Improve digital life security

• Improve digital life security

With the digital life improving day by day, security for our digital data and information is of extreme importance. Almost all of the works involve computers, tablets, internets, … which are at risk of the many hackers who are competing to hack, steal, … our information in this digital life.

This article lists some methods to improve the security of our digital life and protect it from hackers and anyone who would try to steal it.

Improve digital life security #1 : Keep software up-to-date
Improve digital life security #2 : Encrypt your hard drives
Improve digital life security #3 : Lock down your smartphone
Improve digital life security #4 : Use virtual credit-card numbers 
Improve digital life security #5 : Secure your Wi-Fi
Improve digital life security #6 : https
Improve digital life security #7 : Avoid public PCs and Wi-Fi
Improve digital life security #8 : Use passwords properly


Improve digital life security #1 : Keep software up-to-date

This is a very simple but important security precaution you should take. Keeping your software up-to-date doesn’t just mean Windows. Adobe, Apple, Mozilla and other software makers periodically release bug fixes and security patches. Cybercriminals commonly exploit known vulnerabilities and Adobe Reader is a frequent target of such assaults.

Updates can also include new security features. For example, Adobe Reader X, the latest version of Adobe’s PDF reader, uses a ‘Protected Mode’ to shut down malware attacks. So, you should not ignore the update messages you receive from the applications installed on your system as this is better for securing your digital life.

Of course, this applies even more for your anti-viruses. Keeping an old version of an anti-virus is no good. You should upgrade as soon as possible. Though you are receiving new signatures every day, the latest versions of anti-viruses are better and improved. Antiviruses do not solely rely on signature file to identify malwares, buy they also use heuristic techniques to detect and block new infections.

Be sure to upgrade to the latest version of the antivirus you use, and do not forget one that has internet security. Internet sites are viewed by many people and if cybercriminals have hacked these pages, you`ll likely be infected once you visit these pages. You can use a link scanner to minimize this problem. Various free options are available, such as AVG LinkScanner (linkscanner.avg.com), McAfee SiteAdvisor (siteadvisor.com), Norton SafeWeb Life (safeweb.norton.com) and Web of Trust (mywot.com). Many PC security suites come with a link scanner, too.

Among the best antiviruses is Bitdefender (I use it). It takes some more RAM that the others and it is good. And if you’re unwilling to pay for Protection, decent free options include Avira, AVG, ThreatFire and Microsoft Security Essentials.


Improve digital life security #2 : Encrypt your hard drives

Hard drives and USB flash drives are the hardware that we use to store our personal data and leaking them are the objectives of hackers. So, by losing them, you have put yourself at great risk. However, if you can encrypt your hard drives or USB flash drives, this would provide an extra layer of protection beyond setting a password.

Encrypting your hard drive will conceal its data and make accessing it almost impossible for anyone who doesn’t know the encryption key. The Ultimate and Business editions of Windows 7 and Vista come with BitLocker, a tool that lets you encrypt your entire hard drive.

Alternatively, you can use TrueCrypt (truecrypt.org), a free, open-source tool that can encrypt your PC’s entire disk, a portion of a disk, or an external drive. As for Mac OS X, it includes FileVault, a tool for encrypting your Mac’s Home folder; Lion, the next major Mac OS X release on the horizon, will let you encrypt your Mac’s entire hard drive.

If you want even more security, some hard drives and flash drives are equipped with encryption tools. Some of these drives have built-in fingerprint readers for additional security.


Improve digital life security #3 : Lock down your smartphone

Now, if you use smatphone, it probably contains lots of personal information - photos, email addresses, contacts, Facebook and Twitter account loqins and the like. So, make sure to secure the smatphone. The security applications are normally free for smartphones and you won`t have much problems finding one and installing it before actually being attacked by the many Trojan horses out there.

It you have an Android phone, the first app you should install on it is an antivirus program. Besides scanning for malware, mobile antivirus apps often support such features as remote wipe (letting you securely remove all data stored on the phone if you lose it), GPS tracking (for locating your phone if you misplace it) and SUS spam blocking.

As mobile antivirus, I recommend using the well-known brands. One of the best free options is Lookout Mobile Security. Lookout scans your phone for existing malware and automatically scans any apps you install on your phone. Other paid-for antivirus apps include Norton Mobile Security, AVG Antivirus Pro and McAfee WaveSecure.

Because Apple’s App Store takes a restrictive approach to apps sold there, iPhone owners don’t have to worry as much about malware - although it’s always possible for something to slip through the cracks. Apple hasn’t allowed any proper antivirus applications into its App Store either, but you do have some security options.

Find My iPhone is a device-tracking and remote-wipe service and is part of the MobileMe service, but Apple also offers it to any iPhone, iPad or iPod touch owner free of charge. With Find My iPhone, you can lock down and remotely delete data stored on your iPhone, track the device via GPS, remotely set a passcode, and display an onscreen message with an alarm sound (letting you locate a misplaced device).


Improve digital life security #4 : Use virtual credit-card numbers

Online transaction, buying and selling is common nowadays. While browsing the net, you may come across an interesting product or services that you want to use; so you buy it, even without really knowing much about the company you are dealing with. So, using your credit card numbers at such places can be a bit dangerous. One way to secure your online shopping is to use virtual credit-card numbers.

Acting as a wrapper for your regular credit card or debit-card account, a virtual credit-card number works once only. Once you use the virtual number, the bank that supplied it charges your purchase to your regular credit or debit card, and hackers never gain access to your real details.

Companies like Visa UK and Paypal provide ‘disposable’ or virtual cards specifically for this purpose, in addition to more security questions that banks ask for during our online shopping. One other service named ShopShield provides), a virtual credit-card number service that you can use with any credit card or current account. They also offer virtual Visa cards.

You should also regularly check your accounts to see that no one has already taken control over your account and is using it at times.


Improve digital life security #5 : Secure your Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi networks are greatly being used, so securing the Wi-Fi is extremely important as other people may use it and gain access to your data. To secure your Wi-Fi network, you can encrypt it and whenever you use it, you have to enter a password. This is better than having your data stolen and hacked.

Normally, most Wi-Fi routers support Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP), Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) and WPA2 encryption standards. Be sure to use either WPA or WPA2, which provide a much higher level of security than WEP.

Another precaution is to prevent your router from broadcasting its service-set ID (SSID, your network’s name). Disabling SSID broadcasting would make invisible to nearby computers, and only people who specifically know your network’s name will be able to find it.

The procedure for locking down Wi-Fi will vary depending on your router model. Check the documentation for instructions.


Improve digital life security #6 : https


Another way to protect yourself online is to use Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure (https) whenever possible. This encrypts the connection between your PC and the site you’re visiting. Although https doesn’t guarantee that a site is secure, it can help prevent others from hacking into the network and gaining access to your account. You may notice it with Paypal and other such sites.

Many sites use https by default: when you purchase an item online or log into online banking, for instance, your browser will probably connect to the site via https automatically. However, you can use https with other sites too. Try to browse the settings of the sites and see if you can use https. Sites like Gmail, Twitter and Facebook do have this setting.


Improve digital life security #7 : Avoid public PCs and Wi-Fi

Using public computers is really a threat for your data, especially when you need to isnert a USB drive. Public PCs are filled with viruses, of different types, names, … Examples are computers that are used at schools, cafés and others. They are really highly infected by malwares.

The same is true of open Wi-Fi networks. Cybercriminals may set up rogue wireless networks that look legitimate (for instance, one may use the same name as the café you’re visiting), but enable the crooks to collect your personal information. Even legitimate open Wi-Fi networks may leave you vulnerable. For an example, look no further than the Firesheep plug-in for Firefox. which allows just about anyone to hijack login sessions for various social networks.

Sometimes, you may have no choice but to use a public computer or Wi-Fi network. When you do. don’t use it to check your email or social-networking accounts, engage in online banking or perform any other action that entails logging into a site. If you have access to a virtual private
network (VPN), use it.


Improve digital life security #8 : Use passwords properly


Many users do not know how to use passwords properly. Many times, they use common words as passwords, and it is well known that among the techniques that hackers use to try the various words of dictionaries until they find the correct password through the automatic trial-and-error process.

A good password is a long one, composing of alphabets and numbers, forming a word that does not actually exist. Of course, use one that you would remember. One good practice is to use different passwords, especially for important accounts that you have. As for the simple forums, accounts, and others that are not very important and can be re-created at any time, it may be a pain to use different passwords, so you may use a common one.

Now, your email usually contains most of your password for the various sites that you use. Be sure to correctly secure your email, this is better for security. You can additionally use anti-keylogging software to prevent keyloggers from obtaining your passwords as you type them. Keyscrambler is one of these programs



These were some ways to improve your security of your daily digital life. There are many others that have not been listed here. You may add any other that you believe is good and tell us how you actually improve your digital security.