Your Security Checklist: Home, Car, Health – But What About Your PC?

Home and car insurance, home alarm system, deadlocks on windows and doors, income protection, health insurance … these are all things that we automatically have in place to protect ourselves and make our lives more secure. But what about our cyber lives? Are your PC, tablet and mobile protected?

According to a recent study by McAfee, 17 per cent of all PCs worldwide still either have no anti-virus installed or the installed software was disabled. The study, which was conducted in 24 countries, analysed data from up to 28 million PCs per month – so clearly it was comprehensive!

The study also looked at the trends within individual countries. And guess which country is the most protected? Finland – with just 10 per cent of its population unprotected.

And while Australia didn’t perform too badly coming in at number 8 out of 22, there is still absolutely room for improvement. According to the survey, nearly 16 per cent of Aussies are at risk of contracting a virus on unprotected PCs, losing their data or being a victim of identity theft.

So, what can you do to make sure you are protected?

1.     If you don’t have any security software then PLEASE make sure you get some.
2.     If you already have security software, PLEASE make sure it is turned on and not disabled!
3.     Don’t use the same password across all your devices. If a scammer discovers your password, they will have access to all of your accounts.
4.     Be wary of professional looking ‘pop-ups’ that say you must download software in order to protect your computer. Malware (aka malicious software) can be hidden in software so beware!

And remember while criminals may have many obstacles in the offline world – including locked doors and alarm systems – the Internet has no such defenses.  Being careful where you click helps, but if you are one of the 17% remember that security software is consumers’ first and, in many cases, only defense against cybercrime.

By Cybermum Australia