For quite some time I have been seeing machines that are not properly updated with the most current patches and updates from Microsoft. While I know that many are not going to patch as soon as the latest crop of patches are released (Patch Tuesday, the second Tuesday of each month), but sit back and wait to see if there is feedback from others about patches that may cause problems with various machines, most should be patched within about 10 days of that date. For fear of sounding as a shill for Microsoft, I do need to say that these patches are important in that they make your machine more secure against malware attacks from the bad guys out there on the Internet.
You should turn on the Automatic update feature of your Windows Operating System. Set it to automatically download patches and updates, but not install them. With the problem that a patch had with machines infected with a certain piece of malware a couple of months ago, I now recommend that you do a complete scan of your machine, preferably with an online scanner from a company other than the software you use every day (I'll give some links at the end of this piece) to ensure your machine is free of malware. It may be worthwhile to do this overnight, so the performance of your machine is not affected while you are using it. If anything is found, remove it. Once you are sure your machine is clean, then go ahead and let Windows install the updates that are available at the time.
The real problem with not doing updates and patches is that you leave yourself wider open for attacks, since the bad guys often step up their activities around Patch Tuesday, often utilizing a vulnerability that is being patched. The task is to keep these guys out so you are not a victim of identity theft, or a machine that is now part of an army to send spam or used in other ways against other machines, companies, or governments.
Here is a listing of various scanners available for online scanning. Most will install parts of themselves on your machine and/or ActiveX programs. Not all of them will clean malware found. This is not meant to be a comprehensive list, but an example of what you may find.
HouseCall - Trend Micro USA http://housecall.trendmicro.com/
Free Virus Protection, Free Virus Scan | FreeScan | McAfee http://home.mcafee.com/Downloads/FreeScan.aspx
Free Virus Scan-Free Antivirus Software | Norton Security Scan http://security.symantec.com/sscv6/WelcomePage.asp
Free ESET Online Antivirus Scanner http://www.eset.com/onlinescan/
FREE ANTIVIRUS online: ActiveScan 2.0 - PANDA SECURITY http://www.pandasecurity.com/activescan/index/?track=96062
Free Online Virus Scan | BitDefender Online Scanner http://www.bitdefender.com/scanner/online/free.html
Free Online Scanner - Online Virus Scanner | F-Secure http://www.f-secure.com/en_EMEA/security/security-lab/tools-and-services/online-scanner/index.htm
Remember, LAN Doctor, Inc., "Your IT Department" is ready to help you whether your issue is patching, malware, or something else. Give us a call to schedule a visit. http://www.landoctor.com.
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