September

September 29^th  :

Update new security patches available to your OS

• Always update your operating system with new or latest security patches before using it
• Always install only vendor recommended service and security patches because Operating System is the most important program that runs on the computer which performs basic tasks like recognizing the input from the key board, controlling various files and directories in the hard disk and also various peripheral devices like printers, scanners etc.
• The security of the operating system running on various PCs and servers plays an important role in the security of the network as a whole
• If even one system not updated in the network may affect the security of the other systems in the network
• Now a days we are using a highly sophisticated operating systems with lots of features, but it may be vulnerable if they are not administered, configured and monitored properly
• Sometimes updating the operating system with latest patches may lead to interoperability issues with other operating system. Hence proper care should be taken while updating the operating system
• Configure your computer to automatically download the latest patches and updates , recent versions of Windows, Macintosh computers have automatic software updates

September 28^th  :

Share the knowledge about secured email access with others

• Always share the knowledge about secured E-mail access with others, So that each and every person who access E-mails will get awareness of how to access the e-mails , how to filter the mails from spam , viruses, worms, Trojans which come through E-mail attachments 
• Virus may come in many ways. One of the methods is as an e-mail attachment.
• If a virus infects the system, it will send itself to everyone in the address book
• So, do not open any files attached to an email from an unknown, suspicious or untrustworthy source
• Never open email attachments with file extensions like .exe, .vbs or with double extensions like .txt.exe
• Delete chain e-mails and other spam from your inbox and don’t forward or reply to those mails
• Do not open any email attachments if the subject line is doubtful
• Do not open messages or click on links which are come from unknown users in your instant messaging program
• Do not forward spam or chain emails
• Don’t download free antivirus or free anti-spyware programs that come as Junk e-mails. They itself act as a huge role in spreading virus.
• In outlook and outlook express, there is a feature known as "Preview Pane". This option actually opens an email. This is an area of the screen where the contents of an email can be seen as soon as you highlight the email by simply clicking once on it. This has become very dangerous now-a-days, because many of the email viruses will run when email is opened without double clicking on an attachment or anything. So, disable the Preview Pane option in Outlook Express by going to main menu  " View Layout " Uncheck "Show Preview Pane".
• Use a latest updated antivirus and scan the E-mail attachments before opening them
• Always turn off the option "automatically download attachments"

September 27^th  :

Take immediate action (remove network connection) if your computer is infected with virus to avoid automatic generation

• Take immediate action like removing network connection if your computer is  infected with virus in order to avoid automatic generation
• Install anti-virus software in your system and scan it for finding the virus
• Always update anti-virus software with latest patches from recommended vendor service
• Always run anti-virus software in your system in order to avoid virus, worms and Trojan attacks
• Always take backup of your important data or information because if the system is infected with virus , it (virus) can do anything like deleting or modifying  the files
• Also use anti-Spyware / malware / adware tools to scan or filter your system from malwares, Spywares / Adwares  attacks

September 26^th  :

Install a pop-up blocker in internet browser

• Install a pop-up blocker in internet browser to improve the safety of your browsing
• Pop-up blocker is a utility that prevents small additional windows from opening when you visit Web pages
• Some of the Web-sites uses these Pop-up’s for advertising their products , for displaying useful information, some times is used for displaying offensive information
• Some of the attackers uses these Pop-up windows disguised as special offers to install malicious code on your computers
• So in order avoid all these , Configure the browser in such a way to block the Pop-up’s
• Some of the browsers like Internet Explorer, Mozilla has inbuilt feature to block Pop-up’s

September 25^th  :

Don’t leave your laptop unattended at the airport, library or cafeteria

• Most of the business peoples use Laptops while traveling because they are small and easily transported.
• Laptops are used for convenience and mobility. It enables you to work from any where like home, a hotel room, a conference hall, or a coffee shop. Make sure to secure your portable devices to protect both the machine and the information which is stored in it
• To secure the data of your Laptop use firewall to filter the unwanted traffic, install and update anti-virus software for scanning the viruses, worms…etc, encrypt your data by using encryption algorithms
• Password-protect : Make sure that you have to enter a password to log in to your Laptop
• Always at all the times keep your Laptop with you when traveling
• Avoid using your portable device in public areas, and use non-traditional bags for carrying your laptop
• Use alarms or locks to protect or secure your laptop
• Always prepare backup of important information and store it in a separate location in order to avoid losing all of the information
• If your Laptop is lost or stolen , report about it to the appropriate authorities

September 24^th  :

Always use secured pc in public places

• Always use secured System / PC in public places for browsing.
• Check whether there are any key loggers installed in the system
• Check if any Trojans are installed in the system
• Also scan the system by using anti-virus software to filter viruses, worms, spyware, malware…etc
• Clear the Cache of the public PC after using it, because the people who access the PC after you may get the browsed information from the Cache
• While using internet in public places (cafes, hotels, etc.,), do not select remember password on those computers, because if we select that option anyone who access the system can get your password information
• By using that information he (hacker / attacker) can login into your account and misuse it for other purposes
• Also delete the cookies information. In cookies all browsed information will be stored, if it is not cleared the other persons who access the system can get that information.

September 23^rd  :

Delete unsolicited e-mails after informing the concern authorities

• Do not open suspicious or unsolicited emails (spam), delete them after informing the concern authorities
• If you get any unsolicited e-mails, never reply back and report it to your local crime police station
• Cyber stalkers target their victims through chat rooms, message boards, discussion forums, and e-mails.
• Cyber stalking takes many forms such as: threatening or obscene e-mail; spamming (in which a stalker sends a victim a multitude of junk e-mail); live chat harassment or flaming (online verbal abuse); leaving improper messages on message boards or in guest books; sending electronic viruses; sending unsolicited e-mail; tracing another person's computer and Internet activity, and electronic identity theft

September 22^nd  :

Be extremely careful with file sharing software

• File sharing is used to share computer data or space with others on a network. It (file sharing) allows multiple users to copy, read, modify the same file
• There are two types of file sharing. They are (i) Peer to Peer file sharing (ii) Centralized file sharing
• Centralized file-sharing software uses a central file server where all the shared files are stored. To access the files you must first have to access the central file server. The most popular protocol used for this type of sharing is FTP (File Transfer Protocol)
• Peer to Peer file-sharing software eliminates the need for central servers. The shared files are stored on users’ computers where they can be accessed by the other users on the network. Always use file sharing program controls and adjust the P2P program to run whenever you required. Disable automatic starting. Programs such as Kazaa are used to exchange files in P2P file sharing
• On the network different users may have different levels of access to files
• Always be careful with file sharing software
• Be careful while downloading attachments from emails to your hard disk. Scan the attachment with an updated anti virus software before saving it
• Be careful while exchanging the files between the systems through disks or through network
• While using the disk makes sure that it is write protected, so that it prevents from accidental deletion and changes made to the files on the disk
• Always take backup of important files, this will help you in recovering the files

September 21^st  :

Don’t install unknown or unsolicited programs on your computer

• Do not install or download unknown or unsolicited programs to your computer.  These can place computer viruses or even open a "back door" giving others access to your computer without your knowledge
• If you want to install any software in your system get licensed version and install it in your computer
• Use trusted websites for downloading the Software’s
• Always keep anti-virus software running on your system during the installation of software in your system to find any malicious codes or viruses present in the software
• If there is any problem in the installation try to contact particular vendors

September 20^th  :

Share the latest Security tips with your colleagues

• Share the latest cyber security tips with your IT Managers, colleagues, friends, family members in order to bring awareness of cyber attacks in them
• Share about e-mail security , web security tips with your colleagues
• Try to educate them how to use passwords for different accounts different passwords. Like e-mail account there should be one password, credit card account there should be different password.
• Educate them not to share the personal and important information with unknown persons. And the important information (like passwords) should not be written in papers , it should be memorized or should be kept in secure place
• Inform them to update their Operating System and Software with latest patches

September 19^th  :

Work smarter than harder to secure yourself and your computer system and your network

• Below are a few easy, cost-effective steps which you can make your computer more to secure from your computer.
• Always make backups of important information and store in as safe place separate from your computer.
• Update and patch your operating system, web browser and software frequently.
• Install and update a desktop firewall.

September 18^th  :

Delete temporary files regularly to avoid remembering personal information

• Make sure to delete all the temporary files
• By removing all the temporary files after every transaction we can prevent to be hacked from shared PC’s or folders
• Delete all cache and internet history which contains the internet history list
• Delete all confidential data from temporary storage

September 17^th  :

Always maintain an updated version of Adobe Reader

• Always deploy and maintain an adobe reader
• Make sure of that you always use the updated adobe reader
• Update the Adobe Reader to get the latest features
• Download latest version to get new patches of adobe reader

September 16^th  :

Make sure your laptop or your laptop bag will have an identification sticker, when you hand them through the airport security in airports

• Protect your laptop or laptop bag with an identification sticker since laptops became attracting and are stolen
• Thousands are misplaced in an airports and misplaced in airport by airport security 
• Protect your laptop by using secure permanent tag on your laptop with name, address etc
• By making metal tamper resistant tags on your laptop it becomes easy to recover it

September 15^th  :

Secure your wireless communication with additional network security such as SSH, VPN or SSL tunneling and turn off the wireless devices when not in use

• Use secure socket layer and transport layer security to safeguard the communication
• Fro wireless communication encrypt the transmission data using wifi protected access like WPA or WPA2 technologies
• While wireless communication use minimum of 104 bit encryption key
• Use only protected access with VPN, SSL or TLS technology
• Restrict the access based on MAC address
• Make sure that turn of the wifi connection when not in use to avoid the unnecessary communication or transmission of data

September 14^th  :

Check processor or programs running in the system when system slows down suddenly

• The system slowdown can be due to many reasons like software errors.
• Too many programs running and processes running.
• Inadequate RAM.
• Hard drive errors or fragmentation issues.
• If the system is running slow check the processor for unwanted programs running in your PC.
• Click on the task manager and select the processor and end the unwanted programs.
• Check for the memory usage or utilization of memory during program execution.
• Some times systems slows down due to virus or spyware.

September 13^th  :

Secure your system even though it doesn’t contain any valuable information

• Make sure to backup the information in a magnetic tapes.
• Secure your system with firewall enabled.
• Secure your system with latest updates.
• You may have information concerning other people that may cause damage to them if it is compromised.

September 12^th  :

Update software with latest available updates

• Update the software or operating systems updates regularly with available updates
• These updates can be done by selecting the option alert me for latest updates option
• For latest updates the site scans the computer and gives you list of updates available relevant to your configuration
• Choose the desired updates and click on download and install

September 11^th  :

Configure Desktop firewalls effectively

• Configuration of Desktop firewalls must be done effectively because firewalls suppose to serve the same as safe serve of your home with door locks for intrusion prevention
• Firewalls are rules based the configuration and manageability are important features
• Desktop firewalls can detect the common type of attacks like denial of service(DoS) attacks and also shut down the DoS attacks.

September 10^th  :

Keep the number of emails in your mailbox to a minimum

• If the mail box is full you will not be able send or receive the mail until you reduce the size of the mail box
• If you exceed the space the mails will send to the sender itself you cannot receive the mails
• Delete items that you no longer using from the inbox
• Send the  mails to personal folder in order to reduce the size
• The delete and sent items also consumes the space so empty the sent and delete mails
• Select the option to save the messages or mails to a disc or create a personal folder in your PC and choose the path to store the received mails

September 09^th  :

Never leave an e-mail account unattended if it is logged in unless a password protected screen saver is invoked.

• Never leave an e-mail account unattended if it is logged in.
• There may be a chance that some one can steal your data.
• If it is logged in, lock the computer or put a password protected screen saver, so that it prevents the unauthorized access to the e-mail account.

September 08^th  :

Complain about illegal communication and activities, if found, to Internet Service Providers.

• Illegal communication and activities, if found, should be complained to the Internet Service Provider (ISP) and local law enforcement agencies.
• Most ISPs have Acceptable Use Policies (AUPs) that clearly define privileges and guidelines for those using their services, and the actions that can be taken if those guidelines are violated.
• Such AUPs can cover everything from rules about advertising in a newsgroup, to junk email, to illegal acts.

September 07^th  :

Take care about shoulder surfing

• Shoulder Surfing is a direct observation technique, such as looking over someone's shoulder, to get passwords, PINs, other sensitive personal information and even listen in on your conversation if you give your credit-card number over the phone.
• You should not reveal your password in front of others because there may be chance of shoulder surfing.
• Do not type your usernames and passwords before the unauthorized persons. They may do shoulder surf and get your information.

September 06^th  :

The PC keys should be secured and not left unattended

• The computer keys (keyboard keys) should be secured by a key lock or equivalent controls such as password access mechanisms for authentication.
• The users should log off the PCs when they are not in use. For example, in Windows, this can be done by pressing the Windows button + L key to lock the computer when not in use.
• If available, the password protected screen-savers and automatic log-out methods are to be used to prevent unauthorized access to the personal information on the computer.

September 05^th  :

The systems should be placed in a locked room which is dust free and has a good ventilation to avoid over heating of CPU

• The electric and electronic goods of any type must be handled carefully.
• Keep the chassis area clear and dust-free during and after maintenance.
• Always power off the power supplies and unplug the power cables if not in use.
• The systems should place in a room which is dust free and has a good ventilation to avoid overheating of CPU.
• Periodically clean the computer to prevent it from damaging.

September 04^th  :

Setting BIOS password prevents the unauthorized users from rebooting and manipulating the system

• BIOS (Basic Input Output System) are built in software which describes what a computer can do without accessing the programs on the disk.
• It contains a code which can control the keyboards, monitor, serial and parallel communications and some other functions.
• BIOS comes with a ROM chip in the computer which ensures that it will not be affected in case of disk failures.
• Setting BIOS password prevents the unauthorized users from rebooting and manipulating the system.
• This provides a low level of security as someone can disconnect the batteries and access the BIOS with manufacturers default passwords.
• But it takes some time for unauthorized users to open case and accessing BIOS which leaves some traces of tampering.

September 03^rd  :

Computer Hard locks prevents them booting the system with their own floppy or hardware.

• A PC, which stands for Personal Computer should actually be personal.
• Besides software lockers to prevent the unauthorized access, computer hard locks are also available.
• These have a locking feature which locks and unlocks the cabinet/case of the computer.
• This is used when from preventing the computer to be booted with the floppy or hardware of the attackers.

September 02^nd  :

Computer locks help in preventing unauthorized users gaining access to the hardware of the PC

• To be sure that no one can access the private information of the computer; the PC should be locked in order to prevent unauthorized access.
• Now a days PC's are available with a locking feature, which contains a socket in front of the case to unlock and lock the case.
• This helps us in preventing unauthorized users gain access to the hardware of the PC and also it prevents them booting the system with their own floppy or hardware.

• Prevention is the key to protect from malicious software. 
• One of the important tips to be followed while installing any applications is to read the License Agreement before installing any software.
• All legitimate software installations includes an End User License Agreement (EULA) that include a lot of information.
• The principle of EULA is to tell the user exactly what they intend to install on user’s machine and the restrictions to use of the software.
• If there are any doubts about the genuineness of the software, do not install it or install it from a trusted source. Or never install software you doubt on it.