Here are some questions to ask yourself, are you safe from the Bogeyman?
- Is my software and system up to date?
Making sure your operating system and software is kept up to date is vital. Updates are released not only to improve the software but to secure it and fix any security vulnerabilities. - Is my anti-virus and security software tough enough?
A quick internet search will show many results for anti-virus and security software. Some of them boasting that they may be the ‘best in the business, FOR HALF THE COST’ or ‘the toughest there is, AND FREE!’. Whilst it’s sometimes tempting to save money by buying a budget software suite or even not buying one at all it’s never recommended. Business grade suites may be a little more expensive but certainly worth it. - Am I running regular scans for viruses, spyware or malware?
So you did some research and you chose a security suite you are happy with. Now the best practice is to set it up to regularly scan your computer for any problems. Most suites will let you schedule a regular scan when you want so maybe for 10 minutes after you finish work, that way any scans that are running will not disturb you. - Am I careful online?
So you’ve followed the above and your computer is more secure, which is great. However, even online you need to be careful. Through social networking and online purchases, a lot of our personal information has been entered online. When surfing the web there are just a couple of things to consider, such as:- When paying for items, this should be done securely, the address for the website should start with ‘https://’ this means the connection from your computer to the website is secure.You may also see a green padlock or similar
- Be careful when you are downloading any files. This doesn’t mean you should never download anything ever again, just maybe avoid downloading ‘this-is-honestly-not-a-virus.exe’. If you are unsure if a file is okay to download maybe scan it with your anti-virus before opening it. (You can do this on your computer by right clicking on the file and selecting ‘Scan with …….’ from the popup menu)
- Watch where you click. Some websites are only there for the purpose of trying to infect your machine with a virus. A good security system should alert you if the web site is malicious but that shouldn’t be a reason for you to click every link on every page.
- Is this email safe?
Did you know that approximately 2.8 million emails are sent every second, that’s around 90 trillion per year, of which an estimated 90% are either spam or viruses. Emails with attachments should be treated with caution. Just considering a couple of things before opening an email or an attachment can keep you safe, such as:-- Who is it from? If you know the sender then it is less likely that the email is malicious. However if you don’t know the address it would be good to be cautious. Especially if its from ‘dkwjdh@zxwqucdh.com’
- What is the email for? One trick is to send out an email disguised as a company sending you an invoice to encourage you to open it. But if you don’t know the sender and you’ve never done business with ‘Steve@I-am-not-a-crook.com’ then it’s maybe better you don’t open it.
- Re: What? Another quick way to check how legitimate an email is, would be the subject line. If they’re trying to sell you something before you even open it or it’s not in a language you know. It will probably be good practice to delete it.
These points are not rules but they are a few things to consider to make sure you and your information is safe from the Bogeyman!!