How to know if a website is safe

[Narnia]

My sister has gotten several computer viruses lately and that has sparked some discussion at our house at how to know if a web site is safe or not and I'm having a hard time giving them a concise answer. My mom and sister however are not very computer savvy. Can you guys list some ways for a computer novice to be able to tell if a website is safe? Thanks.


PS: How well does McAfee SiteAdvisor work?

 

[Turner]

I'm pretty sure both the free version of avast and avg have site adviser functionality. You could check those out.

 

[PeteAtoms]

I think there may be browser addons that provide this kind of functionality. Web of Trust is the first thing that came to mind, I've never used it however.

 

[ArmOrAttAk]

Turn Java off.
Turn Javascript off.
Turn Flash off.

Websites are now safe.

 

[PeteAtoms]

Also, don't download stuff you don't need or know. Don't download toolbars or plugins or anything else offered in a popup! lol