<p>Hundreds of millions of people use their home computers every day for different purposes. Many of them are connected to the Internet. Most of them are unaware of the threats or do not know how to protect themselves. This unawareness is a major threat to global computer security. </p><p>This master thesis starts by explaining some security related terms that might be unknown to the reader. It then goes on by addressing security vulnerabilities and flaws in the most popular home computer operating systems. The most important threats to home computer security are reviewed in the following chapter. These threats include worms, email worms, spyware and trojan horses. After this chapter some possible solutions for improving home computer security are presented. Finally this master thesis contains a short user survey to find out what the problems are in the real world and what can be doneto improve the current situation.</p>

Hundreds of millions of people use their home computers every day for different purposes. Many of them are connected to the Internet. Most of them are unaware of the threats or do not know how to protect themselves. This unawareness is a major threat to global computer security. This master thesis starts by explaining some security related terms that might be unknown to the reader. It then goes on by addressing security vulnerabilities and flaws in the most popular home computer operating systems. The most important threats to home computer security are reviewed in the following chapter. These threats include worms, email worms, spyware and trojan horses. After this chapter some possible solutions for improving home computer security are presented. Finally this master thesis contains a short user survey to find out what the problems are in the real world and what can be doneto improve the current situation.