While small offices and home computers have a less complex set of security needs than larger businesses, the process of determining optimal protection is similar (although simpler). We’ve outlined below the eight steps you should take to figure out the security you need for your data.
Step 1: Identify what’s valuable to you.
First, identify what data is valuable, where it is, and who has access to it. We’ve provided some suggestions for how best to tackle this important first step here.
Step 2: Back it up
Get an automatic backup process in place to recover valuable data when (not if) you need to. The process should include incremental backups so you always have the latest version of your most important data backed up.
Step 3: Firewalls
Use a software firewall at the Internet gateway – in other words, at the DSL or cable modem where your Internet connection comes in. If you use dial-up, this does not apply but we still recommend having a personal Firewall. See also Step 6 – Laptops below.
Step 4 – Anti Malware
The most efficient way to tackle malware is with a security suite that provides protection against a number of different threat types in one package. With a single package containing anti-spyware, anti-virus, and often anti-spam, a firewall, and more, suites can save a lot of money and hassle because all the different pieces have been specifically written to work together. All you need to do is set it to scan your computer regularly for malware and make sure you keep it up to date.
Step 5 – Updates
Make sure you apply security updates – sometimes called ‘patches’ – whenever they become available for the operating system, browser, and applications you use most regularly. Programs like Quicken, QuickBooks, Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Publisher, Power Point etc.), have regular update schedules (Microsoft, for example, has ‘patch Tuesday’ on the second Tuesday of every month).You can set your computer to automatically check for updates for many of these programs.
Step 6 – Laptops
If you regularly carry around a laptop with valuable data on it, one of the best protection moves you can make is to encrypt the data. If you travel a lot, you might also want to consider a theft tracking program in case it gets stolen. A personal firewall is essential for laptops, especially if you make frequent use of free WiFi hotspots and other access points, where the security is not under your control.
Step 7 – Wireless computing
If you set up a wireless access point for your home or business, it should be configured to use both authentication and encryption. For authentication, make sure you change the initial login for the wireless access point from “Admin” and “Password” (or what ever it was by default) to something more secure. For encryption, opt for WPA over WEP; WPA encrypts data in transit so it can’t be intercepted by hackers “sniffing” data entering and leaving the wireless network.
Step 8 – Mobile phones and PDAs
Mobile phones and PDAs are really cut-down computers these days, and they need the same level of protection as any other device that can access the Internet and send and receive messages. Because there’s less protection available as yet for these devices, make extra sure you install manufacturers’ updates and patches as soon as they become available.
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