In today’s homes and workplaces, computers are a now a part of the daily fabric of our lives. Knowing how to use them safely is important to your personal and professional security and safety. Cyber crimes are on the rise, and we all need to make smart choices when using computers. Failing to follow these standard practices could also have adverse effects on your Network, Servers and PC’s.
-Never share passwords. Pick strong passwords, and keep them
private. Never share your passwords, even with friends, family, or computer
support personnel.
-Do not click random links. Do not click any link that you can’t
verify. To avoid viruses spread via email or instant messaging (IM), think
before you click; if you receive a message out of the blue, with nothing more than
a link and/or general text, do not click it. If you doubt its validity, delete
it!
-Beware of email or attachments from unknown people, or with a
strange subject line. Never open an attachment you weren’t expecting, and if
you do not know the sender of an attachment, delete the message without reading
it.
-Do not download unfamiliar software off the Internet. KaZaA,
Bonzi, Gator, HotBar, WhenUSave, CommentCursor, WebHancer, LimeWire, and other
Gnutella programs all appear to have useful and legitimate functions. However,
most of this software is (or contains) spyware, which will damage your
operating system installation, waste resources, generate pop-up ads, and report
your personal information back to the company that provides the software.
-Do not propagate virus hoaxes or chain mail.
-Log out of or lock your computer when stepping away, even for a
moment. Forgetting to log out poses a security risk with any computer that is
accessible to other people (including computers in public facilities, offices, and
shared housing), because it leaves your account open to abuse. Someone could
sit down at that computer and continue working from your account, doing damage
to your files, retrieving personal information, or using your account to
perform malicious actions. To avoid misuse by others, remember to log out of or
lock your computer whenever you leave it.
-Treat sensitive data very carefully. For example, when creating
files, avoid keying the files to Social Security numbers, and don’t gather any
more information on people than is absolutely necessary.
