Internet has now become an important part of our lives. Almost everyone uses the net these days. The internet is a wonderful facility and helps many people in their work. Applications of the net include e-marketing, e-commerce, online banking, Email and much more.

However with such wonderful and important advantages there is also a very big problem and that is internet security. Once you are hooked up with a network you are no longer safe. There is a possibility of others viewing or hacking into your computer. This is the dark side of the net and the people responsible for such activities are known as hackers. These people search for open ports on a network and then try to get inside of what is called an open terminal or gate in technical terms. If successful then they can view everything in a hosts computer. They can steal critical information like credit card number etc etc.

Another dangerous aspect of the net is that your computer can catch viruses from the net. This can seriously harm your computer depending on the nature of the virus. A virus is a code or an application which again is developed mostly by hackers.

To protect your computer you need a good antivirus. An anti virus defends your system from network attacks and dangerous viruses.

If you think your computer acts weird or if its performance is slower than you expect, then it maybe a virus. If it is then the best thing is to get it cleaned through a good anti virus program. If anti virus is already installed then the virus will automatically be detected and deleted or quarantined. Your computer will remain unharmed.

There are however some dangerous viruses that are difficult to detect. Therefore it is important that your antivirus program is always kept updated so that it can detect the most latest viruses. Sometimes if you do not have an anti virus then a powerful virus may damage your computer to such an extent that you may lose all your data and may have to renew you windows or whatever operating system you use.