How To Prevent Computer Damages From Crippling Pop-ups, Viruses, Spyware, & Spam To Avoid Paying Expensive Computer Repair Bills
As long as your computer has access to the internet, especially e-mails, then it may be only a matter of time before you get attacked by malicious spyware program, virus, worm, or hacker. Every day we experience customers getting displeased and unhappy about their computer problems due to these threats, and it is only getting worse.
What’s even more worrying is that several of my customers keeps coming back to my repair shop a couple days or weeks later complaining about the EXACT same computer problems and ends up paying for ANOTHER repair just to get their computer up and running again.
Now imagine having these kinds of difficulty with your restaurant. Your POS systems being infiltrated and destroyed by these ravaging viruses, worms and Trojans. You absolutely have no way of protecting your restaurant POS system if you do not take extra precautions.
Here are Three of The Most Dangerous Computer Threats You Must Be Aware Of
One of the deadly aspects of online threats is their ability hide their existence and penetrate your system without your knowledge. Hackers and other programmers who code malicious spyware and malware programs go to great lengths to create programs that are difficult to identify and remove.
That means a malicious program can be downloaded and doing its dirty work on your computer long before you are able to identify them. Below are the two most common threats you’ll need to guard against with a brief description of what they {are|are and how you acquire them}:
Spyware: Spyware is a type of computer program that is secretly installed on your pc, it collect information and other activities you do on the interenet without your permission, then reports such data back to a third party. Sometimes advertisers uses this sneaky program to secretly monitor their customers’ activities. So Better becareful on what website you visit before clicking on that “download” button.
Most spywares are secretly attached to files you download over the internet, like free scripts, music files, and screen savers. While thinking you are only downloading a legitimate program to add emoticons to your e-mails, you are unknowingly also downloading a heaping spoonful of spyware programs.
Malware: A portmanteau of the terms malicious and software. This type of computer program is designed specifically to infiltrate and disrupt your system, this include viruses, worms and Trojans. A malware is a program designed to be used for malicious intent and it’s harder to remove and will fight back when you try to clean it from your system. In some extreme cases, we have had to completely wipe out all of the information on the computers’ hard disk and start with a complete re-install of the operating system. Frequently, malware is also designed to send itself from your e-mail account to all the friends and colleagues in your address book without your knowledge or consent.
Hackers: Hackers are computer programmers turned evil. They are the people who design the spyware and malware programs that attack your computer.
So if you’re a restaurant or any other retail establishment owner, having no protection for your POS systems at all, then your system is surely one of the easy targets.
Some of them may have criminal intent and purposely use their programs to steal money from individuals and companies. Some of them may have a grudge against the big software vendors and take their revenge by secretly attacking their customers. Others do it purely for fun. Whatever the reason, these evil programmers are getting more intelligent and sophisticated in their ability to access computer systems and networks.
4 Simple Steps To Secure Your Computer From Malicious Attacks
1. Keep an up-to-date anti-virus software running at all times. You will want to make sure it it auto scan and has an update feature that will make sure your computer is using the most current protection available and regularly scanning for threats.
2. You may want to consider using an alternative browser to MS Inter Explorer like the Mozilla Firefox. Hackers have ways ways to access and easily download malicious programs to your computer via a security hole in Internet Explorer. Even worse about this is that you don’t even have to click on anything or download a program to get infected. You are very susceptible to attacks if you use an older version of Windows such as Windows 98.
Mozilla is a completely free web browser that does not have the same security problems as IE. A growing number of my clients telling that they mostly prefer using Mozilla Firefox than Microsoft IE. Shifting from IE to Firefox is a simple and cost-free way to add more protection to your computer. You can easily download this browser at www.mozilla.org.
3. Do not. Because most viruses are distributed through e-mails you receive from anonymous accounts, and even from your friends. If you think it’s suspicious, don’t open it, just get rid of it immediately!
4. Using s firewall. A firewall is simply a device that acts as a buffer between you and the big, wild world of the Internet. many internet users will get a DSL or cable Internet connection and plug it without a firewall.
The one thing you have to remember about the Internet is that it is a big open field. You have access to the world, but on the other side, the world has access to YOU. There are special programs developed by hackers that they use to scan the Internet automatically looking for computers that doesn’t have a firewall. Once they find one, they access your computer, download vicious programs, and can even use YOUR computer to send viruses to your friends and other computers, all without your knowledge or consent.
Just one simple click os a mouse and they’ll gain easy access to your restaurant POS system, collect all customer or employee information, destroy your computer system, and sends out infected emails to your customers and friends using your email account! It will surely be the end of your hard work, a huge waste of money on the restaurant POS solutions you’ve bought, and possibly the downfall of your business if you let this things happen to you.
Michael Tash of POS-For-Restaurants, is the author and Vice President of Customer Relations for POS-For-Restaurants.com. With over 20 years of restaurant experience, POS-For-Restaurants.com helps you use your technology to be more efficient and more profitable.
Leave a Comment