8 seconds. That’s it. It’s like mounting up, strapping in, and letting a 1,700 lb. pissed off bull try to have its way with you. This is equivalent to what some hackers will put you through in the same amount of time. Some do it for fun, some do it for the fame, many more now do it for the money. But whatever the reason, you are vulnerable. It is imperative that you and your valuable information are protected against viruses and spyware.

We all know that in the modern world, we as a society are becoming more and more dependant on computers. They keep our banks and businesses running, our work day productive and our home life entertaining. Which is why when I came across this article it was evident that we still have a long way to go to feel secure. For those of you reading this page on a PC running Windows XP, this story is even more poignant. A computer connected to the internet running Windows XP without a firewall and an anti-virus program was completely subdued and controlled by malicious scripts and bots in a mere 8 seconds. It crashed completely after 30 minutes.

I know that most folks understand that a firewall and anti-virus software are now a necessity, but hackers are relentless. This is proven so with recent attacks on Britian’s bank infrastructures, with the attempt to liquidate $423 million dollars into a private account. If it doesn’t already scare you that the United State’s internal framework is primarily running on Windows machines, maybe this article will.