6 Ways to protect your PC from hackers

During previous posts I have already dealt with different aspects related to computer security, trying to give guidelines to follow to minimize risks. Specifically, we have discussed how to protect our Wi-Fi network , how to avoid identity theft or how to protect our personal data on social networks .

In today’s post, I think it is necessary to make a compilation of general aspects that we should all take into account in order to protect our computer equipment and the information we have on it.

We will see that these tips cover different aspects, not only of the computer itself, but of what surrounds it, which after all is the gateway to cybercriminals.

Let’s see then what essential security advice we should follow to try to guarantee the security of our equipment, the information it contains and its environment, based on the basis that 100% security is impossible.

Always use an Antivirus and firewall

The first thing we must do when we launch a computer is to protect its possible vulnerabilities from the outside. This results in the use of a guaranteed antivirus. In this way we will be blocking the possibility of loss of information by a virus or malware.

It is not necessary to spend a fortune on an antivirus, there are several free antivirus programs that will undoubtedly free us from more than one scare.

An important complement is also the use of a firewall that will block unauthorized access. At the domestic level, we can use the same firewall that Windows provides us, which, if we adjust appropriately, will already allow us to have a sufficient level of security.

Updating programs and operating system

Every day new vulnerabilities appear in any of the programs that you can use on your computer. These vulnerabilities can lead to data loss.

To solve these vulnerabilities, software manufacturers are publishing updates that can also incorporate improvements.

It is highly recommended to apply the updates of your programs that appear and also all the updates of the operating system, which is where the greatest number of vulnerabilities usually arise.

Protect your wireless network

Increasingly, the use of wireless technology allows us to use our equipment in any home location without the limitation of physical cable.

Today all Wi-Fi routers come preconfigured with a password set by the manufacturer and which is highly secure a priori.

My recommendation is that you change that key and that you change the SSID or identifier of your Wi-Fi network so that it is not the one that comes from the factory.

It is also very important to change the factory password of the router administrator user.

With these measures, we will minimize the possibility that someone connects to our internal network and can access the information we have on our computers.

Different accounts for different users

If you are going to share your equipment, the most logical thing is that you create different user accounts for each of the people who will use the equipment.

These accounts must be protected with a password and avoid that all of them are administrators of the team. Actually, there should be an administrator account that should only use the administrator profile.

With these measures at the user account level, you will be able to limit access to the documents of each of the users.

On the other hand, it is highly recommended that you change the password of the user account periodically . These passwords must have a certain level of security, that is, they must be at least 8 characters long and must combine letters, numbers and signs.

Browse safely

The Internet is a fundamental tool for us today. It is very useful but it also has its risks since it is the easiest channel through which we can get into security problems.

From the Internet we must always watch that we are going to carry out an economic transaction or give some relevant information, that the information is being sent to a trusted place. To do this, we must check that the navigation is encrypted, using the https prefix in the navigation bar, which is the one that gives us this guarantee and allows us to see information about the server certificate issued for that website.

On the other hand, we must distrust the emails that we do not expect to receive, even if they come from an acquaintance. When in doubt, it is best to ask that acquaintance if they sent us that information.

These emails can contain malware that can steal our information, to erase or encrypt it, asking for money for its ransom.

We should also be wary of apparently safe emails that inform us of pending invoices or bank details updates, as they are usually not authentic.

Prevent information loss with backups

Another aspect that we often neglect is making backup copies. The operating system itself can provide us with the necessary tool to make our backups unattended and periodically.

It is worth investing in an external hard drive to store our backups and to ensure that, in the event of a hard drive failure, we have the ability to recover our most valuable information.

This is the best way to preserve our information and to be able to recover it in the event of a possible disaster.

I believe that with these tips that I just gave you, you can enjoy an adequate level of security for your team’s information, but we must never lower our guard. It is important to become aware of the dangers of data networks and to have an attitude of guard.

I always recommend you to be suspicious of any situation (web page, email, etc.) that may seem strange and suspicious to you and when in doubt, do not risk it.

Tell us if you are one of those who cares about security or you trust that nothing will ever happen to you.