Over the years Microsoft has been developing several technologies to make it easier for the system administrators and the average computer users to keep their systems up-to-date (for example: WindowsUpdate).
To avoid these problems you could switch to another operating systems such as: Linux or the Macintosh OS, and you can free yourself of some of these concerns. Although, these OSes are not without their security problems too. For example: there are lots of security/bug patches that are available for Linux and it's applications.
The biggest advantages of the these alternative OSes is that they don't have the market share that Microsoft has. So, the virus writers and hackers are not activity targeting these platforms. A virus writer goal is to try to infect as many machines as possible, so their going to go after the biggest target.
Although, I wonder if Linux or the Macintosh were the number one OS, how would they fair against new attacks that might be created against them.
Protect thyself...
If you have not patched your system with with the latest patches from Microsoft, then do it now and don't wait. Microsoft has a relatively new patch known as MS03-026, it is a pretty nasty flaw, that allows programs to be run on your computer remotely without your knowledge or having to do anything for this exploit to happen.
This flaw is so nasty that the Department of Homeland Security issued a security advisory, urging people to patch your systems.
Things that you can do to protect yourself:
- Install the latest system patch from Microsoft with the Windows Update service
- Install a hardware or software firewall, try the free version of ZoneAlarm.
- Install anti-virus software, try the free home version of Avast.
- Backup all your important data.
After you secure your system, you then have worry about maintenance:
- Update your virus signatures weekly.
- Update your system patches monthly.
- Maintain you data backup, on a daily or weekly schedule.
Test your system
- Test your anti-virus software with the 'Eicar test virus'
- Test your firewall with the GRC Shield's Up site
- Test your computer's security with the free Symantec Security Scan/Virus Detection utilities.
- Another thing that you can do to check your security is download the Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer (for Windows 2000/XP/2003).
- Test your system for adware/spyware with PestScan.
- Test your browser's security Qualys' Free Browser Checkup.
Other tips for keeping your system secure:
- Download and install Spybot Search & Destroy, it removes spyware and other malicious software from your computer.
- Install an anti-spam filter on your email client, like POPFile.
- Install a script manager, like Script Sentry. This prevents malicious scripts from trying to run on your computer without your knowledge.
Security practices:
- Don't store confidential information on your computer unencrypted.
- Don't open attachments in your email, unless your expecting them. Even then still scan them with your anti-virus software before opening it.
- If you download software off the Internet, only do it from reputable sites.
- Change your passwords often.
- Use strong passwords, which means it should contain ad-least eight characters made up of numbers, letters (in diffent cases) and punctuation marks. For example: if your password 'Powerline', it could look like 'P0w3rL!n3'.
