Securing Your Computer
by Office of Technology Policy & Projects Staff
October 26, 2004 -- For many practicing psychologists, accessing the Internet has become a regular and routine task. However, unless you have taken steps to protect your computer, the task also can be dangerous. Email attachments, viruses, spam, and malicious users have the potential to cause great harm to your computer and the information stored within it.
This article briefly outlines security considerations for psychologists in practice, including antivirus protection, firewall protection, anti-spam protection, and operating system updates. The final section provides links to several popular software solutions for PC and Mac computers.
Antivirus Protection
Computer viruses have the potential to damage or destroy your computer system and files, and can quickly spread to other networked computers in your practice. To protect your computer against virus attacks, consider installing antivirus software. Most antivirus software products remove viruses and other malicious agents by automatically scanning all incoming and outgoing email messages.
For these measures to work, it is important to keep your antivirus software up-to-date. Fortunately, most programs allow you to subscribe to a service that will automatically download and install virus protection updates, and then scan your computer after each software update.
Firewall Protection
Whether you access the Internet using a dial-up or broadband (such as DSL or Cable) connection, using a firewall protects your computer from security threats. Consider installing personal firewall software, which will give you the ability to control all Internet access to your computer and files. Additionally, the software will block suspicious incoming Internet traffic by keeping all unknown intruders out and also prevents against information being sent from your computer without your knowledge.
Anti-Spam Protection
Filtering out unwanted and unsolicited email messages known as spam can help you transform your email inbox into a more secure and manageable environment. A number of the most popular email programs do not provide much protection against spam. Purchasing anti-spam software or subscribing to an anti-spam service can help you block unwanted junk email and pop-up ads, and can filter out email containing offensive content, while allowing specific email or domain addresses to get through.
Operating System Updates
Another way to avoid computer security problems is to download the latest security updates for your computer’s operating system. Some operating systems, such as Windows 2000 and XP, automatically notify users that updates are available and download and install the latest updates. Security patches for older systems need to be downloaded manually.
The latest security updates for Windows operating systems are available at Microsoft’s Windows update site at http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com/. Operating system updates for Mac operating systems are available on Apple’s support site at http://www.apple.com/support/.
Software Bundles
A number of popular all-in-one software packages help you handle your computer security needs. These bundles can provide you with antivirus, firewall, and anti-spam protection all at the same time. PC users might consider the following popular software packages:
Norton Internet Security 2005
McAfee Internet Security 6.0
ZoneAlarm Security Suite 2005
PC-cillin Internet Security 2005
For Macintosh users, the Apple-endorsed security suite is Norton’s Internet Security Suite 3.0 as it contains an antivirus component, personal firewall program, and blocks pop-ups and other types of web advertisements. This software only provides limited email protection.
For more information, visit Symantec's site.
For protection against unwanted email, Mac users may want to consider using Spamfire.
For additional information regarding your practice's computers, visit the Practice Technology section.
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