If you screen your mail through a Web Dav browser client - before you download it into your desktop client - it will help.

Since I switched to NS 8 - other than the M$ pushed "ad-clicks" - I don't pick them up. Sometimes I think AV is part of the problem.

The system restore is another problem. Common sense and using something other than outlook or IE can make a big difference.

Turn off your auto updates and auto schedulers too. Everybody wants a piece of your desktop - many of the updates we install do nothing (remember rootkit) but help them and hurt you.