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her technology Cyber Security Security for your business' electronic data www.CreativeAlys.com AT THE BEGINNING OF a new year it is always good to remind everyone of some best practices to keep their computer systems and electronic data safe and secure. In today's busy electronic business world, data is almost exclusively held electronically now. If you think about what is kept on your computer systems today the list may include your accounts programme, your payroll programme, your email correspondence with clients and suppliers and maybe even your own business' forms and workflow documents. Think for a moment about the impact of the information in these resources not being available to your business and you will probably discover that protecting this data is worth thinking about. There are three main things I would recommend you check and implement as part of your computer systems maintenance and management: 1) BACKUP YOUR DATA This is one of the best pieces of advice for any computer user. Regular backups should become a routine task. There are many different methods of backing up your computer's data, ranging from full system images of the entire computer's hard drive to data-only backups of selected files. It is recommended that you talk to a computer technician for the solution that best fits your needs. They should also be able to help with simplifying the solution and may even be able to offer monitoring for your piece of mind. Some best practice idea's that should be put into place where possible are: •Regular backups. These are essential to a proper backup strategy. •Keep backups simple and fast to run. •Offsite backups. These are recommended as backups left onsite can be damaged or stolen along with the live data. •Identifying and backing up the relevant data is important. As your data structure changes you should also change your backup strategy. •Periodic tests of backed up data Abstract Digital Technology Background integrity. Finally if you are not personally taking care of the backups yourself check that they are happening and that the data being backed up is relevant. It is not uncommon for the backup role to be overlooked with staff changes. Check or implement your backup system now! 2) USE SECURITY SOFTWARE AND/ OR HARDWARE Prevent spyware, adware, virus or Internet related issues from infecting your data or corrupting your computers systems. As Internet usage has increased so has the number and type of threats. Among the most common threats are: viruses, worms, trojan horses, malware, spyware and adware. The best defence against these threats is to secure your computer or network with a firewall and run a commercial grade antivirus or Internet security programme on all your computers. A firewall is usually your computer's first line of defence. It controls who and what can communicate with your computer online. It watches all the data attempting to flow in and out of your network on the Internet, allowing communications that it knows are safe and blocks attacks from ever reaching your computer. Firewalls are available as either software or hardware options. Software firewalls are a good choice for single computers, however, once you have a network with multiple computers I would recommend you look at a hardware firewall to protect your infrastructure. For a smaller site this may be included as part of your Internet connection and built into your router. For a larger site or those who are more security conscious this would be a separate dedicated appliance on your network. Antivirus or Internet security software as it is more commonly called now should be installed on all your computers and servers. Having security software that protects you from online threats is essential to staying safe on the Internet. The key here is to keep on top of definition updates to maximise your protection. Your antivirus and antispyware software should be configured to update itself, and it should do so every time you connect to the Internet. Check the definition dates regularly to make sure this is happening. 3) KEEP YOUR SYSTEMS UPDATED AND PATCHED One of the best ways to keep attackers away from your computer is to apply patches and other software fixes when they become available. By regularly updating your computer, you block attackers from being able to take advantage of software flaws or vulnerabilities that they could otherwise use to break into your system. More recent versions of Microsoft Windows and other popular software can be configured to download and apply updates automatically so that you do not have to remember to check for the latest fixes. That said it is always good to check manually yourself sometimes, as these systems often only do the critical fixes and there could be some patches for your software that would still be good to apply. Managing the times this is done can be important as well, as sometimes a restart of the computer will be required to apply these changes. With these checks and systems in place for the year, continue to use and grow your electronic data safely and securely. Cliff Salter, www.pchardware.co.nz HER MAGAZINE | February/March 2012 | 69