Learning Zone ~ Security

What do you mean by computer security?

Open front door

In days gone by, you could go out leaving your door unlocked, trusting you would return and find things as you left them. The same used to be true of the Internet in the I970s, as it was built on trust & the ability of users to share expensive & scarce resources in a responsible way.

Today, that trust has gone, and just as it's important to secure your home, so too it's important to make sure your computer is safe. This is especially true if you are connected to the Internet by broadband.

There are numerous sites about security on the Internet, with Yahoo providing one of the latest. There are a lot of products to choose from, some of which are free, a selection of which can be found at The FreeSite.com.

What steps can I take?

Keeping out the crooks
  1. Install a firewall & keep it up-to-date.
  2. Install an anti-virus system & keep it up-to-date..
  3. Use MicroSoft Windows Update system
  4. Check your pc for Spyware.
  5. Backup important files.
  6. Update software to the latest version.
  7. Don't open e-mail attachments unless you know who they are from & are expecting them.

Once installed, many security products can be set to update automatically

How to check a site is secure

address bar showing secure hypertext transfer protocol https
  • Check that the web address starts with https which shows it is secure.
  • Check that there is a closed padlock in the status bar (or address bar), which shows that personal data is encrypted.
  • Click on the padlock to open up & check the security certificate. Go on, try it now, the name after 'issued to' should be the web address of the site you think you are on, in this case www.amazon.co.uk ~ if it isn't, you might be on a spoof site, so don't go any further.
status bar showing padlock indicating a secure web site

Further advice about money transactions online can be found at Bank Safe online, & Consumer Direct where you can get a number of fact sheets about online shopping. There is also a part of the Consumer Direct site about Scams. Have a look at an example of an old scam still doing the rounds.


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