IT_Chapter_14B

Avoiding Identity Theft

• Guard your papers

– Shred unneeded papers

– Pick up you mail quickly

– Check statements immediately

– Keep records for 3 years

• Guard your personal information

– Be wary giving out information

– Avoid giving account numbers

– Never give personal information in e-mail

– Ensure online shopping is secure

• Look at the big picture

– Review your credit report yearly

– Develop an efficient filing system

– Know your liability limits

Protecting Your Privacy

• Keep marketers at bay

– Be wary filling out forms

– Guard your primary email address

• Have a ‘spam account’ for forms

• Know your legal rights

– 1966 Freedom of Information Act

– 1970 Fair Credit Reporting Act

– Privacy Act of 1974

– 1986 Electronic Communications Act

– Financial Modernization Act of 1999

– 2001 USA Patriot Act

Managing Cookies and Spyware

• Dealing with cookies

– Browsers provide settings to block cookies

– No cookies to all cookies allowed

– Without cookies some sites crash

– Cookies can be deleted

• Browsers

• Spyware programs

• Cookie types

– Session cookies

• Cookies for the current site

– Persistent cookies

• Stored on hard drive until deleted

– First-party cookies

• Installed by the current site

– Third-party cookies

• Installed by an ad

• Removing web bugs and spyware

– Install a spyware removal program

• None are 100% effective, use two

– Install a pop-up blocker

• Are extremely effective

• Evading spam

– Contact your ISP

– Use mail program’s filters

– Use an anti-spam program

– Use an online account for purchasing

Protection From Malware

• Viruses and worms

– Purchase a good anti-virus product

– Keep the product updated

– Keep your OS up to date

Protecting Your System

• Limit physical access

– Easiest way to harm or steal data

– Build an account for each user

– Require a password for access

• Software and hardware password

• Use a firewall

– Protects from unauthorized remote use

– Makes your computer invisible

– Cost between $0 and $80

• Backup often

– Backup is a copy of a file

– Restore replaces a file on disk

– Organizations backup at least daily

– Home users should backup weekly

System Events

• OS generates messages for events

• Provides clues about computer health

• Can alert to potential problems

• Windows includes the Event Viewer

Handling Storage Media

• Store media in the proper container

– Floppy disks in a hard case

– CD should be in a sleeve

– Thumb disks should be closed

• Avoid magnetism

– Magnets erase the contents of disks

– Magnets found in

• Speakers

• Televisions and CRT monitors

• Radios

• Heat and cold

– Avoid extreme temperatures

• Heat expands media

• Cold contracts media

– Floppies and CD-ROMs are susceptible

• Moisture

– Do not use wet media

– CDs can be wiped off

– Floppy disks must dry for days

• Dust, dirt, and fingerprints

– Dirty or scratched media will fail

– Handle media by the edge

– Clean CDs with gentle strokes

Storing Computer Equipment

• Never store near large electronics

• Store in dry, climate controlled rooms

• Plan for natural disasters

• Stack equipment safely

Keeping Your Computer Clean

• Computers should be spotless

• Avoid eating or smoking at computer

• Clean the dust from inside the system

• Change the filters if present