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Is Your PC Ready for the Summer Road Trip? Computer Support Experts at Support.com Offer Tips to Ensure a Safe and Stress-Free

^{Published on 2010-06-29 05:12:15 - Market Wire}
 

REDWOOD CITY, CA--(Marketwire - June 29, 2010) - It's a fact: we have to stay connected when we're on vacation, whether it's keeping in touch with the office or with loved ones at home. But who hasn't experienced a problem that requires computer support on the road? And where do you turn when it happens? To help ensure a stress-free tech vacation, the Personal Technology Experts™ at Support.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: [ SPRT ]), which provides a quick and cost-effective [ online tech support experience ] over the Internet and phone, offer the following tips that will make for a safer and more pleasurable summer.

• No Privacy on a Public Hotel Network: When you connect your computer to a hotel or some other public network, you are behind their router or firewall. All the other computers connected to that system are now technically "close" to you -- there's no protection against them apart from the software firewall that hopefully is turned on in your computer. If you have certain data on your hard drive that you've set up to be shared with your home network, everyone connected to your hotel will have access to that data.

• Don't Forget To Turn Off Your Wireless and Bluetooth Connections: Even if you've closed the lid on your laptop, your computer is vulnerable to intrusion. Wireless connectivity devices such as Bluetooth, can serve as a backdoor entryway to your data. If you're done working with your computer, power down everything.

• Put A Lock On It: Over 600,000 laptops are stolen every year (according to LoJack for Laptops), many from hotel rooms and cars. A simple deterrent to theft is to tether a laptop lock (available at most consumer electronics and computer stores) to something immovable.

• Slim Down For Summer: To make sure your computer is running optimally, consider a tune-up, which includes a defrag of your hard drive as well as malware and spyware removal. You may also want to delete any programs you don't use, which might lengthen boot-up time or decrease performance.

• Stay Cool with AC (And We Don't Mean Air Conditioning): Though it may seem obvious, one of your best friends on the road may very well be the car adapter, which can keep you powered up over those long-stretches of road. But if you forget to take it, some simple tips to conserve your battery include going easy on power hungry applications such as watching a DVD or playing a graphics-heavy game, as well as adjusting the power consumption settings to slow down your laptop.

No IT Staff at the Hotel? No Problem
When you have a tech support subscription with a company such as Support.com, you can call a Personal Technology Expert any time of day or night. The US and Canadian-based experts on call can help with virtually any software related issue, including virus or malware removal, setting up a connected device such as a digital camera or portable printer, or speeding up one's computer.

"When it comes to protecting your PC the best defense is a good offense," said Paul Vaillancourt, Vice President of Call Center Operations at Support.com. "In addition to taking some simple precautions while traveling, consumers should feel free to call Support.com and have their computer serviced before they hit the road to ensure an enjoyable and stress free vacation."

About Support.com
Support.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: [ SPRT ]) provides [ services ] and software that help consumers and small businesses with their technology needs. Support.com's North American Personal Technology Experts™ provide a [ quick, cost-effective and stress-free technology support experience ] over the Internet and the phone using Support.com's advanced technology platform. Support.com also provides consumer software for the do-it-yourself customer. Support.com, Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Support.com is a trademark or registered trademark of Support.com, Inc. or its affiliates in the US and other countries. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners.

For more information visit [ www.support.com ].

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Statements made in this document that are not historical facts are "forward-looking statements" and accordingly involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described herein. These and other risks are detailed in Support.com's reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including without limitation its latest Annual Report on Form 10-K and its latest quarterly report on Form 10-Q, copies of which may be obtained from [ www.sec.gov ]. Support.com does not intend to update this information to reflect future events or circumstances, and disclaims any obligation to do so except as may be required by law.