May 2008 - Issue No. 13
Easy Ways to Lose Your Data:
Loss of data can be prevented. We all do dumb things once in a while, and computer users are no exception. Pressing the wrong button may mean loss of data.
Do the following and chances of losing data will greatly minimize:
| 1. Use surge protectors. Forget about storms, if you plug a high voltage appliance (hair dryer, heater, vacuum cleaner) on the same circuit you can cause a surge. Use a good surge protector. If money is not a problem, try to get an uninterruptible power supply. Most cheap surge protectors will survive only a single surge. |  |
2. Passwords. A password is the first line of defense, but do not use the name of your pet. Try to use passphrases that are easy to remember such as, "I love muffins in the morning". Also, please do not leave the password below the keyboard or hanging on the screen.
| 3. Watch what you click on. Are you visiting a web site and a pop-up window appears from out of nowhere? Be careful when you make your next click. Many things may happen, from installing a backdoor program so a hacker can gain control of your computer, to visiting dubious websites featuring pornography or pirated material. If this happens at work, there is a high chance your boss won't be very happy. |  |
4. Defragment your hard drive. A hard drive is like a library -- you can find the books quicker if they are properly organized. Also, if your hard drive is getting full, performance and stability will be compromised. Be sure you check how much space is available on your hard drive. If you have less than 15% left, it is time to get rid of some files.
5. Use Antivirus and Anti-spyware programs. You cannot afford to go without virus protection. Viruses, Trojans, worms, etc. can spread across the network from an infected computer. If an employee connects an infected laptop, the entire network can go down.
6. Use firewall software. If you like to carry your laptop to use at free wireless Internet cafes, or you plug directly into your high speed modem you are at risk from attackers. Attackers may steal your personal information or use your computer as a zombie to send spam everywhere. There are some reports of hackers disguising themselves as users on Internet cafés with the sole intention of hacking and stealing information from unaware customers.
7. Sometimes it is not good to share. You can share your public folder in your office, but if you have a laptop and take it to the coffee shop, someone else may end up knowing more about you and your company than you wish.
8. Do not open attachments. Attachments are dangerous, and may have bad consequences. It is like opening a suspicious package left at the train station. Some of these attachments contain files that run code that can affect your computer. Sometimes an email with the attachment appears to come from someone you trust and happens to contain a virus.
9. Use only needed software. The more programs you install, the higher the chances of slowing down your machine or being infected. Use only what you need and be sure you use legal software.
10. Use a backup and recovery plan. If an attacker crashed your system, your data got corrupted or wiped out due to a hardware problem or a natural disaster affected your area, it would cause you enormous grief. This is why it is so important to make backups.
If you need more information for any of these issues, please let us know. We will be more than happy to show you where you could find additional information. As a subscriber of this newsletter, our objective is to help you avoid losing data