5 Tips To Keep Your Files Secure

We are currently living in a connected world. Everywhere you go, you will most likely have access to a computer with an Internet connection. The computer is used for various things from completing a school assignment to banking. It is therefore, extremely crucial to keep all your files secure in order not be have your personal information compromised. Here are 5 tips on how you can keep your personal information and files secure. Tip #1: When using the Internet, always use a difficult to guess password on all websites. Avoid using a single combination of username/password for all websites. If your password is too easy to remember, then it is probably not good enough. Use Password Manager programs like KeePass to keep track of your passwords so that you do not have to crack your brain in order to memorize all your username/password combinations. Tip #2: Always make sure your computer itself is password protected. There are ways to configure your computer to auto login or remove the login functionality but you must never do this! Your computer is the gateway to your personal information and access to the Internet. Tip #3: Use encryption software to protect sensitive data. Keep all your sensitive data in one main folder and use a software like TrueCrypt to create an encrypted volume. We must protect our information from all eventualities. With encrypted volume to store all your sensitive data, even if you lose your laptop, your data will be safe. Tip #4: Always keep your firewall and anti-virus software up-to-date. Choose to auto-update so that you do not have to worry about scheduling a time to manually update it. The computer firewall protects you from hacking attempts. You should also not visit suspicious websites or click on suspicious emails unless you are sure of the source. Tip #5: There are many public places offering Internet access. While this may be convenient, do not use such facility to access your private or sensitive information. Do not even open up your personal file using a public computer because you will not know if the computer has been compromised. Use these 5 tips to keep your files secure. There will be moments where you are tempted to ignore these tips out of convenience. But always remember the value of your personal and sensitive information. Once they are compromised, the repercussions may be really damaging.

Irman Surani has over 15 years experience in the IT industry - primarily in networking and project management. Born in Singapore, when he is not at work, he likes to be involved with Internet Marketing, web design, Facebook fan page design, Photoshopping and music. He also conducts training on Photoshop, Social Media and Web Design to his local community in his spare time. Read his blog for tips on various other topics.