These days, the news is full of stories about hacking and data breaches that have exposed the personal information of millions of people. It is therefore more important than ever to protect your computers and mobile devices from hackers who may try to steal personal information or use your device as part of a botnet, which could then be used in ransomware attacks or distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks against others.
6 tips to protect your PC from hackers
These 6 tips to protect your computer from viruses, hackers and all types of malware will help keep you and your data safe from malicious actors.
1. Use a strong password
One of our first lines of defence against hackers is the password. A strong password is a combination of letters, numbers and symbols. It also should not be easy to guess (such as your name or date of birth). Enable two-factor authentication if you are using an online service that asks you to reset your password.
Avoid reusing passwords across multiple sites as well.
You should also use a password manager. Password managers save the passwords for all your online accounts so you don’t have to remember them. Some of the most popular include LastPass and 1Password, but there are many others.
Keep the following in mind when you create a password for anything (not just for your computer): use a combination of letters, numbers and symbols in your passwords (for example, “p#ck1es” or “n0p3wns”) so they are harder to crack than normal words (“password”). If possible, make sure it is at least 12 characters long!
Avoid using personal information (for example, your date of birth) or dictionary words (“dog”) in your password or passwords. Also try not to repeat character sequences – for example, if you’ve used “dog” in one place, you might be tempted out of habit to try something slightly different like “d0g” elsewhere, but this could actually make things easier for someone who knows your habits and guesses correctly when trying to access your other accounts.
2. Keep your operating system up to date
Make sure you have the latest version of your operating system. Updates are released regularly by the developers for all major operating systems, including Windows and macOS. These updates include bug fixes and security patches that can help defend against hackers. Any device connected to the internet should be updated as soon as possible!
Update any antivirus software or other security products installed on your computer or devices to make sure they are also up to date with the latest patches available from their manufacturers, so they are able to detect any viruses, malware and other threats as quickly as possible after they are created by hackers, protecting you from them before they become dangerous enough to cause damage or data loss. These updates are usually released at least once a month, but they can be more frequent depending on how quickly new threats appear in different parts of the world, so check for them often!
3. Firewalls
A firewall is software that protects your computer from malicious users trying to access your machine via the internet. Firewalls can be hardware or software. If you have a router, it acts as a firewall for all devices connected to it via Wi‑Fi or Ethernet cables. The most important thing to remember about firewalls is that they are not 100% secure and do not offer complete protection against hackers and viruses, but they do provide a certain level of security against them.
4. Antivirus protection
Antivirus software is essential, but it is important to make sure it is up to date. You can check this by going to the antivirus software’s website and looking at the list of supported programs. If your computer does not have all of these programmes, you should update them immediately. Once you have updated your antivirus software, regularly run a scan of your computer with it to detect any new viruses as quickly as possible. If you find a virus on your computer, delete it immediately and remember: do not open emails from unknown senders and do not click on adverts in search engines. They could contain dangerous malware!
5. Keep third-party plug-ins to a minimum.
These days there are many third-party plug-ins that can be used to track your activity and steal your personal information. They can also be used to infect your computer or even steal money from you. The best thing to do is therefore to keep their number as low as possible by disabling them when they are not needed.
6. Check the website’s reputation.
Look for the padlock icon. If a website has a padlock, it means it is encrypted, which gives you confidence that your personal data is safe from prying eyes.
