Annoyed Paying Expensive Repair Bills on Computer Damages Done By Viruses, Spyware, Spam & Crippling Pop-ups?

As long as your computer has access to the world wide web or internet, especially e-mails, then it may be only a matter of time before you fall victim to a malicious spyware program, virus, worm, or hacker. Every day we get customers coming in who are experiencing computer problems due to these threats, and it is only getting worse.

What's even more distressing is that many of these computer users are back in my repair shop a few days or weeks later with the EXACT same problems and end up having to spend ANOTHER heavy fee for restoring their computer back to normal.

Imagine having these kinds of difficulty with your restaurant. POS computers being infiltrated and destroyed by viruses and worms. You absolutely have no way of protecting your restaurant POS system if you do not take extra precautions.

Here are 3 of The Most Dangerous 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 the authors of malicious spyware and malware programs go to great lengths to create programs that are difficult to identify and remove.

This can mean that malicious computer programs can directly be downloaded and work its dirty tricks on your system before you aware of its existence. 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 computer program often installed without the user's knowledge. This program collects your info and your online activities and then reports it back to some outside person. 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 spyware finds its way onto your computer via file downloads including free programs, music files, and screen savers. While you think you are only downloading a legitimate program to add emoticons to your e-mails, you are unknowingly also downloading a full load of spyware programs.

Malware: Malware is the combination of the words malicious and software, and represents all programs, viruses, Trojans, and worms that have malicious intent to damage or disrupt a system. A malware is a program designed to be used for malicious intent and it's harder to remove and will try to 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. Most of the time, malware secretly attach itself to your emails without your knowledge causing computer damage to your email receipients.

Hackers: These are programmers for whom computing is its own reward, has the habit of breaking into other people's computer just for the sheer fun of it but causes no harm. But today, hackers are widely known as evil programmers who loves to modify your files, cause damage to your system and even design the spyware and malware programs to attack your computer.

So if you're a restaurant or any other retail establishment owner, having no kind of security for your POS systems at all, then your system is surely one of the easiest targets.

Some of them have criminal intent and purposely use these programs to steal money from unsuspecting individuals and companies. Some of them may have a grudge against the big software vendors and seek to harm them by attacking their customers. While others do it purely for fun. Whatever the reason, these twisted programmers are getting more intelligent and sophisticated in their ability to infiltrate computer systems and networks.

Here Four Simple Steps You Can Take To Secure Your Computer From These Attacks

1. Always remember to regularly update your antivirus software. You will want to make sure it has an auto scan and 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 figured out ways to access and easily download malicious programs to your computer via a security hole in IE. What's more disappointing about this is that even if you do not click anything and/or download a program to get infected. You are very susceptible to attacks if you're using an older version of Windows such as Windows 98.

Though Mozilla Firefox is a free browser, it does not have the same security problem as IE. A few of my clients telling that they mostly prefer using Mozilla Firefox than Internet Explorer browser. Switching from IE to Firefox is a simple and cost-free way to add another layer of security to your computer. To download this free browser, go to www.mozilla.org.

3. [Never. Because most viruses are distributed through e-mails you receive from anonymous accounts, and even from your friends. If it looks suspicious, delete 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.

Always remember that the internet is an open field where you are vulnerable from all kinds of things that may come in your way. You have access to the world, but on the other side, the world has access to YOU. Hackers have developed special programs which they use to scan the Internet automatically looking for computers with no firewall. Once they find one, they they'll immediately access your computer, download vicious programs, and might even use your computer to send their ravaging viruses to your friends or other computers without your knowledge or permission.

It only takes one click of a mouse to gain easy access to your restaurant POS system, collect all customer or employee data, destroy your computer system, and sends out virus-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.

The author Michael Tash is the Vice President of Customer Relations at POS-For-Restaurants. With over 20 years of restaurant experience, POS-For-Restaurants.com helps you use your technology to be more efficient and more profitable.