Probably 50% of the calls we receive are related to spyware and the other associated programs. We’ve explained the different types of spyware and other types of malware. All users should have programs to keep this rubbish off their computer and we explain what you should use on our protection kit page.

It is possible to chase down the spammers, inside every email are the details of where the message came from. You can find those details and send them to your ISP. Terry called in to say he had provided those details to his ISP and the spam had stopped, so it does work for some people.

If you find your ISP is less successful than Terry’s in shutting spam down, then we have some suggestions on stopping spam.

Firewall Access

Greg called in with a problem connecting using MSN Messenger through a firewall. This is due to the firewall configuration. Generally when you set up a firewall on a PC, it will nag you about which programs you want to allow Internet access to. If make a choice that you want to change later, you have to go into the settings of the programs and change the access rules. This varies with the different programs.

We recommend Grisoft AVG as a free anti virus, for spyware both Adaware and Spybot are our preferred tools. Unfortunately, a search for these programs on Google, or many other search engines, will point you towards imitators who may be actually causing more problems for your computer. Use the links to go to the legitimate sites.

As usual, our apologies to the callers who couldn’t get through. We expect the next Nightlife computer spot will be 10.15pm Friday, March 12. If you’d like to be kept up-to-date with our schedule then subscribe to our newsletter.