How to Safeguard Home PC: An Important Part of Home Security
“PC” has become a common word that we use everyday. And the reason is computers have become a essential part of our lives. The role of the PC has become so important to most of us that we feel lost if it goes down.
Many
people even use their computers to work from home. Therefore, it is important
for us to consider how to safeguard home PC from external or internal threats.
Protection of the PC
Identity theft has become a real and big threat to PC users. We bank and shop online and much of our personal information is available to online hackers. When thinking of home security, we should also think about the protection of the PC.
Here are some of the actions
that we can take to keep our family’s data safe and secure. How to safeguard home PC starts with these steps.
Anti-virus software
Above all else, you should not forget to install anti-virus software and to keep it updated. Free downloadable antivirus software is made available on the internet. But, you should be sure and select a reliable one.
There are antivirus software which can be updated free of cost. Such antivirus software might not be the most reliable ones. To be safe, you can purchase and install reliable, trusty antivirus software from companies like Symantec, McAfee, AVG, etc.
Some antivirus software provides automatic updates for their virus definitions. Virus definition is a data defined for a particular virus. These definitions are compared with each file contents during a file scan process. If a match is found, the presence of virus is said to be found.
These virus definitions are usually stored in a database file in a computer. This database is known as virus definition database. They need to be continuously updated in order to detect new set of latest viruses.
Firewall for your Computer
Next make sure that you set up a firewall for your computer. One thing which you have to keep in mind is that without the firewall it’s very easy for the hackers to steal your data when your computer is connected to the Internet.
Windows is equipped with a built-in firewall. There are also more secure third party firewalls available in the software market. You can buy and install them online. However, the built-in windows firewall is enough to protect the computer.
Data Backup
Backup also becomes equally weighted from the angle of security. You should daily back-up of important files and folders in alternate media such as CD’s, DVD’s or in external hard drives. Today, these devices are becoming cheaper. Back and recovery options are included in Windows operating systems.
Windows Automatic Update
From Windows XP, 2000 onwards Microsoft has introduced a new feature, by which you can keep your Operating System patched with latest software updates.
At the Microsoft windows update website, you can find it easy to download and install the latest patches, through the Windows automatic update.
A yellow shield shaped icon appears every time whenever there is latest updates are made available by the Microsoft.
Encryption and Decryption for Data Protection
Encryption and Decryption are essential parts of data protection. Encryption converts data from a real format to an unknown format, thus protecting the data if it is stolen.
Once encrypted, if you want the data back to original form, then you can do so by using decryption. You see, decryption converts back the encrypted data into its original format.
Internet Security
One final and simple step of how to safeguard home PC is to always shut down the internet when not using you computer. If your system stays connected to the internet, then it is open game for hackers and viruses. Get into the habit of always signing off the internet.
These steps will help keep your PC safe and secure and help with protecting your home, family and identity.
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