their retired father or kid who's away at college, when their computer suddenly goes on the blink, due in part to something they've done? In the spirit of "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure," support.com®, the remote technology service company that makes owning and maintaining technology pain-free, offers its list of the Top 10 Dumbest Things people do with their home PCs.

"We know first hand how frustrating it is when a PC owner finds that his or her computer has been compromised by viruses, malware or some other insidious infection that can leave their computer totally useless," comments Anthony Rodio, COO of support.com. "Yet so many of the problems our customers bring to us are avoidable with just some common sense practices."

To keep your computer running smoothly, when you need it most, support.com offers its Top 10 misconceptions users have about computers:

   1.  Pop-up warnings while you browse the web are all telling the truth
       More than likely the pop-up you've received that's warning you of an
       imminent threat to your computer is rogue anti-virus or anti-malware
       software.  At its worst, it's a delivery system for even more
       viruses and malware.  If you install it, whether for free or paid
       for, try to uninstall it right away.  But if that proves difficult,
       you may require professional assistance in having it removed.  The
       best advice:  Ignore those pop-up warnings, and, if necessary set
       your browser's pop-up blocker to limit or completely refuse pop-ups.

   2.  Installing Windows Updates doesn't apply to you
       They do, and ignoring them or putting them off is leaving the door
       open to more problems.   These important Windows updates address
       security holes that have been discovered that allow viruses and
       malware to get into your system. If you refuse these updates or
       disable the whole Windows Update system, your system will be
       vulnerable to these kinds of attacks.  Windows Update makes it easy
       to update your computer automatically in the middle of the night.
       The best advice: Don't disable the Windows Update feature or ignore
       when Windows is trying to alert you to something important. If you
       choose to leave your system un-patched, you could be turning your
       computer into an open book to hackers.

   3.  Email attachments are all safe because I have an antivirus program
       Antivirus programs are only as good as their last update and only if
       that update contains detection for the thing that just arrived in
       your email box. Most of the time, antivirus updates lag one to three
       days behind the release of new viruses. If you don't have the update
       for a virus, you're not protected from it.  When it comes to email
       attachments, it's better to be safe than sorry.  As a general rule,
       if you were not expecting something to come from someone, don't open
       it.  And don't fall for scary email subjects, such as "is this
       really a naked picture of you?" If you open it, you won't be
       exposed, but your computer will be.

   4.  But that email attachment from my BFF is definitely safe, right?
       Even if you recognize the name of a sender, be wary. Many viruses
       send themselves out automatically without your friend's knowledge.
       Viruses will infect your friend's system, go through their address
       book and send out an email to each of those addresses. In fact,
       you're MORE likely to get a virus from someone you know. Again, if
       you were not expecting an attachment to an email, don't open it.

   5.  Backups are only for big companies
       Think of backups like this -- how important are the files on your
       computer and how long will it take to replace them? Enough said.
       You don't need to back up the entire hard drive every time you do
       a backup.  But find a good backup program that backs up only the
       data that you create. Once you start backing up your data, you'll
       never again worry that your library of family pictures is gone
       forever or the novel you've been writing for three years is no
       longer there.

   6.  All peripherals work with all computers
       In a perfect world, all printers, scanners, video cameras, webcams,
       monitors, etc. would work with all computers. Unfortunately, the
       computing world just doesn't work that way. Not every version of
       Windows will handle all new hardware, even though Microsoft does its
       best to make sure your old hardware will work with their new version
       of windows. The bottom line is, as you upgrade your operating
       system, you just might have to upgrade some, if not all, of your
       peripherals.

   7.  Microsoft takes care of all my updates
       As nice as this thought is, it's just not true. There are many other
       technologies in your computer apart from Microsoft's, including
       Sun's Java and Adobe Flash, to name a couple.  Just like with those
       Microsoft updates, don't ignore the update requests you receive from
       other important technologies and software.

   8.  Putting your faith and belief in everything you read in
       forwarded emails
       According to Dughael McLean, the "Godfather of Technology" at
       support.com, "99.999% of stuff that you get forwarded from someone
       else are bald-faced, dyed in the wool, 100% un-authentic, complete
       and utter lies."  But to be sure, McLean suggests checking the
       authenticity of forwarded emails at www.snopes.com.

   9.  Believing that an email that appears to come from a company,
       actually came from them
       That email from what appears to be a legitimate company, banking
       institution, or government agency is likely to be the work of a
       Phishing scammer.  Phishing is a process of sending out thousands
       (sometimes millions) of emails that look very legitimate and that
       ask you to visit their website and enter your personal data,
       including your password.  If you've followed the instructions,
       you've just given the scammers the key to your identity.  The
       easiest way to thwart a Phishing scam is to avoid it.   But if
       you're not sure, you can click on the link.  Then before you type
       anything into the webpage, go to the "address bar" at the top of the
       page which contains the address of the website you're currently at.
       If, for instance, you expect to be at support.com, the address bar
       will read https://www.support.com/. If you're not there, you're
       somewhere else and you're about to reveal your personal information
       and password to someone else.

       Identity theft through Phishing is almost always caused by someone
       getting fooled like this. Be wary of those emails and you'll keep
       your information safe.

   10. Thinking that computers don't need maintenance by a human
       You take your car in for service every 5,000 miles.  So why wouldn't
       you do that with your personal computer.  It too is complex
       machinery.  To be safe, every once in a while have your computer
       looked at by a professional, human technician, who has years of
       experience and the tools needed to properly assess and address any
       problems your computer may be experiencing.

About support.com

support.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: SPRT) provides Instant Technology Relief® to consumers and small businesses directly via channel partners and our www.support.com portal. support.com is changing the way people fix technology problems. Previously, a computer meltdown meant pleading phone calls to tech-savvy friends and family, a trip to the computer store or a long wait for a technician to arrive. support.com's technology suite enables our expert Solutions Engineers to diagnose and repair most technology problems quickly over the internet and the phone, typically for less than the cost of in-store or in-home service. For more information visit www.support.com

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For more information visit www.support.com