Lockdown Is Lifting – Keep Your Computer Safe While You’re Out

With plans for May 17th to be the day we see lockdown restrictions ease further for people in the UK, many of us are starting to make plans with family and friends and venture out of the house. While this is a very exciting time, the reality of leaving the house for long periods of time can leave us more vulnerable to petty crimes. As a Manchester-based tech-support company, we offer a range of security support services and understand the importance of keeping personal information safe from threats.

ChurchillSecurity (2018) stated that in recent years there has been an average of one burglary every three days in the city’s central areas like Northern Quarter and Ancoats, making it more important than ever to keep our belongings secure.

An interesting fact from SafeStyleUK (2021), claims that burglars are now more interested in your personal identity data as opposed to larger objects with value such as televisions and surround sound systems. With our laptops and PC’s containing sensitive information, it’s an easy target for intruders to obtain. That’s why it’s important to remember how to keep our valuables safe whilst we leave our homes unattended. Here are a few things to remember when wanting to protect your private information on an electrical device.

Strong passwords that differ from each account login

Passwords are the first line of defence when it comes to protecting personal information on your computer. If your password is the same on all of your accounts, you are more vulnerable to multiple cyber security attacks. Therefore, you should ensure to keep your passwords unique to each account login to minimise the risk of threat. Strong passwords are also a vital tool to keep your sensitive information safe and secure. Strong passwords consist of at least eight characters in length and should contain uppercase, lowercase, numbers and letters within it. For extra protection, ensure that you don’t include personal information associated with yourself in your passwords such as your name, birthday, mother’s maiden name etc. Disconnecting with sensitive information in your logins reduces the risk of someone successfully figuring out your password through information about you.

Browser history clean up

If someone has access to your browser history, they can trace back to confidential sites you might have visited, for example, your online banking or your personal emails. All computers can erase website history as well as caches and cookies which will not only protect your sensitive information to potential burglars, but also online security threats. Keeping on top of this will also improve your browser hygiene and put you in the habit of this important yet unnoticed process.

A trusty backup plan

An external hard drive is essential to keeping a backup copy of important files stored on your computer. If you’re someone who has their hard drive constantly plugged into your work station, ensure that you unplug the device and keep it in a safe place away from your PC or laptop when you head out the door. This will ensure that you still have all your important information saved to a second device that can be retrieved easily in the event of theft.

You should also consider backing up your sensitive files to several different locations such as a cloud system, dropbox or even a different computer. These steps may seem over precautious but will benefit you greatly in the long run and give your files an extra layer of security.

Keep it out of sight

According to APIAlarm (2021), the average duration of a burglary lasts between eight to twelve minutes. Leaving a laptop or macbook in plain sight within your home makes it more susceptible and easy to snatch. Before heading out, ensure you place it somewhere less convenient for someone to grab and go. For example, somewhere you can lock up before you leave, and if you don’t have access to an area of your home with that feature, somewhere unexpected such as a shelving unit in your wardrobe or in a cupboard in the kitchen. This will greatly reduce the risk of your device being the first thing someone will gravitate to steal if it’s not immediately on display to them.

Password encrypt your device

Applying a strong password before you can access anything on your computer will create another layer of security for your personal information. Following the strong password method previously mentioned, is going to give your device a strong wall of defence that could save your sensitive data from being infiltrated. If you have a “find my device” application on your smartphone, this could be vital in determining the whereabouts of your computer before anyone has had the chance to hack into it.

Logout before closing

This is a simple piece of information that will greatly reduce the risk of anyone accessing confidential files or information that you wouldn’t want them to see. An easy habit a lot of us take part in is closing a page that we have an account logged into, before what is known as “formally logging out” – which is essentially logging out before you close the webpage.

Cookies retain login information. This can be extremely useful if you need to quickly access your account and can’t remember the password, however, if you haven’t logged out before closing the site you’ve visited, you’ll remain logged in while offline. The significance of this is that if someone was to obtain your computer and visit a site you didn’t log out from, they would have access to your account and potentially access your private information available on the account.

From students to families, it’s important to keep our private and sensitive information safe from potential threats, especially now as we venture out and enjoy the reopening of bars, restaurants, theatres etc. These methods will help optimise your computer’s wall of defence and reassure yourself that you enhance the safety and security of your valuables.

For further information or local enquiries on computer security, tech support and more, check out Manchester PC.