From Pancho's Desk:

It seems most people have broad band internet.  I recommend Dish networks as they are harder to get into due to filters installed on the incoming cables.  Also Like my Dish it has a firewall automatically installed.  When you set up your Router make sure it is set to SECURE or LOCKED, neighbors and out siders can slide in an unsecure network easily.  This locking proceedure can be enabled during set up or read your manual.  Use very difficult passwords and user names.  For me I use Nuclear Isotopes as they are hard to spell and not many people know the periodic table.  I was a nuclear guru and the Dept of Energy so I had inside knowleldge.

Next, your most important defense.  A new updated Nti-virus program with intrusion protection.  You can also set up a second firewall.  Warning, do not set a windows firewall with an antivirus firewall, you will be relaoding that computer. Windows firewall ALWAYS have glitches.  I recommend Symantec Anit Virus for the internet.  I have seen too many computers infected from McKafee.  While avg seems ok, consider the price, you get what you pay for.  Scan, scan and more scan.  When you first put it on scan thoroughly not just common files.  Three of for scans once a day, also note the results of the scans, check them verses previous scans, are you getting the same intrusions?  Same with cookies.  Stay away from programs that infect with MY COMET CURSER.  Nasty bug to get rid of and very malicious.  Make sure to update you virus definitions daily.  To check to see if you are infiltrated go to you task manager. ctl, alt, delete will bring it up, click on users and it will tell you if someone is logged on write down these IP addresses as you can track them to the original server.  When you scan for viruse, check for same.  IP addresses. see if any are duplicated and write then down.  Pay attention to blue screens of death and the messages they tell you.  Also a good indication you are hacked is when you log off your messenger, if it asks you if you want to log all users off.  Duh!  Thats telling you someone else is on your system.  Occassionally close all internet programs quickly and see if you get errors and if it takes a long time to close out.  Chances are they were caught by suprise and could not get logged off in time and got caught.  Before you log off delete your cookies always. Do not let anyone else use your secure computer, not children or spouse. Stay off sites that load tacking cookies.  With filters on your incoming lines, it increases sensitivity to unauthorized access. When you leave your computer for any length of time LOG off or shutdown, if you stay logged in you are inviting them to work unfettered on your system.  Another tactic that I do not recommend, but I used because they had me,  I spent a whole day loading porn sites,  Not illegal ones mind you, they got so sick of it they backed out and I blocked them.  Not to mention that they had to clean the bugs off of their computers. If you do this be prepared for a long day cuz you will be fixing yours too.  When you do a virsu scan click on details and see what IP address brought them in.  Keep in mind friends, IP addresses can be routed around the globe.  so if you have an address coming in from yahoo or other free services, click on full header, it will show you everwhere the message has been routed to or from.  Ok thats enough for lesson one.