Protecting personal equipment
It is very important that everyone takes measures to protect personal equipment when connecting them to any network or the internet. A government initiative called ITSafe has been developed to raise awareness of the importance of PC security, and details are available at www.itsafe.gov.uk. The principles are described in their seven point plan:
- Have up-to-date Anti-Virus Software
- Use a Personal Firewall
- Make sure your system is "patched" (updated) regularly
- Use a strong password
- Treat links and attachments in email with caution
- Be on the lookout for scams
- Use the ITsafe website and warning Service
To which we would add
- Make sure you backup your information
- Protect your computer from spyware
Any computer purchased will be likely to have a firewall built in, and you should use it (if not, Zone Alarm from www.zonelabs.com is recommended). Most new systems have straightforward methods for keeping the system patched up to date – do not disable these.
AVG from www.grisoft.com is an anti-virus product which is free for home use on a single computer.
Spyware is often installed along with other shareware software, and usually exists to keep an eye on your web browsing, enabling companies to target you with advertising. Less prevalent but more sinister are programmes used by hackers to garner personal data. Install anti-spyware software and use it regularly to check your system. Recommended are the free Ad-Aware and SpyBot. Highly rated is CounterSpy, which costs a small sum.