The reason for putting this page up is because we realize some people are not comfortable
downloading programs from sites that they are not familiar with.
We want all of our
visitors to feel safe with what we offer. Tournament Games has never, nor
will we ever install any type of Malware, Adware, virus or anything that will hurt
your computer. And since we end up helping our players with their computer problems
even though the problems came from somewhere else, we try to empower our customers
giving them the knowledge of how to feel confident on the intenet.
Keeping your computer safe and clean can seem difficult sometimes, but it is actually
fairly easy. You just need to cover some basic points to keep those sneaky people
from messing with your computer. There are only a few reasons why someone would
want to "Hi-Jack" your computer, and most of the time it is all about making money,
or proving a point that boosts their little egos.
Usually, unwanted
pop-ups,
browser tool bar add-ons and the like,
are put on your computer in hopes that "they" (the evil advertisers),
can coerce you in to clicking on an ad (they make money when you do that). Or to
gather information about your
web-surfing habits. At which point, they can
show you advertisements that more closely fit your interests. Alot of times, these
kinds of softwares are "
piggy backed" on the installation of programs
that you otherwise wanted. An easy way to try to minimize this, is to look very
carefully at the options you are given during the installation process. Many times
one of the screens you will see during an install, will give you checkboxes asking
you which components you would like to install. Pay close attention to these. Sometimes,
the options have nothing to do with the software you thought you were downloading.
Either in the form of "
Browser Add-Ons", "
Speed Boosters"
and "
Search Assistants" to name a few. In short, if it does not
appear to be a vital part of the software you are installing, un-check the option.
And if you are not sure, a quick google search should return loads of information
about the "Extras". The distributors of these types of softwares are banking
on the fact that most people will never notice, and just breeze through the installation.
And in essence, you will have given them permission to do whatever they want. Just
keep a close eye on these options. I usually NEVER install a "Toolbar Add-on"
for my browser. I have too many buttons as it is!
The other type come from your run-of-the-mill hackers. They are just wanting to
be able to say "I told you I could do it!". Although these are not benefiting
the hacker monitarily, they can be the biggest pain to remove. Sometimes though,
these guys will use their little programs to Hi-Jack your computer, using it as
a platform to distribute their
evil little programs to your friends, usually
via email. If these people would use their smarts in a more productive way, things
would be much better for them. But most of this type hacker, are kids that do not
have the maturity to realize this.
So, how do we keep our computers safe from these things? Well, here is what I do
personally. I like free software, so the applications that I recommend are all
available
free of charge.
Virus protection:
CLAMWIN (link)
CLAMWIN will install as a service and scan anything you download from the internet,
and it will help keep your inbox safe as well.
Malware protection:
Malwarebytes
(link)
This program is great. When other trojan finding softwares fail, this ones succeeds.
It will scan your computer for several minutes and report back to you what it finds,
and will give you the option to clean the bad stuff out. I highly recommend this
software.
General Cleanup:
CCleaner (link)
I have been using CCleaner for many years as well. It stands for "Crap Cleaner".
I guess the name says it all!. Although it is not particurlarly for internet security,
it does a really nice job of helping you keep things tidy. As you surf the internet,
install applications and other things, little bits and pieces are left scattered
around your hard drive, and will eventually slow your computer down. Running CCleaner
from time to time helps out tremendously.
Not too bad, huh?
Thanks for reading!
Eric
