Security experts agree that average home computer users have very little knowledge regarding how to make their computers secure. What suggestions would you offer to make more users security competent?

Answer 1

-Use an antivirus/antimalware. A good commercial one is McAffee, among others such as Norton. For free, there's avast! or AVG Free edition. -Use Linux or a Unix system, such as Mac OS or FreeBSD. Ask yourself this: would you use Windows for a sensitive computing environment (e.g. top-secret gov't documents?) -If you use Windows, be careful. Don't use the internet or connect your computer to any network w/o an antimalware suite. Be careful with downlaods, avoid Limewire and other filesharing apps. -Use long passwords (that you can remember) integrating numbers, symbols and the whole enchilada. -Always be around your PC when it's being repaired. You can't trust anyone these days, and even a nice, sharp-looking tech can whip out his flash drive and copy sensitive data to it while you are away pulling clothes out of the dryer. -Watch your children. Make sure they are only on limited accts so your four year old doesn't render Windows useless by opening the Command Prompt and coincidentally screwing things up--things like that. It always happens! Plus, you don't want them on sites that are bad. -Don't put foreign CDs, floppies, USB flashdrives, etc into your computer. Does this mean for example "don't put that original-looking Microsoft Office Install CD in?" No. But if you don't know where it came from, don't use it. -Stomp the living lights out of your hard disk drive if and when you dispose of your computer. A safer, sane and easier way to protect data before desposing/donating is to use a disk sanitizer. You'll find some on the Internet or maybe at your local Staples or CompUSA if you're lucky. -I would have two separate machines: one for Internet, and one for the "important" stuff. That way, if a virus creeps in or if some crook decides to spy on you, they'll find nothing or ruin nothing important. Your "important" computer will contain your important stuff and will not be connected to any network. Antimalware/antivirus software cannot possibly make your computer 100% virus/malware free, immune, whatever. Maybe the real number is around 88% or so. -My advice with buying with credit cards: If you get those prepaid credit cards at Rite Aid or something where they act like credit cards but are actually debit cards, you won't have the potential of someone damagaing your credit score. If someone does steal your credit card #, it will just be a minor inconvenience and you won't have to fight with your credit card co and the credit agencies. I wouldn't use a real credit card on the internet. -Stay away from online banking -there's more ways, I'm just wore out from typing... hope this helps.