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TechTidBit – Tips and advice for small business computing – Tech Experts™ – Monroe Michigan

TechTidBit - Tips and advice for small business computing - Tech Experts™ - Monroe Michigan

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Viruses

Diagnosing And Resolving Strange Network Issues

June 22, 2012

By Tech Experts Staff
Everyone’s had them, you know those weird issues where one of your computers can get online or to your server but your workstation can’t. Or, when one building can get to the Internet or other network resources and your other building can’t.

Networking issues can be a real headache as they can be very difficult to track down. Without the proper equipment and knowledge, they can plague you forever. Fortunately we have solutions to those network gremlins that we see all too often.

This month we are going to touch on the common network issues we see and how we go about getting them corrected for you so that your network runs as it should.

Starting from your workstation and heading out to your Internet Service Providers (ISP) modem, we’ll work our way through some of the commonly seen issues.

Can’t reach the Internet.
This one we see frequently. When your workstation can’t get to the Internet (and other workstations on your network can), there are actually numerous issues that can cause this problem.

Some of the items your tech would (or should) be checking are:

Does the computer have a virus?
Viruses can cause all kinds of havoc when it comes to how your computer functions. Viruses can change the way that Windows networking acts and what it does.

If some of the aspects of your computer’s operating system (OS) are changed by a virus, it’s possible you may not be able to get online.

Is the connection from the computer to the router in good working order?
Sometimes people think that the answer to this question is as simple as “is the Ethernet cable plugged in tight,” and in most cases it is.

Sometimes the cables you may have been using for years might begin to cause connectivity problems. Cables that are constantly moved can have the wires within the cable ends worked loose. Ethernet cables used with notebooks and laptops are especially prone to this.

Once the right cables work themselves loose you are likely to either see sporadic connection problems or you may not have any connection at all.

These types of issues while not as common as virus or operating system issues tend to be more difficult to track down.

While a tech could go through all of the cables on your network when you have a connection problem, doing so can take a lot of time.

This isn’t normally the first course of action unless they specifically see symptoms that indicate this type of issue.

Some of the other issues that can cause a workstation to lose connectivity are faulty routers, switches or modems.

In the case of any of these pieces of network equipment, if the ports on them begin to fail users may have a lot of issues, from dropped packets resulting in slow Internet performance, to no Internet connection at all and everywhere in between.

The last possible place for connection issues is your ISP’s modem. Generally a tech can roughly troubleshoot this piece of equipment, but because your ISP manages it, there is only so much a tech can do to correct problems on this type of equipment. We can usually isolate the trouble to the modem, but after that, the ISP takes over.

If a tech finds an issue with your modem you would need to have your ISP’s techs come out and look into the issues with their modem.

No matter what issues your workstation is having we can trace them back to the root of their cause.

Give us a call and we’ll get you back up and running ASAP.

Will Your Internet Stop Working In July?

May 16, 2012

Thomas Fox is president of Tech Experts, southeast Michigan’s leading small business computer support company.

You’ve probably read in the paper or saw on the news that hundreds of thousands of computers might lose Internet access after July 9. I’ve had several clients ask, “Is this true? How serious is it?”

The short answer is, you’re probably fine. If you use Tech Experts for your anti-spyware, anti-virus, and anti-malware services, we have you covered.

Don’t get me wrong, this is a serious threat. If you happen to be one of the people with an infected computer, then yes – there’s a good chance you could wake up on July 9 to no Internet.

What’s This All About?
In a word, malware.

Last year, malware infected over half a million computers worldwide. This nasty virus modified the process your computer uses to translate domain names – like “MyTechExperts.com” – into IP addresses – like 209.151.164.50. It’s the IP address that locates the actual physical server that houses the website.

To perform that translation, computers are programmed with translators – DNS servers – that answer questions like, “What’s the IP address for www.google.com?” DNS servers are automatically provided by your Internet provider when you connect to the Internet.

When this “DNS Changer” malware infected a computer, it altered the translation server that the computer would use. Rather than a legitimate DNS server, PCs were silently reconfigured to use a bogus one.

The problem is, this new bogus server sometimes lies.

False DNS Responses
Rather than answering the question, “What’s the IP address for google.com?” with the correct answer, the fake DNS server would return a different IP address: the address of a malicious server that was configured to look like Google, but that is really a server run by identity theives.

As long as the malicious server looked enough like Google, the computer user wouldn’t know until it was too late that something was wrong. They’d be tricked into thinking it was Google.

The bogus site (which could be any site the hackers chose, not just Google) could itself install more malware, display additional advertising, or do just about anything that a malicious website could do. All without warning.

What Happens In July
In November, the hackers were caught. But hundreds of thousands of infected machines were left with their DNS settings pointing to the fake DNS servers.

So, rather than removing the fake DNS servers from the Internet, the agencies that caught the hackers changed them to be legitimate ones. The government is spending about $10,000 per month to maintain these servers.

While this meant that people with infected PCs would be able to surf the net more safely, it didn’t change the fact that their computers were, fundamentally, still infected.

On July 9th, the government is shutting down the temporary DNS servers. Anyone whose computer is still infected, and is using those servers to get DNS answers, won’t get an answer at all.

Without a working translator – DNS server – your computer can’t answer the “What’s the IP address of xyz.com” for any site on the Internet. For those people with infected computers, the Internet will simply stop working.

Let me be clear: the Internet will stop working only if your machine is infected. It’s easy to find out if you’re infected. Visit the DNS Changer Working Group at http://www.dcwg.org/ and click the green button labeled “Detect.”

This will examine whether or not your computer is affected by the DNS Changer malware. If you’re not, you’re done. July 9 will be a non-event for you.

What To Do If You’re Infected
If DCWG indicates that you’re affected, the page should also include information on what to do to clean the infection from your system.

The good news is that there are many free tools that are listed as resolving the issue – free tools from most of the major anti-malware utility vendors.

Specifically, Windows Defender Offline (formerly Microsoft Standalone System Sweeper) is listed, and it would probably be the tool I’d reach for first.

After cleaning DNS Changer off of your machine, I would also seriously review the anti-malware tools that you’re currently using. Put simply, it should have been caught by now.

Alert: Top Four Threats Attacking Your Network

September 28, 2011

There are many threats that could be attacking your network. Here are just a few that most clients have happen to them.

Overconfidence
User overconfidence in security products is the top threat to your network.

Failure to “practice safe software” results in nuisance attacks like porn storms (unstoppable rapid fire pornographic pop-ups) and more subtle key loggers that steal passwords.

Surveys promising free stuff result in theft of information like your mother’s maiden name, high school, etc. which can be used to answer common security questions.

To avoid theft of otherwise secure data, think before you click.

Social Networking Sites
Social networking sites like Facebook are exploding in popularity. Threats range from malware (eg. viruses, worms, spyware) to scammers trying to steal your identity, information and money. Many businesses and government agencies are using these sites to communicate with clients and constituents, so simply blocking access is no longer reasonable; defending your company while allowing employee access requires social network education for your employees and the enforcement of strong acceptable use policies.

We can help you develop a policy, then monitor compliance using a Unified Threat Management device that controls and reports on network access.

Attacks On Mobile Devices
Everyone is going mobile these days, not just the “road warriors.”

Once limited to laptop computers, mobile network devices now include PDAs, handheld computers and smart phones, with new appliances appearing in the stores every month. Mobile devices often contain sensitive data yet they are easily lost or stolen.

Be sure to password protect and encrypt data on all mobile devices whenever possible. Include mobile devices in your acceptable use policy.

Cloud Computing
“The Cloud,” in its simplest form, involves using the Internet to access and store your data.

It’s actually thousands of servers all working together to provide computing power. When you access e-mail using a web browser, you are working in “the cloud.” Using the cloud for automated off-site backup is rapidly gaining popularity, but that’s just the beginning.

Companies like Microsoft, IBM, and Google envision the day when we will use inexpensive terminals instead of computers to run programs and access data located somewhere on the Internet.

You need to be sure that any data you store and access across the Internet is secure not just where it is stored, but during the trip to and from the Internet.

Pay close attention to this top threats and it will help with network security.

Top 5 Ways to “Break” Your Computer

August 27, 2011

Here are the top five most common ways to “break” your computer. The reason break is in quotations is because no matter what happens to your computer we can almost always fix it…it just doesn’t make sense sometimes from a financial stand point to do so.

My computer won’t turn on
This very common situation and can be caused by many different things.

One common cause, however, that IS preventable is the computer overheating.

The first step to preventing this issue is to put the computer on an elevated surface instead of the floor if you have the space to do so.

The reason you want to do this is normal everyday foot traffic around or near the computer kicks up a lot of dust and debris that can coat the insides of a computer and cause the processor to not be cooled properly.

The other step you want to take to prevent this issue is to take a can of air and blow out the computer on occasion.

We do NOT recommend open­ing the case and doing the interior yourself as it is possible to cause damage to components.

My computer is running really slow
Yet again another common scenario we hear almost every day.

Unfortunately, there is no way to completely avoid this, but there are some ways to slow it down.

As your operating system instal­lation ages, and depending on how much it is used, the operating system, and software files in it can become damaged or corrupt, which slows your computer down.

The best way to combat this issue is to make sure that your uninstall­ing unused programs through the control panel, and simply keeping unused junk files clean off of your com­puter.

The more you keep your computer and OS the way it was when you pur­chased it the better it will run.

This can also happen if you shut your computer down improperly. Always go through the Start Menu/ Shutdown process when powering off your computer.

Constant popups are interrupting me and making my PC slow
Almost always, this very com­mon issue is caused by a virus or spyware on your computer.

Unfortunately, there aren’t any fool-proof methods of preventing a virus or malware attack.

The best thing you can do to help prevent an infection is to have anti­virus software installed on your PC, but keep in mind, even this does not guarantee you will not get a virus/ malware infection.

The other step to help prevent this is to only go to websites that are considered to be “safe,” meaning they are legitimate websites that its owners would not be trying to gain access to your PC or have any reason to infect your computer.

The most common place for users to get viruses and malware is from browsing the web for free items such as software, movies, music, etc. or even from emails.

Unfortunately, if you do end up be­ing infected by a virus, they’re very difficult to completely remove.

The process used to properly remove a virus is complex and if not done properly can damage your computers operating system and/or cause data loss.

That being said even if you bring the computer in it is possible for a virus to attach itself to a file and damage it permanently so even we may not be able to recover all of your files in the event of a very bad infection.

In most cases we are able to remove all viruses/malware from a system and the user not even notice that they ever had one. There are times, though, where the virus does irreversible damage.

My computer can’t get online
This is another common issue, and is most often caused by the above issue – viruses or spyware on the computer.

Viruses, spyware and malware have all kinds of different effects on the computer. When that is not the cause there are several other issues that may come into play.

As long as other computers at your home/business are able to get online the issue is more than likely due to a setting on your computer itself.

The most common instance I can think of with laptops is the user ac­cidentally switches the WiFi switch to the off position (and doesn’t realize the laptop even had a WiFi switch).

In a desktop, however, as long as the connection issue has not been caused by failing hardware, it is usually caused by a setting changed within the computer.

Connection issues encompass a number of possible settings on the computer, so it’s hard to give you all the information to properly troubleshoot this issue in a small newsletter article.

When it comes to connection issues your best bet is to give us a call and let us diagnose the issue for you.

We troubleshoot many connectivity issues here in the shop as well as onsite. So, no matter where your problem lies, we can get you back online.

Windows told me I had some updates so I installed them. Now my computer won’t boot
Windows updates are almost always important, but they can also be complex in how they interact with your operating system and installed software.

Unfortunately, since most of the updates address serious security risks they must be installed.

The best practice regarding updates is to review them immediately, and perhaps even download them to the machine, but wait a few days in case there are issues with the updates.

If Microsoft finds that there are is­sues with a patch, even though they do test them to begin with, they will pull the update off of Windows updates until the issue is resolved.

This will help prevent you from getting an update that can cause a problem.

Hardware driver updates are by far the most common type of update that “breaks” the computer.

We generally don’t recommend downloading them unless you are having a problem with your current driver, or there’s a serious security issue with the current driver.

With hardware sometimes it’s better to go with the “Don’t fix it if it isn’t broke” sentiment. If you do mistakenly update and then are unable to get into Windows, bring your computer in and we can get the issue corrected!

These are a few of the common is­sues that we see every week. Hope­fully this short list can help keep your system running smoothly, and help you solve basic issues.

Featured Article Written By: Tech Experts

Fall In Love With Your Computer All Over Again!

February 2, 2011

“This computer is driving me crazy!” Have you ever shouted at your computer because it froze up, crashed, and caused you to lose work? Have you ever whacked it with your hand, kicked it, or smashed the keyboard out of frustration?

If so, you’re not alone. Problems with a computer, cell phone or other gadget can be so frustrating that it has been called “computer rage” by some psychologists, and it’s on the rise.

How Violent Do They Get With Their Computer?
According to a recent poll, three quarters of computer users have admitted to shouting, swearing, or committing acts of violence towards their computer (we think the number is much higher).

While some simply curse the darn thing, others have admitted to hitting it throwing it across the room.

One computer user was quoted saying, “You feel so helpless. All you can do is sit there and watch the stupid thing freeze up and there’s nothing you can do about it. Errors may only cause a few minutes delay, but it feels like a lifetime when you need to get things done.”

Deadlines are missed, work is lost, customers angered – all because of computer trouble.

And the vast majority claim that problems like this happen on a consistent basis.

It’s Not Just The Computer Causing Stress
Technical problems are only the start of most peoples’ anxiety. Many report that they are further angered by the time and process it takes to get the problem fixed, and some employees claim computer problems are their number one source of at-work anxiety and stress.

IT related problems further compound employee dissatisfaction since it often forces them to work late or take work home. If you are an employer, take note:

Your unstable computer network could be elevating your employees’ anxiety and job dissatisfaction levels, not to mention interfering with their productivity.

How To End “Computer Rage” And Fall In Love With Your Computer All Over Again

Thanks to our Super Value System Checkup, we have helped dozens of clients end “computer rage” at their company and with their home computers.

Our comprehensive, 27 point problem prevention tune-up lets our technicians dive deep into your system and check for hidden problems, viruses, spyware and system-slowing hardware problems.

This isn’t just a simple look at your system! We use special software tools and our own, proprietary methods to check things other computer companies just don’t know how to check!

You’ll get a written report detailing what we found, and our professional recommendations for any updates you need to bring your system back up to speed.

Sign Up Today And Get Priority Access and Pricing
Since it’s Valentine’s Day, we want to “show you the love” by offering you this Super Value System Checkup for only $69.

We’ll get your system running so nicely, you’re guaranteed to fall back in love with your computer again. Plus, we’ll give you priority scheduling in our shop – no point in making you wait to feel the love!

If you have a business with 5 or more computers, we’ve got an even more LOVEly offer for you! We’ll send our Microsoft Certifi ed technician to your office, saving you the hassle of bringing your computers to our shop.

We’ll do the same 27 point problem prevention tuneup, and check your network for trouble at the same time.

You’ll need to hurry, though – this offer is only valid during the months of February and March, and limited to the first 25 people who call.

To Find Out More call 734-457-5000 Or, Visit Us Online: www.LoveYourComputerAgain.com

 

Avoiding Common Email Security Threats

September 30, 2010

Most companies today rely heavily on the use of email. Emailing is a very fast and cost effective form of communication for many different types of businesses.

Most companies use it as their main source of communication between employees. In fact, most employers do not realize the risk of using email.

Some risks range from viruses, hackers, to someone else just trying to gain a little information.

Here’s an overview of the most common email security threats in today’s Internet world.

Viruses
Viruses cause billions of dollars in damage to businesses every year.

Many corporate email systems are still quite vulnerable to viruses. In fact, in last year alone, an estimated 63 distinct email virus attacks hit the United States. These attacks come quickly and can spread quickly.

They mainly cause slowdowns across the internet. However some have been known to take down major corporation’s entire email systems.

Today’s viruses are very complex and often appear to be harmless such as personal notes, jokes, or promotions. While most viruses require recipients to download attachments in order to initiate infection and spread, some are designed to launch automatically with absolutely no user action required.

Spam
Studies have shown that 20 percent of corporate email is spam. A company that has a thousand employees could receive over two billion spam emails in a full year.

Most do not realize it until a lack of productivity ends up costing the companies billions of dollars each year.

While most spam is just annoying, some of it can be very dangerous. Most trick employees into opening malicious emails to spread faster. Also, many hackers have begun disguising viruses as spam.

Phishing
Phishing is used to trick a person into thinking the email is legit and came from a real website, usually asking the person to verify their password or to change some sort of account information.

Then, taking them to a fake website and stealing what you have typed in. This is the number one way people get their identity and personal information stolen.

Spyware
The main purpose of spyware is to install itself on the victim’s computer. It monitors all key strokes and mouse clicks so that they can later go back and collect usernames, passwords, credit card numbers and bank account numbers.

These infections can stay installed on computers for many months without an antivirus picking them up.  Most are detected and removed instantly if the user keeps their antivirus up to date.

Having a great antivirus that scans files as well as emails can help prevent virus attacks, phishing and spyware.

Users should also have an up to date spam filter that prevents the infection from getting to your inbox to begin with. And most importantly never open an email attachment you didn’t specifically request.

Also, pay attention to links inside emails that appear legitimate. Many times, phishers will send you an email that looks like it came from an official source. After clicking the links, you’re redirected to a site on the hacker’s network. This is often used to collect personal information and passwords.

What is a Trojan Virus and How Does It Affect You?

June 23, 2010

We have all experienced the unfortunate virus infection on our computer; it’s not fun and most times it causes down time on the computer, cost to have it  fixed, loss of data, and possible identity theft.

A trojan horse or trojan is a program that presents itself as one  thing (anti-virus or a game) butactually works in the background to gain unauthorized access to information in a computer.

A trojan virus can steal all sorts of information on your computer such as credit card information, passwords, bank information and then sends the information to the virus creators who can use this information for malicious gains and identity theft.

When you are infected with a trojan infection you will also notice a substantial difference in the speed of your computer and you may even experience several pop-ups related to adult content, casinos, etc.

Don’t click on any of those pop-ups as those will only make the infection harder to remove.

The trojan infection can spread from one PC to another very quickly from e-mails and attachments sent from the infected computer.

It can even corrupt data on a hard drive which will lead to system crashes and deletions of computer files.

Trojan Win32
One of the most dangerous of all trojans is the Trojan.Win32, which is also referred to as the Win32 Trojan. This dangerous infection masquerades on your computer asa legal program, hides from the user and allows remote third parties to take partial or full control of your computer and can record keystrokes.

It can also alter the security settings of your computer to allow more malware to be delivered and installed onto the computer.

How Does it Get Into My Computer?
We have clients ask all the time, “How did my computer get infected?” Most times these infections come from freeware applications that they downloaded, free online games that were downloaded, anti-virus not being updated, firewall settings, computer security settings set too lenient, or from not performing regular updates on the operating system.

The trojan infection wraps itself inside legitimate software such as games, videos, virus and spyware programs, or any commonly downloaded file. In the end, the user ends up with a malicious piece of software that does something entirely different than what it was supposed to do.

Now that you have a general idea of what a trojan is and the most common ways that they get into your computer, what do you do if you are infected?

The first thing that you should do once you notice the infection is to shut down the computer and do not use it for anything.

If you have never dealt with virus removals before then you’ll probably want to work with a professional IT company to do the virus removal, since if not done correctly, the removal process can cause more damage than the trojan.

If you do need to get on the computer to pull some files off, disconnect it from the Internet. That way, no personal information can be sent out from thecomputer such as your credit card or banking information.

Then, you’ll want to work with your IT provider to have a virus clean-up done on the computer. The goal is to get you back online and using your computer safely.

At Technology Experts, we work with clients on virus infections on a day to day basis. Our technicians have several tools and processes to remove virus infections without damaging your system or data.

QuickTime Video Software Target Of Hacker Attack

June 28, 2009

We all remember that it was not too long ago when Microsoft had left a huge hole for attackers to exploit in Windows XP.  Microsoft corrected the error by releasing a new security update and including it as an important update in the Windows Update service.

Now for the third time, attackers have found a new vulnerability in Windows. This attack only affects Windows XP, Windows 2003 server and Windows 2000. Windows Vista, Server 2008 and surprisingly Windows 7 aren’t affected.

Microsoft has already discovered that the attackers are using the code on many different video websites. The attack starts with a QuickTime video and exploits a problem in the Direct X software that Windows uses in almost everything you do, from watching videos to playing video games.

The hackers are using the code in QuickTime files which is the default video for Apple, but not in Windows. You most likely have QuickTime installed on your PC if you have an iPhone or iPod.

The malicious code is hidden inside video files, and allows the attacker to execute any kind of program he would like on the victim’s personal computer. Then, depending on what the attacker planned to do, they could take over your computer or make all your data disappear.

In order to get infected, you’d have to open an infected QuickTime file. Opening the file allows the hacker to have control of your computer. This virus code could be sent by an attachment in email or posted on any website. You’d just have to click and download the file in order to infect your computer.

According to the developers of QuickTime, QuickTime is not the flawed code, but rather, the code inside Windows that displays the QuickTime movie using Direct X is to blame.

The reason the newer operating systems are not vulnerable to these attacks is that the code was removed when Microsoft began development of Windows Vista.

Microsoft has already released two fixes for this security vulnerability. One is pretty technical and requires the user to edit the system registry. The second is a tool that Microsoft has built to automatically disable this feature.

Microsoft hasn’t released a patch, but said that once they do, users that used the automated tool will automatically have the parser turned back on.

Top Four Threats Attacking Your Network And What You Can Do About Them

May 28, 2009

Do you ever feel like your computer network could be more secure? Chances are, keeping a few simple things in mind will improve security and reduce downtime. Here are some things to look out for.

Social Networking Sites
Social networking sites like Facebook are exploding in popularity. Threats range from malware (e.g. viruses, worms,spyware) to scammers trying to steal your identity, information and money. Many businesses and government agencies are
using these sites to communicate with clients and constituents, so simply blocking access is no longer reasonable. Defending your company while allowing employee access requires social network education for your employees and the enforcement of strong acceptable use policies. We can help you develop a policy, then monitor compliance using a Unified Threat Management device that controls and reports on network
access.

Attacks On Mobile Devices
Everyone is going mobile these days not just the “road warriors.” Once limited to laptop computers, mobile network devices now include PDAs, handheld computers and smart phones, with new appliances appearing in the stores every month. Mobile devices often contain sensitive data yet they are easily lost or stolen. Be sure to password protect and encrypt data on all mobile devices whenever possible. Include mobile devices in your acceptable use policy.

Cloud Computing
“The Cloud,” in its most simple form, involves using the Internet to access and store your data. When you access email using a web browser, you are working in “the cloud.” Using the cloud for automated off site backup is rapidly gaining popularity and is just the beginning. Companies like Microsoft, IBM and Google envision the day when we will use inexpensive terminals instead of computers to run programs and access data located somewhere on the Internet. You need to be sure that any data you store and access across the Internet is secure not just where it is stored, but during the trip to and from the Internet.

Overconfidence
User overconfidence in security products is the top threat to your network. Failure to “practice safe software” results in nuisance attacks like porn storms (unstoppable rapid fire pornographic pop-ups) and more subtle key loggers that steal passwords. Surveys promising free stuff, result in theft of information like your mother’s maiden name, high school, etc. used to answer common security questions leading to theft of otherwise secure data. Think before you click!

Conficker And Other IT Security Issues Got You Worried? Here Are Some Tips To Keep You Out of Trouble!

April 30, 2009

If you watch television or read the news on the web, you no doubt heard about the April fool’s virus, also known as the conficker worm. I have been asked by numerous people “What about Conficker?” This worm is designed to have all the compromised computers “phone home” at a certain time and launch a denial of service, or DoS, attack on an unsuspecting website.

A DoS attack is an attempt to make a computer resource unavailable to its intended users. It generally consists of the concerted efforts of a person or persons to prevent an Internet site or service from functioning efficiently or at all, temporarily or indefinitely.

One common method of attack involves saturating the target machine with external communications requests, so that it cannot respond to legitimate traffic, or responds so slowly as to be rendered effectively unavailable. That was the goal of the Conficker worm – to make sites unavailable on the Internet.

So, what should you do to prevent this from happening to you? Here are a few simple rules to follow to protect your system from these worms.

Disable the autorun feature
Although this is a nice feature to have cds auto start, this risk is not worth the few extra seconds it takes to launch a cd on your own.

Update your protection
Do not just rely on the automatic update features of your virus and malware protection software. It is smart to visit these update centers and make sure you have the latest software, particularly when you’re doing a lot of sensitive work on your computer.

Check your Windows updates
It should go without saying that in addition to your virus definitions, you should regularly check windows updates and do not rely on the automatic update feature. In the case of the Conficker C worm, Microsoft has had this patch available since October of last year. Still, as you heard on the news, thousands of computers still got infected.

Get a second opinion
Have a trained, certified technician review your computer to determine if you have the latest updates and security patches in place, along with removing any malware infections you might already have.

Back up your data
I can’t stress enough the importance of maintaining a backup schedule. All your important data needs to be protected. And, you should always take a copy of this critical data off site, so that if a natural disaster strikes, you have an undamaged copy of your data available.

You never know when tragedy will strike, or some brand new virus or worm will attack your system before anti-virus software can be updated.

Contact Tech Experts and we can help you select the perfect backup solution for your office.

We’ve seen our fair share of worms and viruses come and go, and have an arsenal of tools and years of experience to keep your systems in top condition.

If you currently have a server and you have not been taking advantage of the Tech Experts server monitoring and maintenance plans, I would urge you to contact us as soon as possible to discuss the various options for your firm.

Technicians are always available to review your current network configuration and give you expert advice on security.

If you perform these few simple things I’ve listed above, you will be protected from the vast majority of malware and worms that are currently circling the Internet. With diligence in the future, you will be protected from most of the variants of these worms as they are released.

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