Consider Michael Fiola, who at age 53 was issued a Dell Latitude by his employer, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The improperly protected computer was attacked by malicious programs that downloaded pornography on his work computer without his knowledge. He was fired from his job for violation of company policies, lost his paycheck, benefits, friends, family and status in the community, and was this month vindicated by cyber-detectives who found that the products that should have been protecting his computer were never installed. Mr. Fiola still uses a computer at home and at work, and he’s become a much savvier computer user, understanding much more about the programs running today.
Malware – malicious computer programs including viruses, spyware, Trojans, rootkits, and more – may not ruin your career, but they cost you time, money and frustration. Your points of protection are hardware and software firewalls, operating system patches, application and e-mail patches and updates, anti-malware programs, and the way you practice safe computing. Consider the threat level of the Internet at “orange” and practice the following:
- Always be sure your anti-malware program is running and up to date
- Make sure your computer is updated and patched
- Be sure your firewalls are turned on and active
- Only open e-mails from trusted senders
- Do not open attachments or links from e-mails
- Do not browse sites that are not trusted
If you are an employer, and provide your employees with computers, consider “locking down” the ability to install computer programs on employees’ computers. You will protect them and you if you do not give them administrative rights to their computers. If an employee either on purpose or inadvertently downloads questionable software, they expose themselves and you as the employer to liability.
Cheers - Terri .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
http://www.reececomputers.com
