Now and then we hear stories about viruses or oter malware, crashing a network of servers, disabling e-mail access, hacking onto an e-mail account or stealing secret files from a top corporation.  Protecting your work computer from these attacks is an important task.  Files such as your inventory, purchase orders and financial ledges are all stored in your computer.  If you are using Mac or Linux, do not worry, viruses cannot infiltrate these Operating Systems.  However, if you are using Windows, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, here are some ways to better protect your PC:

Back up your files regularly: If you are caught by a a stubborn virus that cripples your PC, at least you know that you have a back-up.  Don’t make your back-ups on the same computer, put them onto a CD or copy them into flash drives or a different computer.

Install an anti-virus software: Anti-virus software lets you scan your files for possible infections.  When sharing disks or CDs scan first before opening any files.

Get an internet firewall: Internet firewalls regualte traffic between your PC and the Internet.  Firewalls are very good defense against worm attacks, protecting your PC with a checkpoint where traffic can ne screened and logged.

Update your Operating System: Regularly update your Operating System.  You can do this by going to the Microsoft website.