MAD PC Help Computer Advice
10 Tips to protect your PC and data.
Every computer attached to the internet is open to attack from a virus, spyware, hoax emails and phishing. These attacks may damage or delete your important data, or install malicious software which may steal your passwords, credit card details or use your PC to attack other systems over the internet. According to Symantec, an unprotected, unpatched computer system is attacked within 20 minutes of connecting to the internet. The following 10 tips below will assist in protecting a Windows XP computer from such attacks, and help to protect your important data.
1. Administrator Account.
DO NOT use an account with administrator privileges for everyday use, as this could allow viruses and spyware the ability to self install on your PC. Always create a limited account for everyday use. If you need to install anything you can login as administrator or use Run As (shift and right click the file) to install without logging off.
To create a limited account:
Start>Settings>Control Panel>User Accounts
Select Create a new account, give it a name, and select Limited as the account type.
2. Security Updates.
Always ensure that all critical security updates are installed on your computer. These are released by Microsoft each month, and fix known security issues that have been discovered.
3. Passwords.
Always use a password; the longer the better. Make sure it is not something that someone could easily guess i.e. a child’s name. Use a mixture of numbers, uppercase and lowercase letters, and symbols. Do not write the password down, or let others know what it is.