Internet safety seems like an oxymoron these days with all the
threats aimed at our computers. Staying safe online doesn't have to be
difficult, and this article covers the basic steps that every computer
user should take.
The phrase "Internet Safety" often seems like an
oxymoron. Every day we hear of new threats aimed at our internet
connected personal computers which seems to just make it that much
harder to actually stay safe while connected online.
Knowing how
to stay safe online has become a practical requirement these days for
anyone using a computer connected to the 'net. Fortunately, a few
relatively simply steps and a little education can go a long way to
making sure that your internet experience is both safe and secure.
1. Use a Firewall
- If you do nothing else, you must use a firewall. Firewalls act as a
type of barrier between your computer and the internet, preventing
remote computers from connecting to yours unless you explicitly allow
it. A firewall can be a simple device such as a broadband router, it
could be a feature of your operating system such as Window's own
built-in firewall, or it can be a full featured software package that
you purchase and install on each computer. Which one you choose is less
important than making sure you have one and that it is enabled and
deflecting threats.
2. Back Up - Failing to back up your
computer, or at least your critical data, is perhaps the most common
mistake I see being made today. And sadly it can also be the most
costly regret you'll have when, not if, disaster strikes. If malware
hits or hardware fails often your best if not your only resort will be
to recover your system from its most recent backup. Don't have one? Then
you might be severely out of luck. I regularly hear from people who've
lost
all of their data due to a malware infestation or a
hardware failure. If nothing else, invest in a large external USB drive
and a good backup utility and start backing up regularly right away.
3. Keep Critical Software Updated
- Every day people experience problems that could have been completely
avoided had they simply kept their operating system and other PC
software up to date. Both Windows XP and Vista make staying up to date
very easy with "Automatic Updates" and I definitely recommend that it
be turned on. Similarly, most other software and applications will now
also check for updates and notify you as new ones are available. Make
sure your system and applications are checking for updates regularly
and installing them as automatically as possible.
4. Educate Yourself
- No matter what else you do, no matter what other protections you put
in place, malware authors can bypass it all if they can fool you into
doing something you shouldn't. The problem, of course, is that "what
you shouldn't" isn't always immediately obvious. That's why it's so
important to educate yourself on how to detect and avoid their attempts.
In short:
be skeptical. Don't open email attachments or instant
messenger downloads unless you're positive they're safe. Don't click
on links in email unless you're positive that they're taking you to
where you expect them to. Don't download and install software without
first checking it for malware. Don't ignore security warnings unless
you're sure it's OK. Use strong passwords and never share them with
anyone.
5. Scan for Viruses - Even with the best of
intentions, viruses happen. Even with the firewall in place, the
operating system up to date, and a healthy knowledge of what is and is
not safe, sometimes something slips through. That's where you'll need a
good anti-virus tool. There are many to choose from but the key
factors boil down to this: select a reputable tool, enable its "real
time" monitoring if you're at all uncertain of yourself or others using
the computer, configure it to scan your hard disk completely once a
day, and make absolutely certain that it's downloading the latest
anti-virus information daily.
6. Protect Yourself from Spyware
- Much like viruses, spyware can also occasionally make it through
your defenses. Spyware is often relatively benign from a pure safety
perspective - spyware doesn't often erase your hard drive or send spam,
for example. However spyware does represent an intrusion, often
presenting ads or modifying other programs in ways you didn't expect or
ask for. And at its worst, spyware lives up to its name, spying on you
and capturing potentially sensitive information. Anti-spyware utilities
operate a little differently than anti-virus, so you'll want to make
sure that you have a good spyware scanner in addition to your
anti-virus tools. Like those tools, you'll want to make sure that it's
downloading the latest spyware information daily as well.
7. Secure your WiFi
- The default configuration of most WiFi equipment, and certainly the
easiest configuration to set up, is completely unsecured. That means
that anyone within range of your WiFi equipment can monitor what you're
sending to and from the internet - including your account IDs and
passwords. The same is true in most internet cafes and free WiFi
hotspots. There are two steps you must take. First, at home, make sure
you enable WPA security. This will require a password to connect to
your wireless network, and will encrypt all the data so it cannot be
monitored. (The older WEP security is no longer sufficient, as it is
easily cracked.) Second, when you're using an open unsecured WiFi
hotspot, take care to only access sensitive resources through encrypted
connections. That means making sure that any web page you're visiting
that requires personal information is connecting via an http
s
connection. It also means that you shouldn't be downloading or sending
email via your POP3 or SMTP based email program unless you know those
connections are configured to use encryption as well, since by default
they do not.
Bonus Step: Understand Physical Security - An old saying that I've found myself repeating to people more and more in recent years is this:
"if it's not physically secure, it's not secure."
All of the preceding tips are for naught if someone else who doesn't
understand these steps can use your computer and accidentally download
malware. It's all for naught if someone with malicious intent can walk
up to your computer, reboot it, install software or hardware and walk
away without your noticing. It's all for naught if your computer can be
stolen. Take care to understand just how physically at-risk you might
be and take appropriate actions. Don't let others use your computer
until you're comfortable with their understanding of the risks. Don't
leave your computer unattended if you can't trust the people who might
be able to touch it. Consider encrypting data on your laptop or other
computer if it can be lost or stolen.
Everything I've outlined
might at first seem overwhelming. The good news it that most of these
steps are things you'll need to do only once, and then consider
infrequently thereafter. And to put it perhaps into a little bigger
perspective they're not nearly as overwhelming as the impact of an
actual security problem if it happens to you. The practical reality of
the situation is simply this: we as individual computer users need to
take the responsibility of the steps required to Stay Safe Online.
More
information about staying safe online, including specific
recommendations for each of the aspects discussed above, can be found
at the author's web site
Ask Leo! There you'll also find hundreds of answers to every day technical and computer problems.
Get more free tech help and advice from Leo Notenboom by visiting
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With
over 30 years of industry experience, including an 18 year career as a
software engineer with Microsoft, Leo gives real answers to real
questions from ordinary computer users at
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