1.  Choose an ISP that is a valuable asset to you, like www.1usa.com,
 - that provides various types and speeds of Internet Connections
 - who can protect your Email account from scammers & thieves
 - who is reachable by phone when you have a computer question
 - who can help you choose the software that keeps your computer secure
All of these things saves you time and hundreds of dollars that you might have spent trying to fix a problem the wrong way.

For Windows Computers:

1.  Always install the latest Windows Updates.  Turn on the Automatic Updates in Control Panel and also visit http://WindowsUpdate.Microsoft.Com every few months just to make sure you get them all.
Microsoft releases their Critical Updates the 2nd Tuesday each month.

2.  MAKE BACKUPS -- Go buy a 4GB or 6GB memory stick, or a 1 TB USB Hard Drive,  and make a backup of your important files.  Most files will be in the My Documents folder.
If you are using QuickBooks and other dedicated software, you can change the default location where those programs save their data files... so that they too get included when you backup the folders. 
Memory sticks, around $25, is cheap insurance against lost data.
If you have LOTS of data to backup, like years' worth of pictures, please consider one of those External USB Hard Drives, or put them onto CD's or DVD's... or the 1USA Online Backup Service.

3.  Use good Anti-Virus software - not the free stuff.
Try to stay away from the Free stuff, which only protects from the basic viruses, not necessarily the new Malware, Spyware, Rootkits and other categories.
If you are on a 1USA Dialup connection,  1USA recommends Avast Pro anti-virus software.
1USA can point you to the Download page and also provide you with a Serial Number for 1 year at a time.
If you are on a Broadband connection (DSL, CableModem, etc) 1USA recommends Avast Pro or Trend Micro Internet Security software. 
The regular price of Trend Micro is $49.95 or higher, and is available from 1USA for $20 bucks per year for 1USA customers.
Notice that 1USA does NOT recommend McAfee, Norton, or others.  There is a reason.

4.  Make sure that all obsolets software is removed off the computer -- to remove the possibility of some website linking to it.
The best service out there is the Personal Security Inspector software, which is available to 1USA customers.  Sometimes it's a little hard understanding what to remove or how to remove it.  If you get stuck, just call the 1USA Tech Support line and we can walk you through it.  Our link to the software is here.

5.  Isolate web surfing software from your Windows Directory.  Prevent websites from making any changes to your computer.  Most of the threats in 2010 are Identify Thefts and Bank Fraud... which may involve getting your Login ID for your Bank website... or it may involve someone calling you on the phone asking for information they should already know.  BE AWARE!
The best software to prevent websites from making changes to your Windows computer is either Avast Pro anti-virus software or SafeSpace.  Again, 1USA makes this software available to 1USA members only. 

6.  Keep the Temp Folders cleaned out.
Don't spend ANY money on Utility Software.  1USA can provide you with software to clean out the Temporary Internet Files folder, the Cookies, as well as other Temp files.  Details about CCleaner software is here.

7.  There are a few different settings that can be changed to improve the performance of a Windows computer.  One is to Change the size of the pagefile.sys to "windows-managed".  1USA has an instruction how to do this.

8.  Defrag the hard drive... but only defrag the fragged files, not the whole hard drive... and ONLY Defraggle the hard drive in Safe Mode!
If you are using the Windows Defragger from Microsoft, it is POSSIBLE that windows will not even reboot the next time you restart the computer, especially if the computer has a virus that you didn't know about.
There is another great tool out there which defrags only the files that are fragmented.
It is more accurate... and will NOT put your data in jeopardy.
The result is:  A smoother running hard drive with faster reads & writes.
Our link to Defraggler software is here.

9.  If using any kind of Broadband connection that's not provided through 1USA  (such as Verizon DSL, Comcast etc) please replace the "modem" that the phone company provides with a Router.
Routers have built-in hardware Firewalls and will prevent hackers & thieves from getting into the back of your computer (on the ethernet cable).
1USA has Firewall Routers available.  Give a call.

Remember that 1USA is here to help.  Got a question? Get an answer.