How to Keep Information Secure on a Computer?

Last Updated on 2 years by Touhid

Information Security (IS) refers to the process and methodology to protect your computer from unauthorized access, use, modification and destruction. In this post, we will focus some special tips on how to keep information secure on a computer.

Tips on How to Keep Information Secure on a Computer:

There are different types of cyber threats such as virus, malware, phishing, SQL injection, cross site scripting which will damage and steal your personal information. Here are some helpful tips which can help you how to keep information secure on a computer and your personal life remains safe.

1. Lock Your Computer
2. Install antivirus software
3. Use Windows Firewall
4. Create strong password
5. Use Unique password
6. Careful use of USB devices
7. Delete suspicious Email
8. Provide your personal  information on secure site
9. Up to date operating system
10. Back Up Your Data
11. Use Data encryption
12. Avoid Phishing Emails
13. Keeping your web browser up to date
14. Don’t Visit Porn Sites

1. Lock Your Computer

How to keep information secure on a computer? Lock your computer in order to safe your sensitive information on a computer. Don’t use an automatic login feature that saves your user name and password. It is better always log off your computer when you are out off from your computer for a second.

If anyone can get access your computer, so he/she can steal your sensitive information or can inject a malware to your computer.

2. Install Antivirus Software

Antivirus software is a program that helps how to keep information secure on a computer against viruses, worms, Trojan horses, and other unwanted threats. It scans every file which comes through the Internet or USB devices to your computer and helps to protect damage to your system.

You can use following anti-virus software on your computer and keep updated with latest version.

• Bitdefender
• Norton
• Kaspersky
• Panda
• ESET
• Avast
• AVG

3. Use Windows Firewall

A firewall is network security tools which has designed to monitors incoming and outgoing network traffic and permits or blocks data packets based on security rules. Its main purpose is to create an obstacle between trusted internal network and untrusted external network in order to block malicious attack.

If your computer ports are open, then hacker can sent malicious program to gain unauthorized access. A firewall acts as a simple defence by closing all ports. If your operating system is windows then there has a built-in firewall.

How to Enable Firewall

In Windows, this can be found by navigating to:

• Choose Start→ Control Panel→ System and Security→ Windows Firewall.
• Click the Turn Windows Firewall On or off link in the left pane of the window.
• Select the Turn on Windows Firewall radio button for one or both of the network locations. Click OK.

4. Create Strong Passwords

To keep information secure on a computer use strong password for computer login and online accounts. If your password is easy and anyone gets the password then your information will be compromised.

It is very common case, that we are using very simple password to remember in our mind like as date of birth, mobile no, employee id, and test123, which is one of the reasons for data leakage. So, make the passwords are more strong by combining letters, numbers, special characters (minimum 10 characters in total) and change them on a regular basis.

For example: T$ouhi&89%; is a strong and standard password.

Learn more How to create a strong Password?

5. Use Unique Password

Cyber security experts recommend that use strong and unique passwords for each account. If you re-use a password on multiple accounts and if a hacker gets access to your password then all other accounts will be vulnerable like your bank, tax, or online health care accounts.

So, if you want to keep your personal information safe, then it’s important to use a separate and unique password for each online account.

For example:

• Email account –> Use unique and different password
• Face book account –> Use unique and different password
• Bank account –> Use unique and different password

6. Careful Use of USB devices

You have to use the USB device on your computer very carefully in order keep information secure. When you are using USB devices on your computer for data transferring so, ensure that all external devices are come from a reliable source. If you feel, there has any suspicious file then please scan it by antivirus software.

7. Delete Suspicious Email

A phishing email usually compromise your sensitive information. A phishing email’s attachment can contain virus or malware. When you download the attachment file then a malware will install on your computer to hack your information.

If you want to avoid phishing email, just delete any email that raises confusion. If you think your incoming email is suspicious then you can direct phone call to sender to confirm as he sends the mail.

In addition to simply deleting the email, you can also mark it as spam, or as suspicious and it is better do not click on that type of email.

8. Provide Your Personal  Information on Secure site

When you will enter your personal or business information in a website, so first make sure that the site is secure by SSL (Secure Socket Layer) certificate. In URL, it will starts with https:// such as: https://cyberthreatportal.com.

9. Up to date Operating system

It is strongly recommend that update your operating system on a regular basis with the latest security patches, updates, and drivers. This will ensure that your computer is up-to-date and free from viruses to keep information secure on a computer  .

How to computer up to date?

• Open Windows Update by clicking the Start button > control panel > system and security > and then clicking Windows Update.
• In the left pane, click Check for updates, and then wait while Windows looks for the latest updates for your computer.
• If any updates are found, click Install updates.

10. Back Up Your Data

How to keep information secure on a computer? A data backup is a process of copying or archiving your important data files and folders for the purpose of being able to restore data in case of data damage or destruction. It act as a secondary storage of data which is used for data protection.

You can do your data back-up manually by archiving important documents to an external hard drive, or using Drop box or using Google drive etc.

11. Use Data encryption

Encryption is the process of encoding of your information using an algorithm to transform information that only authorized users can access it and make it unreadable for unauthorized users.

It protects sensitive data such as credit card numbers by encoding and transforming information into unreadable cipher text.

Learn more about Data encryption

12. Avoid Phishing Emails

Phishing is a type of social engineering attack that attempt to gain your sensitive and confidential information such as usernames, passwords, credit card information, login credentials, and so more. In a phishing attack, an attacker sends phishing emails to your email in order to steal your personal information.

So, to keep security of your computer or mobile phones please avoid or don’t click or don’t open such type of mail and don’t provide your sensitive information.

Learn more How to Protect Phishing?

13. Keeping your Web Browser Up to date

Keeping your web browser up to date is very important for computer security and ensuring that web pages load properly. Out of date web browsers can have serious security problems such as phishing, viruses, Trojans, spyware, adware, and other sorts of malware.

However, Security patches are released for popular browsers all the time. Its required couple of minute an update is available, just download and install it.

A. Steps for update Firefox browser

• First, click the menu button, and click Help –> about Firefox.
• Click on About Firefox and a window will open.
• Then Firefox will begin checking for updates and downloading automatically.
• Click Restart to update Firefox, when the download is complete.

B. Steps for update Google Chrome

• First open Google Chrome browser
• At the upper-right corner of the screen looks at More.
• And then Click Update Google Chrome.
• If you don’t see this button, then you are on the latest version
• Click Relaunch.

14. Don’t Visit Porn Sites

The traffic on porn websites is increasing day by day and most of the people know that porn websites contain viruses and malware; however they don’t seem to avoid it. We also know that porn websites include lots of advertisements and it looks attractive.

Hence, the malware creators hack the advertisements servers and include the malware in those advertisements and some websites have malware. When a user visits a porn site and clicks on such an advertisements, then he get infected with malware. If you want to safe from malware, so please don’t visit and don’t click on the advertisements and banners.

Finally, it is very important for us to take some preventive measures on how to keep information secure on a computer. Hope this article will be helpful for you!