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Apple and Infections

 
If you own a Mac security should still be a concern for you. The amount of infections for Apple products have increased recently and it is very easy to keep yourself safe.

Larger Target

There is a common misconception that Apple products can’t get infections. The reality is that the people who design viruses and malware design it for Windows because it is the most common operating system. They can spread their program to more people if they use the operating system most people are using.

But Apple users are at almost 100 million users and growing. The creators of these infections are now finding worth in designing programs for Apple systems.

Lack of Protection

What makes Apple users so appealing is that most people do not protect themselves. They are easier to infect nowadays than Windows. It is very simple to protect yourself with programs like AVG and Malwarebytes that offer Mac versions.

 
If you want more information on how to keep yourself safe read our post on How To Avoid Infections.

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Lies You Tell Your Technician

 
I.T. technicians have heard every excuse in the book. Most people don’t want to get lectured about why their computer isn’t working. The technicians just want to get the problem resolved and these small lies just prolong your system getting fixed. Here are some lies you should avoid:
 

“I already restarted it!”

Software gets little hiccups from time to time and restarting will load everything the way it is meant to, and 9 times out of 10 restarting will fix your issue. If you would rather not speak to the technician and just get the issue resolved, restarting is the way to go. If you don’t restart then tell the tech you have, they can see that you haven’t and the trust is gone between you and your technician. Your time and their time has been wasted for them to just restart your computer. If the issue still remains then it is worth reaching out to your technician.

“I don’t know how that virus got there!”

Viruses and malware are easy to get. You may click on the wrong button, go to a misspelled URL, or download a fishy attachment from an email. It happens to the best of us, including technicians. If you tell your tech that you don’t know how it happened, you are leaving out valuable information that could get the issue resolved much faster.

“I didn’t change anything!”

You wanted your computer faster or thought you could fix an issue yourself. You delete some files, edit some settings, disable some services. Now your computer is not working at all. Your technician sees that things are changed and asks what happened. You play dumb and now the technician has to take hours to hunt down everything you did. If you are honest with what you did, the tech can quickly resolve the changes and will be grateful that their time does not get wasted.
 
 
 
Don’t worry about being scolded or lectured. We may explain what you did wrong to help prevent it from happening again, but we are never upset about a problem if we can fix it quick and easy.
 

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Cleaning Your Computer: Inside and Out

 
Ready for some spring cleaning? Cleaning your computer is a good way of making sure everything runs smoothly. You want to make sure you don’t damage your computer when you do this. Here are some tips to help you tidy up your system.

Outside

Canned Air

Dust, dirt, and crumbs are inevitable. All you need is a can of air (You can find this at your local office store).

You’ll want to spray the air on all fans and vents on your laptop or desktop to get rid of any dust that could be blocking the airways that are essential for cooling your system.

Your keyboard can also get crumbs and dirt stuck under the keys. Using canned air helps keep your keys safe from breaking.

Alcohol

Germs spread all over your computer. Using a little bit of rubbing alcohol on a cotton swab can help sanitize your system. Make sure the swab is not dripping wet and that you do not use it on any internal components because it can cause damage to your computer.

Use your damp cotton swab on your mouse, keyboard, and any other plastic part of your system to help keep it clean.

Screen Cleaner

Your screen or monitor may have some random spots on it. Screens can be very delicate and require certain solutions for cleaning them. If you use something else to clean it, you could get a streaky finish or worse permanently damage your screen.

LCD screen cleaners can be found at your local office store as well, and they usually come with a cloth that is safe for your screen and won’t scratch it.

Inside

Uninstall Programs

After a while programs that you don’t need or use anymore pile up. You may also have programs that you don’t remember installing. This can seriously slow down your system. Going to your list of programs and uninstalling the programs you don’t use anymore can really improve your system’s performance.

Run Scans

Scans get rid of all of the junk that keeps your computer slow. Doing regular scans can help keep your system fast AND safe.

We recommend using:

–AVG Anti-Virus
–Malwarebytes Anti-Malware
–AdwCleaner Anti-Adware

Organize Files

You may feel overwhelmed by this step, but creating folders and organizing where your files should go can help you stay productive. Deleting files that you don’t need anymore can help your system run smoother. Make sure to only be moving, editing, and deleting files like documents, pictures, and music.

NEVER OPEN UP YOUR SYSTEM, OR CHANGE ANYTHING YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND!

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How to Avoid Infections

 
Do you keep getting infections on your computer and you are unsure why? Sticking to sites and emails that you trust is the best way to stay safe. It is best to go with your gut when coming across something you are unsure of.

Emails

If you receive an email from someone you don’t recognize, it is best to just delete it. If you are unsure, there is no harm in opening it to check. The main thing is to avoid following links and downloading attachments. Make sure you totally trust an email before clicking on anything. If you decide to download an attachment you can right click the file and have your antivirus scan it to double check.

URL’s and Links

When you type a URL into your browser or when you follow a link make sure it is spelled correctly. Viruses are often placed on these misspelled sites to spread them as fast as possible. Just make sure you double check spelling and that it is a website you know and trust.

Installs

Installing programs make it so viruses can quickly take over your system. You allowed it to be installed and gave it the rights necessary to infect whatever it can. Avoid programs from untrusted sites, also avoid free programs that seem too good to be true. The worst offenders are actually programs stating that they are an antivirus or clean up program.

Programs to Keep You Safe

We recommend using:

–AVG Anti-Virus
–Malwarebytes Anti-Malware
–AdwCleaner Anti-Adware
 

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How to Donate or Recycle Your Computer

 
If you have upgraded your computer and you want to donate or recycle your system there are a few precautions you should take to keep your data safe.
 

Backup

Before you do anything a backup may be needed. If you know that you have data that is important to you then backups should be done regularly.

There are physical backups like on a flash drive or external hard drive. These backups can be scheduled to done regularly with backup software, whether it’s your operating system’s program or a third party program.

You could also use cloud backups which saves your data to the internet. You can use programs like Dropbox or Google Drive.

Operating System Reinstall

If you are donating the computer and want to have it functioning for the next person, then a reinstall is what you need to do. Depending on what operating system you are running there are a few methods to wiping your system.

Most computers come with an operating system reinstall disc that can be used when you need a fresh install.

If you don’t have one then you may have a recovery partition already on your system that you can use. The options should be available in your boot options.

Remove Hard Drive

If you do not need the computer working and you just want to keep your data from getting stolen, taking out your hard drive is the best option.

Most computers have the hard drive readily accessible. On a desktop you most likely need to remove the side panel to find your hard drive. Unplug, and unscrew or slide it out.

On a laptop it may be a little more tricky. On the bottom of your laptop you may see a small panel with a symbol of a disc. If you can open that panel you can easily unplug your hard drive. If you have no panels you may need to open up your whole laptop, so you might need to request some extra help at that point.

 

Your data can be very sensitive and important. You should never give your system away or throw it away before you know that there is no data that can be accessed.

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