Drive-by downloads. Have you ever heard this term? Simply put, it is software that is installed onto your computer completely without your knowledge. You could have been tricked into getting this download, probably because it was disguised as something else. And this software is not nice software, it was probably designed to do something bad, such as sending unwanted pop-ups and ads, or even installiing a virus onto your machine.
Here are some steps to follow that can help you protect yourself from drive-by downloads.
• Do not click on any links that seem suspicious. Unfortunately, many of these malicious links look legitimate, so it can be hard to determine good from bad. If you are truly interested, do some research before clicking that link. Visit the website of the company and do a little research there.
• Do not be taken in by those pop-up “warning messages.” These usually look like something from your computer but are actually malicious ads. They usually take the form of warning you of a virus. If you actually click on these, you’ll probably be downloading a program that will serve up a bunch of ads for anti-virus programs that you don’t need or want.
• Make sure your spyware and virus protection software is installed and up-to-date. You can find some good free software out there, including those from AVG and Spy-Bot. Do a simple Internet search for these products.
• Use caution when visiting websites you are not familiar with. Many websites will set you up for a drive-by download. Hackers use seemingly safe sites to install software without your knowledge.
• Do not download software from links you received through your email. This is a very common way that computers get infected. If you don’t recognize the sender, delete the message.