Computer Protection Recommendations

1. Buy a UPS with an auto-shutdown feature

2. Create a Back-up Plan. Back-up your system on a regular basis onto external storage (e.g. external hard drive or DVD media). Store the backups ouside your home (i.e. with a friend, relative, safety deposit box, etc.).

3. Switch Operating Systems: Change to a Macintosh or Linux-based system. Walt Mossberg has a well-reasoned article on why to make the jump from Windows. End use of Windows 95/98/ME ASAP; Microsoft dropped support in 7/2006 instead of fixing a major security flaw. Note that Intel-based Macintoshes can run Windows if you still require Windows compatibility. Wait at least 6 months until switching to Windows Vista, at that time enough security patches should be available.

4. Do not connect to the Intenet unless you are behind a hardware-based firewall. Note that although the wireless-B standard (802.11b) is pretty much dead (in favor of 802.11g), a wireless-B router is still faster than the highest Internet bandwidth offered by your Internet provider. Also, newer 802.11g clients can still connect to the old 802.11b routers. Search ebay -- many Linksys wireless-B routers are available for under $10. The downside is that wireless-B routers may not have as many security features (e.g. WAP security) as is available on the wireless-G routers. Apple also supports the new wireless-N standard, which is 10 times faster than wireless-G.

5. Wireless router setup: change the default administrator password, enable mac filtering, and enable security (WEP minimum, WAP preferred).

6. Password-protect any file shares you use on the network.

7. Establish your own list of Internet trusted sites. Start with the established computer media, online services and established download sites: zdnet, cnet, pcworld, macworld, internet.com, aol, yahoo, google, download.com, tucows, sourceforge, etc.

8. Software installation: pre-scan floppies/CDs/DVDs/thumb drives/downloaded files. Internet: do not immediately open downloaded files; save first then scan. Only download web-hosted Programs from reliable sources. Google a program (or use review sites like http://softpedia.com) before you install to get a good idea of how good an application really is. Keep Current: stay up to date on the latest software available (check at least every 6-8 months or so for main software and upgrade at least every other main version). Also, make sure virus/spyware definitions and OS patches are updated at least monthly (enable Windows-XP and antivirus/antispyware automatic updates). You don't need to keep changing to the best vendor in the market, just make sure what you are running is still supported and is still well-rated. See #7 above for media sites, RSS readers are a good option to keep up on tech news. Monitor installed programs (start/control panel/add or remove programs). Remove unneeded programs.

9. Beware hoaxes & scams: snopes.com: don't believe everything you see on the Internet. Check here first.

10. Use Firefox. IE 6 is a security risk. For ultimate protection, try a less-featured browser like Opera. IE 7 is scheduled to be released soon; it is currently a release candidate, so may contain bugs.

11. Do a "view/status bar" in your web browser so you can mouse-over html links before you click them. If the URL doesn't look right (e.g. an unknown IP address like 70.45.23.222 or uses URL Cloaking) do not click the link.

12. Don't believe that ALL cookies are a security risk. Many legitimate web sites use these options to offer convenience features to you (e.g. auto log-in). Selectively delete them. Same goes for pop-ups -- some sites need them to function. Check your internet browser settings to determine how to enable/disable cookies on a per-site basis.

13. eMail: do NOT run a local eMail client (e.g. Outlook, Outlook Express, etc.) at home. Have someone else do this for you by using a free web-based email service, such as Yahoo email, gmail, hotmail. These services normally offer free virus scanning of attachments and also offer spam blocking.

14. Maximize Performance: Running antivirus, antispyware, and software-based firewall products in the background can be a tremendous strain on the processing power of your computer. Consider using hardware AND software-based firewalls in real-time mode and running the antivirus and antispyware scanners as scheduled processes. Only enable WPA security on wireless connections if your needs require it, but at the same time, implement mac address filtering.

15. If you run a web server or FTP server at home, try to host these types of applications on a secondary machine, not your main computer.