Why Does my PC Need to Be Secure?
The moment you decide to start up your PC and use the internet, the game of Russian Roulette begins. Why this name? Because your personal data is stored on the PC’s hard drive and can become a playground for the likes of cybercriminals or computer hackers, who are relentless in ‘breaking’ the system. These cyber-attacks can be sudden, with no warning at all.
For this reason, your PC needs to be secure. You might go down the route of adding more locks, attempting to strengthen your passwords, etc. But there is more you can do. Follow the steps below to test how secure your PC really is.
What to Do
1. Test your settings
One tool with proven effectiveness is Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer. This is a free tool that can examine both your Windows and Microsoft Office settings to check for any problems, including online contamination.
MSBA will first test your account and passwords to let you know if you have any weak passwords, which is an easy target for hackers. It then checks a lot of your account settings. Does your computer have an automatic update setting? Does it allow one administrator account on the computer? This software will be able to check all of this information for you.
It also has guides on which settings are preferable for PC safety and why. This tool is the perfect informational guide to show you the main dos and don’ts for your PC.
2. Update your browser plugins
A lot of people don’t realize the importance of keeping your PC safe by keeping your browser updated. Only the most up-to-date version will be able to protect you from infections and attacks. However, having an up-to-date version is merely the beginning. The next step is ensuring that your browser plug-ins are up to date too. Just like having an old browser, outdated plug-ins mean that your PC is more exposed to hacking.
Open every browser on your computer (even Internet Explorer if you’ve still got it) and go to Mozilla’s Plugin checker. It will show you every kind of plug-in installed on each of the browsers, and show if it is up to date or not. Even though Mozilla is linked to Firefox, this plugin checker works for other browsers too.
3. Test your firewall
One way to make sure your PC is secure is to set up the firewall. Windows and Mac have decent firewalls built into their systems, and other security programs include them. A firewall will help to keep hackers from seeing your computer online when they are searching for the next place to hack. Even if they believe they know where your computer is, the firewall acts as a sort of force-field, keeping them out.
A service like PortTest can scan your firewall to make sure it has made your computer invisible. It is worth checking out!
4. Check your Facebook settings
Remember, your PC isn’t the only place where information can be stored. What a lot of people forget is that Facebook can be packed with personal data that a scammer would love to uncover.
This is why Facebook invented the ‘view as’ tool. It can show you what your profile looks like to other people. If any of your information is wrong or in the incorrect setting, you can spot it. It is important to be mindful when you are uploading pictures, to check settings and browse “Who can see things on my timeline.”
This is a great way to see what your Facebook profile looks like to strangers. You should double-check your timeline, about section, and all the other sections to make sure nothing has slipped through.
You can edit anything and everything on your profile, look for an upside-down triangle and choose the information. This is a great shortcut that will save you a lot of time in the future, and protect your security and privacy even more.
There are plenty of settings that you can use to make your Facebook account more private, make sure to equip yourself with this information to make sure your PC can be fully secure.
