1. USE Firefox. If you don’t use the Internet much, than perhaps you don’t know much about Firefox. All you need to know is that it is a browser that works REALLY well and has great security features. Download Firefox Now!

2. Do NOT USE Internet Explorer. Internet Explorer is like Swiss cheese. It is open to the world by default. Microsoft is continually releasing patches to fix all the flaws in the Internet Explorer 6.X and lower versions of the browser. Although it can be “secured” by increasing the security it may loose much of its functionality once set to maximum security with certain exploitable features off.

3. Use a software or hardware firewall (not just Window XP Service Pack 2′s firewall). This may sound expensive and hard to do but it is not. If you have a DSL or broadband cable connection your Internet Service Provider (ISP) may have given you a DSL/Cable router with a firewall built in. All you have to do is turn it on. This may require you to take a few minutes to read the manual.

If your ISP did not give you a DSL or Cable broadband router with a built in firewall you can spend anywhere from $20 – $60 (or sometimes even cheaper with a mail-in rebate) to get a router. If you have DSL you will need a DSL router. If you have Cable broadband ISP you will need a Cable Router. Brands such as Linksys have built in firewalls and a feature called NAT, Network Address Translation, which is very effective since it hides your real IP address from the Internet. All routers come with instruction on how to hook them up. If you want to keep you computer security free, just use a free software firewall.

4. Remove Spyware/Adware with free Anti-spyware, anti-adware software. Lavasoft’s Adaware and Spybot Search & Destroy are two excellent methods of cleaning your system for free. Majorgeeks.com is a popular and trusted freeware site that has these and many other excellent spyware/adware cleaning and malware prevention tools (including free downloadable firewalls).

The best method is to use ALL of the above. Being proactive by surfing with a decent browser and getting a firewall is important, but it also helps to know about a couple of good anti-adware/spyware applications. If you get hit with a really nasty bit of malware that can not be cleaned with Adaware or Spybot, find yourself a geek. There are many great forums on the Internet dedicated to doing nothing but finding and cleaning such malware. Chances are if your system is infected with it, hundreds of others before you have been infected and have already figured out how to get rid of the malware.

The very first free spyware remover was called OptOut and was made in 2000 by Steve Gibson of Gibson Research. Spyware had then been a problem for Internet users for several years. The first celebrated use of the do our utmost “spyware” is based on what i read in 1995, when a poster in Usenet made fun of Microsoft’s business model. In the beginning, spyware was a term used for all types of espionage equipment, including miniature cameras for microfilming and similar. In 1999, the job spyware was used up in a press release for new software based on information from Zone Labs: the Zone Alarm Person Firewall. In the press release, the administered spyware was specifically spent for unkind program programs that send information coming back from an infected computer to the spyware owner. Today, the term spyware is rarely depleted for espionage cameras or other types of off-line equipment. The same year a very popular freeware, a computer game referred to as Elf Bowling, began to spread among the Internet users. Eventually, the users found out overly Elf Bowling included Adware, and that information about the players was sent back to the creator of the game, a company referred to as Nsoft.

Today, many programmers and companies have produced their own free spyware remover programs. It is very typical so a cost free spyware remover can be upgraded to a more advanced version for a fee. As stated above, Steve Gibson made the first free of charge spyware remover – OptOut. He was to be followed by free spyware remover programs based on information from Lavasoft, the Ad-Aware spyware remover, and out of Patrick Kolla – the Spybot Search & Destroy. Later SpySweeper based on information from Webroot become one of the most popular free spyware remover programs. Naturally, Microsoft also developed their own free spyware remover. They bought the GIANT Anti-Spyware software and transformed it to Windows AntiSpyware. The GIANT Anti-Spyware software is also licensed to Sunbelt Software and used in their free spyware remover software CounterSpy. Companies such as McAfee, Sophos and Symantec are also offering free spyware remover programs as a part of their anti-virus programs.

One way to avoid some of the problems is to be very careful about what you download and sites you visit online. When you choose to download a program, be sure to read the EULA (End User License Agreement) as you will often give permission to have ads loaded onto your computer.

If you have annoying pop ups and are ready to rid of the issue, the steps to follow will assist you in getting adware and other parasites off of your PC including spyware, malware, browser hijackers, and keyloggers.

Step One: Make a List of Problems on Your PC Currently

It is good to have an understanding of what problems you are already having so that you can ensure that they are repaired once the following steps have been completed.

Take a few minutes to jot down problems that you have noticed recently in your computer. If you are experiencing consistent and annoying pop-ups, put that on your list. If you have slow computer problems because of problems adware is causing, write that down too. If you are directed to websites that you did not request put that on your list.

Some of the problems will be related to other threats and not adware, but the steps to follow will address more than just removing adware.

Step Two: Use a Free Scan to Determine if Problems Exist

The top products for removing adware provide a free scan prior to paying for repair features in the same software. Avoid completely free products for scan and repair as you again are subjecting yourself to adware installs on your PC (as discussed about the EULA). In return for using the free software, you will often give them consent to view your online behaviors or to broadcast ads to your computer. Free is not always free.

There are a couple types of software downloads on the market. The first has a real time component and the second can be updated before each use and you scan and repair as needed. The real time version keeps adware from attaching itself to your computer to begin with. The only challenge with real time is that their definition (solutions) database often is missing a detection or cure at the present time, which just uses your system resources to have the software continually running on your PC.

Some other software programs like Xoftspyse, refuse to offer real time functions for the reasons above. Their software can be used on a scheduler or you can just do a manual scan and repair as needed. More importantly, you must look at the definitions database provided so that threats on your computer can be matched to and removed by the software.

Step Three: If Threats are Detected, Purchase the Full Version

Results should be returned to you according to threat level. It is your decision which you would like to remove. The majority of the problems detected are safe to remove.

If you are a non techie, the software can be trusted to complete the repair with the peace of mind knowing that a backup exists in case you are not happy with the outcome. There is plenty of assistance on the web for techies who would like to complete their own manual removals, but this is for the rest of the people who want simple and quick outcomes.

When choosing a product, get one with at least a one year license instead of a one time use. This will allow you to maintain your computer throughout they year versus just for one use.

Once the repair is complete, it can be a wise decision to restart your computer to allow the changes to take effect. You can then return to your initial list from step one and see which problems have gone away.

It may also be valuable to have an ongoing strategy of keeping adware and spyware off your computer in the first place by limiting sketchy sites visited and by not downloading without reading EULAs.

Removing adware is that simple. Just be sure to do it continually for the best results.