Johannesburg, 19 Mar 2009
McAfee is urging all PC owners to activate firewalls and security software to avoid losing money as a result of viruses, spyware and phishing schemes.
The company advises the following basic do's and don'ts to better secure PC and personal information:
* Make sure a PC has comprehensive security software, with a minimum of anti-virus, two-way firewall, anti-spyware, anti-phishing and safe search capabilities. Don't use anti-virus software alone, because it is not enough.
* Remember to set automatic updates for security software, if it has that function. Otherwise, set a date and time to do a manual check, and update once a week.
* Use e-mail wisely, McAfee says, as other PCs might not have the right protection and security in place, affecting the PCs it interacts with. Added to this, the company advises not to send any personal information, like bank account details via e-mail, or open mails from unfamiliar addresses, or click on links in e-mails that come unsolicited. Educate people on what info they can share online, what is safe to share and what should be kept private.
* Another step to better security, notes the company, is to start with creating strong and smart passwords for PC and online accounts, containing capital letters, numbers, special characters and using more than six characters - like: Go1dM!n3. McAfee also says the same password should not be used for various accounts.
* Search and shop safely by checking the online shop's privacy and security policies and checking for authentic security trustmarks.
* Imperative, says McAfee, is to always and regularly back-up important and critical information.
* If instant messaging (IM) is used, ensure personal information is not divulged online, and use a nickname for IM screen names.
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