Secure Your Computer With These 8 Tips
COMPUTER SECURITY
Hi friends, today I'm going to write about some security measures that you need to take while using your computer. If you don't take it seriously now you may be in danger in the future. You may be having your personal details or even some important information like credit card details, bank details, passwords of online accounts and much more which you don't want anyone to steal and use. So, as it is rightly said 'prevention is better than cure' you should always try to protect your computer by following some tips that I'm going to share with you today.
So let's get started. These are the 8 tips that you should follow to be more secure on your computer.
1. Strong Password:
First thing to keep in mind is that you should have a strong password for your computer as you have strong passwords for your online accounts (hope so, if not then choose a strong password for them now). By strong password I mean that it should be more than 10 characters. The more bigger the password is the more secure it will be. It should contain CAPITAL LETTERS as well as small letters, numbers and even symbols like @, #, &, *, etc. You should not use your name, username, pet's name, date of birth as your password. And also keep in mind that the password should be a word that is not found in the dictionary (this will give you additional security by avoiding dictionary attacks).
2. Admin Password:
The next thing that you need to do is to create a password for the Administrator Account. There is an easy way around to open the administrator account when the password is left blank. When you install Windows on a computer, by default it leaves the administrator password as blank. So, you should take care to password protect your administrator account, because if someone gets access to your administrator account, he can do whatever pleases him like deleting a user account, change the passwords of the user accounts (by a simple trick known by most of the computer geeks), install virus and malicious softwares and so on.
To change the administrator password, go to the control panel, click on User Accounts, and select the Administrator account and follow the instructions.
3. Antivirus:
You should have an antivirus software to protect your computer from viruses. Just having an antivirus also will not work, you should update it regularly. Try to install a paid antivirus if possible which will give you additional features. AVG, Avast and McAfee are some of the popular ones out there.
4. Update Operating System:
Update your operating system periodically. In windows you have the option of automatically searching their official website for updates regularly. Every now and then they release new patches which contain an updated security feature.
5. Encryption Tools:
You can also use encryption tools like TrueCrypt to encrypt your files with a password. This software can create a virtual drive in your hard disc which can only be opened if you enter the password correctly. You can even password protect your hard disk.
6. Key Scrambler:
There are softwares known as key scramblers or anti-keyloggers which do the work of scrambling the keys that you type on your keyboard. It protects you from a malicious softwares known as keylogger which is used by computer criminals to capture and send your usernames and passwords to them by capturing every single character you type on your keyboard. Hence, key scrambler is a must if you use your computer more for online business and transactions.
7. Firewall:
Firewall is another important software that you need to keep your computer secure. There is a default firewall already available in Windows. You can enable it by going to the control panel. If you want to have more advanced firewall with more features, you can go ahead and download ZoneAlarm which is a free and a very powerful firewall. It will prevent others from accessing your computer illegally.
8. Update Your Softwares:
You should also update your softwares regularly. All softwares contain bugs which are fixed in the next release or update. So, if a new update is available for a software go ahead and download and install it. This will prevent the bug from damaging your computer. The updates are available in the official websites of these softwares. You can also update it from the software itself.
Hope these tips have helped you. Have a secure journey with your computer henceforth.
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