3 Dumbest Computer Things You Can Do

There are some things you can do with your computer that are just plain stupid.

Here are the three things that are on top of the list.

First, you can turn off the software updates for your computer. Both Windows and OS X allow you to automatically update your system. Many of the updates involve correcting security flaws in your system. Making sure you have the latest updates helps keep out intruders, viruses, and malware. Keep the auto-update feature turned on.

Second, you can use the simplest passwords imaginable. Many users employ passwords like the word “password” or they use simple words. Don’t do it. Use a combination of upper and lower case letters along with numbers and punctuation. Combine all of these and don’t use anything that is just a single word.

Third, you can skip backing up your data. You should be backing up frequently. With the availability of cheap or free online backup there’s no reason to skip this critical task. At a minimum get a portable disk drive and back up all your data once a week. Take the drive home with you and put it in a safe place. Obviously, you can, and probably should, do much more to protect your data.

If you do these three things you can pretty much guarantee that you’re going to experience a computer disaster. You’ll either experience a security breach or a data loss. Either way, you’ll be miserable for a long time after it happens. Don’t do these three things.

Related articles:

1. How To Keep Your Software Up To Date
2. Security Breaches and The Slacker
3. Is Your Computer Alienating Your Clients?
4. Is Your Laptop Vulnerable to Attack?
5. Are You Still Paying for Security Software?

Post written by Lee Rosen on October 2, 2009 in Technology