In recent times the internet and all the computers attached to it have become more and more popular. Security is nowadays a big concern but there is no simple help or tutorial available. As I already explained in a previous post, Computer security is not a one-stop-buy. It is an ongoing topic and you really have to understand what you are doing.

The first part of course is for home users to secure their computers. One major problem is that not every home user is technologically literate. I made a small check list of things that home users should try to secure their computers. This is not exactly a full help or tutorial, more like a cheat-sheet that you can verify your settings against. This is intended for the less literate computer users and you can , actually please DO if you want to, re-distribute this list or a link to this list to all your family members that do not know about Computer Security.

1. Make sure your firewall is up and running. You can verify this easily, if you have Windows XP Service Pack 2 or Windows Vista, by opening the Control Panel and opening the FIREWALL panel. In Windows Vista it is all in the Security Center.
   
2. Make sure you have Anti Virus Software installed and updated. Many vendors and products have automatic updates enabled by default in their security products but some don’t. Make sure you do not ignore the little balloons that pop up every now and then at the bottom of the taskbar.
3. Keep your Windows machine up to date. The best thing to do is to enable the Automatic Updates feature with Windows XP Service Pack 2 or later. If you have not done it yet, UPGRADE TO SERVICE PACK 2!!!
4. Do NOT use Internet Explorer. Use Firefox or Opera. Even Internet Explorer 7 is not what marketing wants you to believe. Consider the simple facts, Firefox and Opera had “innovative features” such as popup blocking and Tabbed browsing, for many years before IE 7 came out. Firefox is stable, fast and works. Just as is Opera.
5. Do NOT trust what you receive in your email to be true. Phishing is just a way for fraudulent people to get your passwords and bank or email access. Companies and Organizations will never ask you to confirm your details online OUT OF THE BLUE. They will also never ask you to mail them your password.
6. The same goes for so called “update mails” Where Microsoft or other vendors supposedly mail you updates? Don’t you wonder where they got your email address from to begin with? Don’t install those updates!
7. Whatever comes in your email that is not from a person you really know, and even then do not open any updates unless you requested it from them, is most likely viral , or spam. This means people send out as much mail out to as many email addresses and wait to see who bites. Trust me, you will not get any millions of dollars from some son of a dead nigerian general. You will not receive any millions for winning the lottery in a random internet draw and you definitely are NOT the only person who gets these mails.
8. Do not reveal too much information about yourself on sites like myspace.com. If you feel like you need a myspace page then at least be discreet what you reveal.
9. Secure your Wireless Lan, if you have a WLAN at home, make sure it is password protected!! If you do notknow how to do it, ask anyone with more computer knowledge. The fact that you ask them to do something GOOD will not anger them, trust me.
10. Lock your workstation, at work, in a cafe, wherever. When you are not working with it, lock it. IF your laptop gets stolen it might not deter the thief much, but it wills till do something. Chances are, if the thief was an oppurtunist, he will just format the machine and not crack it. Especially with Vista’s new bitlocker enabled.

That’s it. Do not wonder why people that commit all these fraudulent activities are not in jail etc. There are certain points to consider, they might be in a country that has relaxed laws if any at all, they definitely hide their identity with free email addresses and they always use public access points. That means they go to an internet cafe and do their “work” from there. They might even hijack an open Wireless Lan and do it from there. It is rare that they are caught and for every one caught there are 3 more. What is the benefit for them? If they send out 10 million emails a day and only 3 people bite, that is good money for them.

Any other tiops you professionals have, please leave them in the comments. It can only help!

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