Trust Your Instincts

You know what your computer feels like when it's working properly - trust yourself when you get a feeling that something isn't right.

A change in your browser - from a mysterious home page shift, to an extra toolbar or a search engine that doesn't look the same as it did before... these are all indicators that something malicious has gotten into your computer.  Malware - as we call it - can wreak havoc in small ways that can seriously compromise the security of your computer and everything you do on it.

At the first sign or symptom of a problem, trust your instinct and run a scan (or ask for help).  Some of my favourite tools are available for free and are pretty easy to use.

If you find your computer is prone to problems - perhaps you experiment with random free programs from the Internet or you are a fearless browser who is happy to click on links and ads no matter their source - you might benefit from purchasing an active scanner subscription which targets malware like MalwareBytes.