Top 10 Computer Security Mistakes

Published on: 30 August 2018 Last Updated on: 08 August 2019
Computer Security

So you’ve gone out and purchased a brand new laptop, and now you have plans of using that laptop in the workplace. Well, for anyone who has experience running a company, knows that laptops can be conduits for spyware and viruses. Once data is being processed, thought must go into who is capable of stealing it, where they might store it, how they could archive it, and how valuable the data is to the company.

Well, if you want to ensure you’re never in any unfortunate positions, then I suggest you check out my list of common mistakes most new computer users make.

 1. Connecting to an Unsecure Network

If the network is open, then it should be fine for you to connect to, right? I wouldn’t say that. You should always be suspicious of open networks, especially ones at hotels and airports. If it’s possible for you to connect to a network without using a password or agreeing to any terms, then there is a good chance you could be leading yourself into a trap.

 2. Opening Attachments from Unsolicited Emails

You want to check the content of your emails, if anything in it looks suspicious, or if the sender is asking you to do something that you do not feel comfortable doing then there is a good chance its spam.

Check the sender, if you’re not familiar with the person, then try searching for the email on any of the major search engines. If you’re at your workplace, then consider contacting your email administrator for verification on whether or not the email is spam.

3. Using Common Passwords

While the vast majority of people are wise enough not to fall into this trap, especially when signing up for services online, there are still many work colleagues that have a knack for using basic passwords, like their birthday or their username123.

You’ll want to re-work your password by combining uppercase letters, numbers and uncommon symbols. If you chose London as your password, then you could rejig it to something like L0nd3N. Even though it isn’t the most complex password, it would be much more difficult for a hacker to guess.

4. Not Making Backups

When it comes to archiving files, many end users make the common mistake of backing up data too infrequently. I can see how the lazy approach can be more comforting, but if your company files are that important to you, then you’ll want to ensure that they are backed up as often as possible, using a number of different mediums, such as the cloud, external hard drives, etc.

 5. Leaving Your Webcam Enabled

It’s a great idea for you to familiarise yourself with your webcam so that you can determine when it’s disabled or active. Hackers are very adept at hacking into your webcam, especially in the workplace, and they can even record meetings if you’re not careful. Covering the webcam with tape won’t do much since audio can still be recorded; it’s for this reason why you’ll want to ensure its disabled when not in use.

6. Searching the Deep Web

The deep web, unfamiliar to most internet users, is the shady part of it, not accessible from the major search engines like Bing and Google.

Work systems should be used for work only, there are many deep websites out there that will stick malicious code onto your computer and use that to track whatever you say and do.

7. Assuming Your Hard Drive Will Never Fail

In this world, there are two different kinds of computer users, those who have lost computer files and those who will eventually lose computer files. You want to back things up as often as you can. You also want to think about alternative media, like using an external hard drive to save certain confidential data onto it.

8. Using a Suspicious Thumb Drive

Everyone needs a place to store their work documents. If you’re in the office, it’s not uncommon for you to find a thumb drive lying around. My advice is not to use it, especially if you don’t know where it came from, that’s because there’s a good chance it could have a virus on it.

9. Using the Same Password across Accounts

It’s very important that you make a habit of changing your passwords. It’s not uncommon for end-users to keep the same password for many years. That is something you do not want to do.

For business-critical, sensitive data, you want to ensure that all passwords are changed at least once every three months.

Make sure all your accounts have different passwords. Having multiple passwords for your many accounts reduces the chances of all your accounts being compromised. With the increasing amount of cyber-attacks, the age of your password, along with its length and complexity are far more important today.

10. Agreeing to Install Anti-Virus Software

Have you ever visited a website that asked you whether or not you wanted to check your system for a virus? You may have asked how or why it knew you needed a virus scan. In most cases these prompts to install antivirus software are in fact attempts to install malicious software on your system.

Read Also :

Content Rally wrapped around an online publication where you can publish your own intellectuals. It is a publishing platform designed to make great stories by content creators. This is your era, your place to be online. So come forward share your views, thoughts and ideas via Content Rally.

View all posts

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related

Best Data Recovery Software To Recover Deleted Files From Mac

Best Data Recovery Software To Recover Deleted Files From Mac

If you’re here after encountering a data loss scenario and looking for the best Mac data recovery software to get back your precious files, continue reading the article. In this post, we’ve curated a list of the best five software to help you recover deleted files on Mac. The software you choose should be reliable and compatible with the version of the Mac you’re using. Stellar Data Recovery Professional For Mac If you wish to recover deleted or lost Word, PDF, or Excel files from your Mac, Stellar Data Recovery is the best software for you. With the help of Stellar Data Recovery Professional for Mac, you can recover data from the lost volume and crashed and non-booting Mac. Not just this, with this software, you can also monitor the health of your hard drive This software also allows to perform disk imaging and disk cloning. You can free download the trial version of this mac data recovery software. Scan and preview the recoverable data using the free trial. If you’re satisfied with the results, you can upgrade to the professional version that promises an added bouquet of features! Tenorshare 4DDiG (Mac) It is a powerful Mac data recovery software that allows users to recover unlimited photos, videos, documents, audio, etc., from Mac and external storage devices that are lost, deleted, or formatted. Tenorshare 4DDiG (Mac) also allows raw recovery, lost file recovery, and partition recovery. You can even recover data from crashed or dead Mac using the software. Wondershare Recoverit For Mac Using this software to recover your lost or deleted files on Mac is quite safe. You can recover lost office files, outlook & archive files, graphics, audio, videos, and more from internal and external HDD, SD cards, memory cards, USB flash drives, etc. Furthermore, you can even create a bootable media with the standard software version that helps recover data from a crashed Mac. This software allows data recovery from a wide range of data loss scenarios such as virus attacks, accidental emptying of Trash, hard disk drive crash, factory reset with no backup, partition error, raw state, and re-installation of the operating system. The software supports different file systems, including APFS, ExFAT, FAT16, FAT32, HFS+, NTFS, Ext2, Ext3, Ext4, and more. Softtote Data Recovery Mac It is an all-in-one software for Mac data recovery that helps in retrieving lost or deleted files, missing partition and formatted drives. Not just this, the software is even capable of recovering data from corrupt HDD, camera, MP4 and MP3 player, USB Flash drive, etc. The data recovery software also offers Photo Recovery, Lost Partition Recovery, and file recovery. Data Rescue For Mac The function of this software goes beyond just hard drive recovery as it can also recover from different devices, like CF cards, SSDs, SD cards, USB drives, and many more. Using Data Rescue for Mac, you can easily locate, preview, and retrieve lost data, deleted files, and reformatted drives. This software uses two scanning modes to scan your storage drive- Quick and Deep. It is possible to recover the files and view the previous scan results. You can recover photos, videos, audio, and various file formats. How To Choose The Best Data Recovery Software? When deciding which software to pick for Mac data recovery, consider the data loss scenario at hand. Think what type of software will be able to bring back your files efficiently and in no time. There is a plethora of data recovery options available today. However, choosing the specific software that caters to your individual needs is a must for successfully recovering deleted files from Mac. Other factors while choosing the software can be the OS, file systems, data loss situations, and storage devices that the software supports. Another vital parameter to consider is the software’s ease of use; DIY software will be preferred much more than the ones requiring technical proficiency. Make sure to first download the trial version to preview the recoverable files. If you’re happy with the results, only then purchase the software. Look for the features in the software and figure out how they will benefit you. For instance- software with features like disk imaging, drive monitoring, and cloning can do wonders! Read Also : Review On Free Data Recovery Wizard Based On Photo Recovery How To Free Up Space On Your Mac What You Are Paying For With A Virtual Data Room

READ MOREDetails
Video Interview

6 Things You Must Do to Prepare for a Video Interview

Video interviews can be nerve-racking especially if you are meeting the interviewer for the first time. Video interviews are more cost-effective, easier, and faster than a long phone call or in-person meeting. No wonder most organizations are using them to make hiring decisions among other job-related functions. Here are some of the tips that will increase your chances of success during video interviews. 1. Double-Check Your Internet Connection, Video, and Audio: You should always test your audio and video to make sure that everything is working well before the interview. The fact that it worked two weeks ago is not a guarantee that it will work properly today. No one wants to risk the embarrassment or headache of technological issues while conversing with a potential employer. Also, confirm that you have a stable wireless connection. Therefore, select a location where spotty connections will not disrupt your video conversation. 2. Choose a Background That is Free from Distractions: You have to make sure that you entirely focus on the face and what you will be saying during the interview. Therefore, choose a business-like background that is free of any distractions. Avoid windows and walls that are full of decorations, posters, and pictures. Clutter off your desk and clear all the books. The most important thing is to eliminate those things that can draw away the attention of the interviewer from you. If you cannot get an excellent background at your home or office, it is wise to use a solid wall. The guiding principle is to hold your video interview in a sterile and clean environment. Communicate on a human level so that the interviewers will find it easy to talk to you. There is nothing glorious about this as what they are doing it to talk with you. 3. Lit the Room Well: You have to make sure that the interviewer will see you clearly by paying close attention to the lighting. The interviewers should look at your face clearly, and hence you need to test the video beforehand so that lights don’t cast any shadows on your face. The challenge of having a single overhead light shining down from the ceiling is that it can be unflattering and create shadows.  Try to have one light emanating from behind you and one on the left to create a glow around your body. 4. Eye and Angle Contact Are Critical: You have to pay close attention to the place you look during the interview. Several people are thrown off especially if you are used to video interviews. The experience may not feel natural from the onset, and you may want to talk to the camera and not the screen. The position of the camera should always be at an eye level and not below or above you. The angle of the camera is so critical because the camera should not look down at you and you don’t want to look up your nose. Therefore, make sure that the position of the camera is okay. 5. Dress for the Interview: you need to groom yourself depending on the kind of interview you are attending. Remember presentation is critical and you should not overlook this idea because you are talking on video. Dress as if you are attending a face-to-face interview. The wrong dressing will also reflect in your speech and attitude. The interviewer will look at all aspects of a good candidate and dressing is one of them. 6. Maintain an Open Body Language: Like in-person interviews, its critical to be cognizant of the body language so that you can leave a positive impression on the interviewer.  It’s a good practice to gesture while speaking but remember to contain the movement of your hands and also within the video frame. Remember gestures may not translate over video in the same way in-person interviews do. With these tips, you are prepared to handle any video interview. The most important thing is to prepare well, and you will increase your chances of success. Read Also: Traditional Job Interviews Will Be Dead By 2020 Ten Interview Tips That Might Surprise You: The Medical Edition

READ MOREDetails
Blown Head Gasket

Googling How to Fix a Blown Head Gasket? Find Out Here

Nothing can be more frustrating than a blown head gasket in your vehicle. The worst nightmare is if you cannot access a mechanic to fix it for you. You have only one option left in that situation; do it yourself. You may consider several options to fix the problem, but the ideal solution will be a steel solution to solve the problem permanently. The steel seal solution is a combination of various chemicals that react under given conditions to form a permanent seal to the crack that is causing leakage in the engine. Therefore, if you were wondering how to fix a blown gasket, find out here how to use a steel seal solution for that purpose. Remove the Radiator Cap When learning how to fix a blown head gasket, please remember not to start the engine if the coolant is not in place. You need to ensure that the engine radiator is cold before removing the cap. Carefully pour the clear steel seal solution into the radiator. If you unload the coolant, put the sealant into the system, then follow with the coolant. Start the Engine Switch on the fan and heater and turn them to the maximum. Start the engine and run up to maximum operating temperature. On reaching operating temperature, run the engine for thirty more minutes. It may take approximately half an hour, though the time depends on the automotive’s condition. If your vehicle is roadworthy, you can drive on a freeway for up to five miles at 3000 to 4000 RPM. After that, cut the engine and let it cool down. Refill with antifreeze or water, then secure the radiator cap. Drive the Vehicle as Usual After finishing the second step, your vehicle is suitable for the road. Let the steel seal fix in the system and start your ride usually. However, if you use an expansion tank to put the steel seal, please be careful that the sealant does not remain in the tank reservoir. Ensure there is enough space for the solution to go inside the cooling system. If you complete the treatment with only water, please replace the coolant once you finish the repair before driving. Further Instructions on Steel Seal It is possible to try various substandard products to fix a blown head gasket. If this happens, please use clean water to flush the cooling system once you remove the radiator hose at the bottom. Nb, avoid using a flushing agent. Directions for Backpressure Some vehicles have a lot of back pressure building up in the cooling system. Read more here on fixing a blown head gasket if you are facing the backpressure problem. Find the cylinder producing the bubbling in the spillage tank or backpressure. You can achieve this by removing one plug after another until the bubbling subsides. Remove the injector from the cylinder with the bubbling in the backpressure before you start to drive. That is to limit the volume of unburnt fuel flowing to the combustion chamber. To Sum It Up Trying to fix a blown head gasket can be a nightmare if you lack the necessary knowledge. It can drain your money and time to look for an expert. However, steel seal fix is your number one DIY solution. This step-by-step guide will help you do your head gasket repair yourself. Read Also: LPG Safety Tips and Precautions for your Home Which Type Of Forklift Your Industry Need: Have A Look At Them! Portable Generators: 5 Ways To Keep Them Clean and Running

READ MOREDetails