Free Stuff

Checklist for PC Users at Home

This is one of a set of 6 free security checklists.  To see the others, click the "free checklists" link above.  To use the checklist, we suggest that you print it out, consider each point in turn, then tick the box when you've dealt with it.

Remember, this isn't a quiz or a test. You don't score points for each box you tick or leave blank, and there's no league table of top scorers.

		What	Why
1	c	Ensure that you have antivirus software installed and that it is updated at least once a week, either manually or automatically.  Check occasionally to ensure that it really is up to date.  If your antivirus software subscription has expired, renew it as a matter of urgency.	Antivirus software stops viruses and trojans getting onto your computer. Such "malware" could allow remote hackers to access your files and see what you're typing.  Obsolete software won't protect you from new viruses, or new strains of existing viruses.
2	c	Never click on a link within an email message, or download an attachment linked to an email message, unless you are 100% confident that the source can be trusted.  If in doubt, just delete the message.  Remember, banks never email you to ask you to log in to your account.	Viruses, trojans, password stealers and other types of "malware" often spread by automatically emailing themselves to potential victims.  Clicking on an untrustworthy attachment is like inviting a burglar through your front door - it bypasses any protection offered by your firewall.
3	c	If you're running Windows, download and run the free Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer program. You'll find it by searching for MBSA on www.microsoft.com.	It will tell you whether you are missing any important security patches, and automatically install them for you.
4	c	If you haven't turned on the firewall in Windows, do so.	It will help to protect you from hackers on the internet.  It will also help to prevent any rogue software which finds its way onto your PC from making contact with outside hackers.
5	c	If you have a telephone-based broadband connection (ADSL) and you are using a broadband modem that plugs into your computer via the USB port, consider replacing it with a router.	A router is much more secure than a USB modem.  They normally have a built-in firewall, which is better than the one provided with Windows because it can block hackers before they even reach your computer.
6	c	Ensure that you have enabled the Automatic Updates feature in Windows.	This will ensure that security patches issued by Microsoft will be downloaded and installed automatically on your computer.
7	c	If you're running any version of Windows prior to XP, update to XP or Vista.   If you're running Windows XP and you haven't installed Service Pack 2, download and install it urgently.	Versions of Windows prior to XP Service Pack 2 are much less secure than modern releases.  They are not as resilient to hackers, viruses, or malicious web pages.
8	c	If you have a broadband or cable router that is providing wifi access, you must enable encryption.	Without encryption, neighbours and strangers can access your internet connection and, possibly, the files on your PC.  WEP encryption is an older standard and is not as strong  as WPA, but is better than nothing if your router doesn't support WPA.
9	c	If you are using your computer for online shopping, always buy from sites run by reputable companies that you trust.	If you provide your credit card details to a company that you haven't heard of, there's a chance that the company might be fraudulent and might misuse your information.
10	c	If you use online banking, or other online services where security is paramount, always use a different password for each bank or site.	If someone discovers or guesses your password, that password is only valid for one site rather than multiple sites.
11	c	Before entering personal information such as a password or your credit card number into a web site, check for a closed padlock symbol at the bottom of your screen and that the adddress of the site starts with https rather than just http.	The https prefix and the closed padlock symbol means that all the information which you type into the web site will be encrypted before being sent to the site, thus ensuring that hackers can't intercept it.  Also, companies which use https sites are easier to trace should anything go wrong.
12	c	If you have confidential documents stored on your PC you should therefore consider the use of an encryption program, or look up details on how to use the EFS (Encrypting File System) feature built into Windows.	If someone were to steal your computer, they could read all the files stored on it, even if you have configured Windows to ask for a username and password for each user.  Encrypting the files prevents this.
13	c	Make copies of all the important files that are on your computer, such as documents, emails, photographs, music tracks, video clips, and so on.  The most convenient way to do this is to use an external USB hard drive or a "pen drive", depending on how much data you have.  Never keep your backup near your computer.	If your computer breaks, or is lost or stolen, you risk losing all of the information stored on it.  If you have backup copies of that information you can easily copy it to your new machine.  By ensuring that you don't keep the backups near the computer, disasters such as a fire or a burglary won't result in you losing both the computer and the backup.
14	c	Never reply to spam emails, even to opt out from being on the sender's database.  Just delete the message.	Spammers often try emailing addresses at random in the hope that you'll reply and thus confirm that the address was valid.  By confirming your address as valid, you'll simply get much more spam.
15	c	Install some anti-spyware software on your computer, and run it at least once a week.  There's no need to buy expensive products - the 2 best-known offerings are "Spybot Search & Destroy" and "AdAware", both of which are free.	Many websites silently install spyware on your computer when you visit the sites.  The spyware monitors your internet activity in order that the web sites can display adverts which are more relevant to you.  However, many people regard this as an invasion of privacy, and the spyware also slows down your computer.