PC Tune Up

You might be wondering what a PC tune up has to do with the Internet security topic. That's easy.

The first line of defense is an up to date computer. Microsoft Windows should be up to date so that all the built in security patches are installed as quickly as possible. One of the easiest paths to infection is to have an outdated operating system or browser, especially Internet Explorer and Windows XP

Malware authors take advantage of outdated versions that have un-patched exploit possibilities. So, turn on automatic updates for Microsoft products and you'll be ahead of the game already.

There's a really cool tool that is absolutely free that helps keep all of your installed programs up to date. It's called the Secunia PSI. PSI stands for "Personal Software Inspector". You can get a copy at Secunia's web site right now.

This fantastic tool will scan your computer once a week and report any insecure programs that are installed and even provide a link to the updated version. You may be wondering why a company offers a tool like this free of charge.

Well, in Secunia's case, the software reports back anonymous statistics about the state of your computer and then Secunia combines that with millions of other users' data. Then they can use that data to generate reports on the state of security on personal computers. They are in the security business so this is terrific data for them. And you keep your system up to date which is essential for security.

Defragmenting your hard drive is a simple PC tune up measure and ensures efficient transfer of data which helps your security software react quickly to threats. If you have an older system, bottlenecks in the speed of the system could be contributing to not catching the bad guys in the act.

You don't have to rely on Windows to defrag although it does a pretty good job. There are a number of other products available and some people claim that they are superior. You can try Smart Defrag, Auslogics Disk Defrag, or Defraggler-which is free.

You should also know that Windows Vista and Windows 7 both automatically defrag your drive in the background on a regular basis so this is not such an issue if you use one of those operating systems. But you might want to set the schedule so that it doesn't start while you're doing important work since it can slow down your system.

Keeping your recycle bin and system restore files cleaned up frees up hard drive space which also helps speed and efficiency. Sure, these are relatively minor steps but it all adds up.

There are programs, like RegistryWorkshop and Registry Cleaner that can defragment your registry and keep it uncluttered with orphan files. If you don't know what the registry is, then don't bother with this step.

If you're kind of a wing nut and like the idea of a PC tune up, then try a registry tool out. It'll allow you to make backup copies before you change anything so you probably won't mess anything up that way. Many computer experts are NO fans of registry tools so this is totally optional.

Part of Internet security is a well-oiled machine that has can react quickly to threats encountered. It's common sense but most of us just blow it off because we're too busy. Give it some attention and it will pay dividends in the long run.