The following is my experience to ensure an absolute virus free/spyware free PC.  After helping fix many friends and relatives system failure due to virus infection or spyware attacks, I have concluded the following simple guide to help you better protect your personal data on your PC.

!!!!!!NEVER USE INTERNET EXPLORER TO BROWSE THE WEB!!!!!! ALWAYS USE FIREFOX TO BROWSE THE WEB!!!!!!!!!

Internet explorer is about the most insecure browser you can use to get your computer infected with all kinds of crazy virus.  Always use Firefox to browse the web to ensure the most safe browser security, Firefox also warns if a website is suspected of attacking your computer and suggests leaving the site even before you enter.

1. Never click on any advertisement or download link on the Internet that claims free software download or free anti-spyware, or free anti-virus or Free anything, treat those links and all internet advertisements like a real suicide bomb.

2. Never download or install any Trial software, regardless of type/use.  You’ll have to pay to enable critical functionality or they are just junks taking space in your hard drive.

3. Never click on any attachments in your email, unless you know for certain someone send you this file, reply to the person and ask if they send the email with attachments to double check, this is where most computer gets infected. (regardless of file type, regardless if your web email’s virus scan says it is safe to open, always ask the person who send the files, because sometimes virus takes control of your friend’s email account to spread the virus by sending unsuspicious emails to you.)

4. Never download any software/videos/images from BitTorrent or Limeware file sharing programs, most files have Trojan/virus/backdoor program that can destroy your computer at the same time steal all your login password for your online accounts.

5. Never install any anti-virus or anti-spyware or internet security programs, regardless it been Macafee, Norton or anything else.  These significantly reduce your computer’s performance and cause more problems than what they actually do.  As you can see, your computer was hacked and completely infected from tip to toe without any warning from any of your installed anti-spyware, anti-virus programs, despite you have them running 24/7.  You’ll never worry about get a virus or get infected or download a spyware if you follow my suggestion #1~#4.

The most reliable way to check if you suspect your computer has been infected is to use Trend Online Virus Scan/Removal tool. You can access it by visiting Trends website at:
http://housecall.trendmicro.com/apac/
It scans and removes all viruses it finds without installing any junk on your computer.

To do:

Run disk defragment program (I recommend the free and ultra efficient Smart Defrag) at least once a month to ensure optimal computer performance.

Avoid any kind of tool bars included in some program’s installation (ie. MSN toolbar, Yahoo toolbar, Google toolbar or whatever toolbars) those bars eat a lot of your computer’s memory, take a lot of your screen space and simply do nothing.  To search, simply enter it in your browser’s integrated search field.

Remember to always use FireFox to browse the internet and try to avoid running Internet Explorer like a plaque.