Computer Security Charlotte NC

Computer Security Tips

The recent cyber attack ransomware clearly shows hackers never rest! They spent many hours looking for loopholes in our computer security and trying to exploit them so that they can commandeer devices to generate cryptocurrency revenue, steal data or carry on other nefarious activities.

Phishing attacks, viruses, hackers, snoopers, etc. always pose serious digital threats. If you don’t take your computer security seriously, think again. You are putting yourself in great danger. Hackers employ several different techniques to invade your computer. Likewise, you must use different ways to protect against hacking.

We all know that computer security is paramount these days. You must protect all computers whether a personal computer used only for personal purposes or one used for business or official purposes.

You must always keep your computer secure mainly because much of our daily lives revolve around technology today. In this article, we will share with you five essential tips that can help you boost your computer security.

1. Use Good Antivirus/Internet Security Suite

This is the most fundamental thing. Ensure that you’re using the best and updated antivirus or internet security suite. While some people may argue that antivirus programs may not protect computers from all viruses, they play a very crucial role in enhancing the security of your computer. Choose antivirus software with the best features that would guarantee maximum security.

2. Secure Wi-Fi Connection(s)

Avoid unsecured Wi-Fi connections since they make the system quite vulnerable to hacking. Hackers can infiltrate the system easily using unsecured Wi-Fi connection(s). Therefore, it is always imperative to secure Wi-Fi with passwords. Ensure you encrypt the connection as well.

3. Encrypt The Hard Drive(S)

We would really recommend that you encrypt the hard drive(s) in your computer so that you make it difficult for anyone to steal data from the system.

If someone steals your computer or get an authorized access to the system, he or she would easily bypass the Windows password. However, encrypted hard drive(s) would guarantee security and confidentiality of the data in your system.

4. Stay Away From Tech Support Scams

There are many tech support scams online these days. You will come across pop-up alerts and cold calls saying you’ve computer security issues, and that you must fix them. We urge you to avoid such alerts since they’re often scams.

Once you accept their assistance, they would provide remote tech support. You will be exposing all your documents, data and files because they’ll get remote control of your system. That is why it’s always best to avoid tech support scams.

5. Browse Safe, Stay Safe From Phishing Emails Etc

Adopt safe internet browsing habits. Make purchases or payments only through secure websites only, always be wary of phishing links and emails, and stay away from spammy sites.

Computer Security Charlotte NC

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Computer Cleaning – The  Unit Fan is Essential

Dust Kills – Between taking care of the household, the kids, the pets, and the district PTA, computer cleaning is probably one of the last things that you think of doing on a regular basis. Without a regular maintenance schedule however, you could find out (the hard way) that a neglected computer is an energy hog – one that works harder than it needs to and one that could be a financial burden to replace.

Let’s talk about maintaining hardware. So much emphasis is put on maintaining a computer’s operating system that we sometimes forget how important it is to maintain a computer’s hardware components. Since there can be quite a few components to take care of, let’s talk about the most important one. The most important component of a computer’s hardware system is its fan. The fan is located on the computer’s CPU unit and when that thing gets clogged with dirt and dust, it can run down a computer faster than you can say, “Something’s wrong with my computer and I don’t know what it is!” In short, the fan is responsible for keeping a computer’s motor cool and this motor is what keeps the computer’s hard drive and peripherals functioning the way you need them to, which translates to “fast.” A dirty fan doesn’t rotate fast enough to keep that motor cool and a completely clogged fan just stops rotating altogether. This causes the computer’s motor to work harder – and a harder working motor can raise the electric bill! Worst case scenario: the motor can overheat and stop working as well. No motor equals no computer. Keep your computer’s fan clean by preventing the fan from getting dirty or dusty in the first place. Use the computer in a dust-free environment and never smoke around it. Nicotine and tar mean certain death when it comes to computer fans, however should you find a need to clean the fan, do so with extreme care. It’s quite easy to cause more damage from computer cleaning so if you’re not comfortable with cleaning your PC yourself, take it to a shop for servicing. Otherwise, you can unplug and disassemble the computer to do it yourself.

You’ll need a can of compressed air and an anti-static rag to remove stubborn clumps of dust. Hold the can perfectly vertical and spray the fan being careful not to spray the dust off the fan onto other sensitive parts of the computer like circuit boards or inside the motor casing. Wipe up remaining dust with your anti-static rag and then reassemble the computer. One thing that you certainly don’t want to use to remove computer dust is a vacuum cleaner. Although using a vacuum cleaner seems to make more sense, the strong suction of a vacuum cleaner can actually spark damaging static electricity or dislodge loose cables.

You also don’t want to use oil-based cleaners. Although Pledge may dust your wooden tables and cabinets to a perfect shine, the oil inside a cleaner like this will erode sensitive computer parts. Stick to a liquid-free dusting method and your computer cleaning routine will be safe enough to repeat as often as you need. As previously mentioned, preventing dust from entering the computer is extremely important and will reduce the need to open and dust your system in the first place. The severity of outside elements (smoking, humidity, pets, etc.) will ultimately determine how often you’ll need to de-dust your machine. But as an average, you shouldn’t need to perform this procedure any more than once or twice a year. The entire exercise should take no more than twenty minutes tops and once complete, you’ll immediately see and hear the difference in your machine. The computer’s keyboard and mouse will run more smoothly, hardware won’t take as long to connect, and the entire machine won’t be as loud as one that’s corroded with ugly dust bunnies.

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Uninstalling Programs On Your PC

Having a large number of programs means having a very large registry too. A hard disk full of unwanted programs and a registry full of unwanted entries can slow down data access speed and as a result deteriorate the performance of your computer. This is the reason why, we recommend that you scan your computer on a regular basis for programs you no longer use and uninstall them.

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Whether you are a residential customer with a small computer problem or a business with a full range of networked computers; Computer Doc can help! We can provide solutions, answers, and fixes for your most troubling issues.

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Meet One Of Our New Lead Technicians

My name is Sean Surace I am new to working at the Computer Doc as of April 2015. I have been in the computer industry for 20 years , both on the sales side and the technical side of the business.

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Your Business And Network Security

There are three things every small business should know to reduce its chances of becoming another network security statistic. Your employees are your biggest risk and asset – There is no fool-proof method to ensure total security without unplugging your connection to the internet – Back to the basics

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Whether you are a residential customer with a small computer problem or a business with a full range of networked computers; Computer Doc can help! We can provide solutions, answers, and fixes for your most troubling issues.

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