Is your laptop as secure as it could be?

Currently most people not only have desktop computer but also laptops. For the most part our desktops are somewhat more secure than our laptops because they are in our homes and they in most cases are not wireless. Our laptops are like our cellular phone they go everywhere with us because we can do work at home, the office, traveling, or even coffee shops. Laptop theft is very common and here are a few tips to keep you from being a victim of theft. When I say theft, I mean it could involved the physical laptop being stolen or data extracted from you laptop.
One of the most important things never to do not only with laptops but also with any computer you use is leaving your password on or around the computer itself, do not leave a sticky note posted on it with your password. When you are using your laptop away from home, make sure that, you do not sit it down anywhere and accidentally forget it. Unfortunately people do make this mistake for instance when you go through security lines at the airport and you are trying to get all your bags sometimes important things such as your laptop get left behind. There are locks you can buy security cables to prevent help deter theft. Another important issue is that your data should be encrypted since there is always the possibility of the laptop being forgotten somewhere or even stolen like mentioned above. Many people have sensitive even classified information on their laptops and it needs to be secure. Many different software companies sell encryption software. The last tip would be to purchase tracking software, there are companies out there such as LoJack that you buy a yearly subscription and if the unfortunate happens and your laptop is stolen, these companies are able to track your computer and locate where it is working closely with the local police departments. These are reasonably easy things to do to keep your property safe. It is better to be safe than sorry.

How to Remove Spyware From Your PC

With all of the trojens, viruses, and spyware (oh my!) that are out there, sometimes knowing how you were infected is not quite as important as getting rid of the unwanted intruders. In the article, “How to Remove Spyware from Your PC” Andrew Brandt of PC World dives into the wonderful world of malicious software removal. Lately, removing these uninvited guests has become somewhat more difficult because “some types of spyware download and install additional components, often hiding pieces of code from Windows to make removal even harder.” This “How to” type of article provides a blueprint for removing all types of malicious programs.

The first step is to “Make Sure It's an Infection” because all too often, slow computers will just simply have too many applications running with too little system memory available to use or have a full or fragmented hard drive. The next step is a “Manual Analysis” of any of the spyware programs that are left over from the initial removal scans. Essentially, you need to find out exactly what it is before you can remove it. And the final step is to “Remove the Reprobates” from your PC using the removal program Hijack This. This step must be done carefully because if you remove the wrong component, you can render your PC unbootable.

How to Survive the Worst PC Disasters

In this handy-dandy little article, Christopher Null of PC World goes over some devastating PC situations and gives some technical, and yet common sense, approaches in handling these types of situations. This “How to” style article covers general wide open potential disasters, such as “Your computer won't boot” and “What if it’s the OS”, to more specific disasters like “You deleted a critical file, and you have no backup.” He also gives the reader an idea of how the problem happened in the first place (Likely Cause), how to fix the situation (The Fix), and how to avoid it the next time that it may happen. This extremely useful information can come in handy for just about anyone who owns a computer and it might someday just save you time, money, and your job.