6 Best Practices for Computer Security

My today’s post is regarding Computer Security.

True, Internet has made world small and you can get every information by going to WWW. The major issue that has created problems is Security of your Computer. Improper usage can leave you in trouble and if you are in networked environment where there are hundreds of users connected it can be a nightmare.

By following basic security principles we can lower or avoid security issues. Let me discuss with you a interesting incident that had happen to one of my clients. As I have done Software Implementation related to financial part of companies, I generally discuss with them what Security of data plan they have in place.

This customer had decided to keep separate network of 5 computers for implementation, detaching them from rest of the network. So, mainly the data we had was about the Software that we were implementing. The IT in charge use to do backup of data. We were almost about to complete the implementation with all the data feed in after 2 ½ months of hard work and we had reached the stage of closing the project. One fine day, as usual our project team started to work and all our data was lost, there was virus on the server which knocked out the system. We were all stunned, the IT people of the company worked hard and stated they shall have to format the Server. We were relieved that backup was there but the department had missed backup for last 2 days in which we had inserted 2000 entries of inventory products. We had  another backup plan, wherein  we as implementers, use to take backup on own devices, which helped us to reinstate the data back and saved 2 days of repeated work and advance the  closing of project successfully. The IT department found the virus had came from one the emails received by a user to install an application.

This prompted me to write this blog regarding Computer and data security.

Top Six things you can do to protect your computer

ü  Use Security Software

ü  Maintain current software and updates

ü  Windows Security

ü  Backup regularly

ü  Use strong passwords

ü  Don't install software from untrusted sources

Use Security Software: The most important thing you can do to keep your computer safe is to install and maintain security software, which protects your computer from viruses and spyware. Such security programs perform two general functions: scanning for and removing viruses and spyware in files on disks, and monitoring the operation of your computer for virus-like activity (either known actions of specific viruses or general suspicious activity). Most software can perform both of these tasks.

Install an antivirus application, and keep your virus pattern files up to date.

In general, it's not a good idea to have more than one antivirus program installed on your computer. Each program may interpret the actions of the other as viral, therefore giving you false warnings about virus-related activities.

For antispyware for Windows computers, use Windows Defender.

Maintain current software and updates: Use a secure, supported operating system. Keep your software updated by applying the latest service packs and patches. For Windows, you can schedule Automatic Updates to automatically download and install available updates.

Windows Security: Login as a Standard user most of the time. You can browse the Internet, send e‑mail, and use your applications, all without an administrator account. When you want to perform an administrative task, such as installing a new program or changing a setting that will affect other users, you don't have to switch to an administrator account; Windows will prompt you for permission or an administrator password before performing the task. I also recommend that you create standard user accounts for all the people who use your computer.

Back up regularly: This goes for your important personal files and your system files. You should have an automatic backup schedule, so that you don’t miss any of your important data. You should have your data residing at a different location like if you are using laptop, you should your data somewhere else too.

Use strong passwords: Strong passwords should be longer than six characters and a mix of numbers, letters (both upper- and lower-case), and symbols. Strong passwords should not contain your name or family names, birthdates, or addresses.

Don't install software from untrusted sources: Don't just download any file or program you come across through an internet search, unless you know it can be trusted. Download software from reputable sources, and then check the newly downloaded software thoroughly, using reputable virus detection software on a locked disk, for signs of infection before copying it to a hard disk.

You can also refer to data protection – best practices in my previous blog which shall give you more information regarding which backup strategy to go for.