Seras IT provides IT services and assistance to clients all over the state of South Carolina. We pride ourselves on being able to effectively assist our clients in Columbia, Lexington, Sumter, Newberry, and many other places in the area. As part of that high level of service we like to advise our clients on a variety of ways they can protect and maintain their IT equipment. In this series of articles we are going to explore things you can do on your PC to ensure it is properly maintained and protected for peak performance. Part 2 will address effective practices to ensure good internet security.
This is part of the PC Maintenance and Performance Series
Internet Security
Effective Internet Security Practices
The basic principles of internet security involve simply being smart and attentive to your actions online. You should always use secure online passwords, check any websites identity and security, and review all download options and extras. Any website user should use different account credentials for each site. Set unique usernames or an email address along with unique and secure passwords for each site. The password you choose must be complex. Some standard password tips include: at least 8 characters long, use numbers, uppercase/lowercase letters, and symbols, make password as long as possible, and use prefixes, suffixes, and nonsense word combinations. For good password practice you should have a secure location you store your login credentials.
Another important principle of internet security is confirming the website address you are visiting. This sounds simple but not being attentive to this step can leave you susceptible to online threats. Your first step in alleviating this concern is you need to check the address bar for the proper domain name. Next you should confirm the site’s security level. It is important to not type anything on a site until you have checked these items. This type of scam will typically start with a bogus email or a link on a bogus website. Taking the steps listed above will help in avoiding phishing scams or phony web pages.
Having a secure network is crucial to the long term effectiveness and durability of all systems connected to your network. That is why it cannot be stressed enough the importance of utilizing the tools and resources available to increase the integrity of your network security. You need to make sure you are implementing and configuring things such as firewalls, malware protection, VPNs, and good password practices. It is always well advised to seek out the help and advice of IT specialists for these matters. They will be the best equipped to review the programming of your computers, network, security appliances, etc. Seeking out their expertise can ensure that you have all of these items configured correctly.
Next week we will continue our series on PC Maintenance & Performance by covering how to apply data encryption and methods to back up your PC.
As always, Seras can help assist you with any of your maintenance and repair questions or needs. Call us at 803.233.9216 or email us at info@serasit.com
