When there is no one at home, a locked door is more dissuasive than an open door …

Before going any further, I propose a little game. Put yourself a minute in place of a hacker … What would you consider a good reason to enter a stranger house without asking permission?

  1. The bait of gain.
  2. The lure of fame.
  3. The opportunity was too good not to take advantage of it.

Here are already three. There are certainly others. Having that in mind helps you to establish accordingly your protection strategy.

Indeed if we can not really act on point 1 and 2. We can set up obstacles to dissuade them from putting point 3 into action.

What can I do to protect my data and hardware?

First of all, there is no solution which is 100% effective and self-sufficient. There will always be smarter people who will get through the cracks. But at least they can slow down and dissuade a majority.

Here are the one I use :

Install and activate a firewall

The firewall will manage the inputs and outputs of your PC if you are alone, from your network if you are many. Ideally, you should give access permissions to only to a small selection of sites or programs.

Install and set up an antivirus

It will look after what is happening inside your computer. It will patrol and report suspicious behavior.

Use appropriate passwords

Ideally with a minimum of 8 characters, numbers and letters, uppercase and lowercase, with symbols and especially not forming a word from the dictionary.

Check Windows security settings

Use administrator and user roles. Set up user account control.

Monitor your updates

Only accept updates from trusted sites. Check the settings of your software updates. Be attentive and selective.

Check the setting of your web browser

Install add-ons for your protection when surfing the Internet. Clear traces, cookies, and history.

That’s a start. By already putting the above in place, you have a good foundation to ensure the security of your data and keep your computer running.

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