CompuClever Blog

Which Free Cloud Storage Service Provider Is Right For You?

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We live in a time when there are more free online storage services than ever before. But which one is right for you? And is online storage the best way to back up your important files?

If you have ever experienced a hard drive failure you have probably lost photos, videos and other important files. Or, if you have owned your computer for a while, you’ll probably find you’re running out of space on your hard drive, slowing everything down. Luckily, cloud storage can help you protect your files or free up space on your computer, usually automatically.

However, it can be challenging when trying to choose an online backup and storage service. To make it a little easier, we have described a few of the leading providers, with some pros and cons for each you should be aware of.

Dropbox

dropbox online storage

Dropbox is one of the most well-known online backup services there is. The free version gives you 2GB of storage to start out, and Dropbox is designed to be installed on your desktop computer in order to sync files with the cloud. You can then share these files with anyone with a link.

Many people use Dropbox as an alternative to Facebook to share family photos. Dropbox also offers a smartphone app that backs up your photos online automatically. The service is also used by businesses to easily share and collaborate on documents.

dropbox online storage

Dropbox Pros

  • If you’re looking for a place to backup your photos and other files, Dropbox is great because its interface mimics the Windows folder interface.
  • It’s easy to share files and folders just using a link.
  • It’s not actually necessary to download the client to use Dropbox.

Dropbox Cons

  • While you start out with 2GB of free storage, getting more storage either costs an annual recurring subscription fee, or is the result of referring friends and family to Dropbox.
  • Dropbox sometimes changes its terms on the drop of a dime, meaning you may lose access to your online backup files unless you pay a fee.
  • If you already have a Microsoft or Google Account, Dropbox may be redundant.

Google Drive

static-synced-devices

Google Drive is Google’s comprehensive tool for online backup and storage. In fact, Google Drive is much more than cloud storage—it offers free productivity software similar to Microsoft Word, Excel, Powerpoint and more.

Like Dropbox, Google Drive features a sync client you install on your computer that performs automatic backups. And, like Dropbox, Google Drive features a smartphone app so that you can access your photos and files anywhere. It’s also integrated with Google’s free and generally well-regarded online photo manager.

Google Drive works best for anyone with a Gmail account and an Android phone.

open-with-2015

Google Drive Pros

  • Google Drive offers 15GB of free storage to start, which is more than Dropbox; you can get more storage by installing the Drive app on your iPhone or Android smartphone, or by buying a yearly subscription for a nominal fee.
  • Drive is integrated with Google’s free email service Gmail; this makes sharing photos by email easy.

Google Drive Cons

  • If you’re not used to it, the user interface can be somewhat confusing.
  • If you want to share documents, sometimes whoever you’re sharing them with may be prompted to sign into Gmail.
  • Drive’s word processing and spreadsheet programs are not nearly as powerful as their Microsoft counterparts.

OneDrive

onedrive

OneDrive is Microsoft’s take on online back and storage. In many ways it’s one of the more powerful and versatile cloud storage options available. Like Google Drive and Dropbox, OneDrive uses a sync client you download onto your computer (Windows 10 comes with this utility preinstalled) to automatically backup your important files. And, like Google Drive, OneDrive features its own online suite of productivity applications so you can edit wherever you have an internet connection.

OneDrive starts out at 5GB of free online storage, although anyone with an annual subscription to Office 365 (what used to be called ‘Microsoft Office’) receives  1TB of free storage.

onedrive user interface

OneDrive Pros

  • If you have an Office 365 subscription, that 1TB of online storage is usually more than enough to backup your most important files.
  • You don’t need to purchase a subscription to access the free, online version of Word and Excel.
  • If you’re a Windows users, the OneDrive user interface is probably the easiest to use.

OneDrive Cons

  • For whatever reason, the OneDrive sync client can take up a lot of system resources, slowing down your computer.

iCloud

set up windows icloud

It may come as a surprise, but Apple’s iCloud online backup and sync service can be used on Windows computers. So, if you have an iPhone and perhaps a Windows laptop this makes it easier to backup and access your files.

Of course, you will need to have purchased an Apple product such as an iPod, iPad, iPhone or Macbook in order to use iCloud.

USB Drives Provide an Extra Layer of Protection

The one drawback to all of these services is that they may all end one day, leaving you with no access to your files in the cloud. So, it’s a good idea to hedge your bets and, while using online storage, take the extra step of backing up your files locally. USB thumb drives are ideal for this task. Inexpensive and capable of storing a lot, USB drives can serve as a “backup of your backup.”

Are you using USB 3.0?

Read our recent article on local storage to learn more more about USB thumb drives.


Or, if you’re interested in trying out USB 3.0 — the latest in USB storage technology — for yourself, the Kingston Digital DataTraveler USB 3.0 flash memory drives are on sale right now on our newly launched hardware site CompuCleverGear.com.

 

Why You Should Always Backup Locally—Even if You Use Cloud Storage

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Thanks to smartphones, video cameras and other gadgets we all create a massive amount of files. Often our computer hard drives are too small to store all of this information. Luckily, there are free remote backup services such as Dropbox and Google Drive that can automatically upload our files remotely.

The biggest problem with saving remotely on cloud services such as Google Drive and Dropbox is you could be hacked. Even Apple’s iCloud service, with some of the toughest security in the world, has been hacked.

So, it’s always a good idea to backup locally first before relying on remote backup. USB or “thumb” drives are handy devices that in many ways can be the perfect solution for local backups.

Reliable and cheap, USB drives can store anything from 1GB (the size of a feature-length HD movie) to 1TB (1000 feature-length movies) of data. Unlike a powered HDD backup drive, USB drives are also portable and easier to keep safe.

How Many Files Can Be Stored on a USB Drive?

If you’re backing up images from your camera and want to know how many will fit on a USB thumb drive all you really need is to know is the size of the image, which is measured in megapixels. Use the table below to find the size of the megapixels along the left, and then the size of storage in the USB key across the top:

how many files can be stored on a usb

So, a 64GB USB key can store over 8,000 high-resolution images—this should be more than enough enough to back up all of the photos you take on a vacation if, say, you have limited access to Internet to make an online backup.

For videos, documents and other files, file sizes range dramatically. To figure out your storage needs you’ll have to look at the sizes of your files or folders in Windows Explorer.

Remember, the larger the file, the longer it will take to transfer from your computer. So it may be worth it to consider USB 3.0, which is the latest and fastest USB standard.

Compared to USB 2.0, USB 3.0 is about 10 times faster and USB 3.1 is about 20 times faster. Along with being faster, USB 3.0 also has the ability to provide power if the device does not have a power connection of its own.

Speed Up An Older Computer With a USB Drive

Besides performing backups and safeguarding your data, USB drives can speed up your computer. This technique is super effective for older computers that typically have smaller amounts of RAM—2GB, for example. RAM is the “secret ingredient” to making your computer run fast, and if you don’t have a lot of RAM, using a computer can be a frustrating experience.

A USB drive can help with that. Using a technology called ReadyBoost, you can plug a USB into your computer and get a performance upgrade. Read more about it here.

Try Out a USB 3.0 Kingston DataTraveler—On Sale Now!

If you’re interested in trying out USB 3.0 for yourself, the Kingston Digital DataTraveler USB 3.0 flash memory drives are on sale right now on our newly launched hardware site CompuCleverGear.com.

Since the Kingston USB flash memory drives uses USB 3.0 technology it's a great way to not only speed up your backup process but also to future-proof your saved files.

Are You Prepared for the Windows 10 Anniversary Update?

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The update is so massive because, to mark the anniversary of the release of Windows 10 in July 2015, Microsoft is pushing out updates to what seems like every program and service in Windows 10.

If you are a Windows 10 user, or are thinking about downloading Windows 10, there is something you need to be aware of: the new Windows 10 Anniversary update is scheduled to be automatically downloaded onto your computer sometime in the next few days, and it’s going to be massive. Depending on the speed of your computer and your internet link, this Windows 10 update may slow everything down to a crawl.

So be warned!

Why is the August 2016 Windows Update So Big?

The update is so massive because, to mark the anniversary of the release of Windows 10 in July 2015, Microsoft is pushing out updates to what seems like every program and service in Windows 10:

  • Some changes are cosmetic, such as a new login screen.
  • Other updates this August will change how the system works: the Cortana assistant will now available on the lock screen.
  • Some updates are based on feedback Microsoft has received, such as a new way to save Favorites in the Microsoft Edge browser.

In short, there is something for everyone in the massive Windows 10 anniversary update.

Never a Better Time to Upgrade to Windows 10?

If you haven’t already updated your computer to Windows 10, the Anniversary update includes every update to Windows 10 over the past twelve months. This “one big update” saves not only valuable disk space, but also a lot of time. You don’t have to worry about downloading and installing every Windows patch from the last year.

Internet Explorer 11 as well as the new Microsoft Edge browsers have both been updated for reliability and security. Mobile devices receive updates to address issues found with them since the release of Windows 10.

If you want more information about the Windows 10 Anniversary update, ZDNet has an excellent summary. However, here are a few updates to Windows 10 that have caught our eye:

Potentially Confusing Changes to the Windows Start Menu

The Windows 10 Start menu is changed. This is the pre-Anniversary update version of the Windows 10 Start menu:

windows 10 new start

Following the update, the Windows 10 Start menu will look like this:

new windows 10 start menu

Basically, you now see the “All Apps” already selected, while the “File Explorer,” “Settings,” and “Power” are only shown as icons. The Most Used apps area is now at the top of the applications list.

This change could be a little confusing until you get used to it.

Virtual Assistant Cortana Becomes Even More Powerful

Just as iPhone users have Siri, and Android smartphone users have Google Now, Windows users can rely on their own virtual assistant, Cortana. Thanks to the Anniversary update, Cortana can now can communicate with your Windows device or even your Android phone. This means notifications from your phone can be displayed on your Windows PC—you can get notifications if your phone is running low on battery.

Microsoft Edge Gets Extensions

“Edge”, the new, stripped-down browser Microsoft introduced a couple of years ago, now has the ability to add extensions. Users of the Firefox and Chrome browsers have been able to add extensions such as AdBlock for years, so hopefully Edge will become more powerful thanks to this update.

The Anniversary update has also added Cortana to the Edge browser, much like Google’s Chrome browser supports voice commands and voice search.

“Windows Ink”

In terms of actual new functions added to Windows, Microsoft has added something called “Windows Ink.” This is an application for stylus users, and makes it much easier to sketch and take notes on any touchscreen device running Windows 10.

Biometrics Now a Part of Windows 10

Also new to Windows is “Hello,” a biometric agent that uses facial and fingerprint recognition to verify access to your computer. Of course, your computer will need to have a camera or fingerprint reader built into it to actually use Hello, so if you do not have these installed already, this is not something that will affect you.

However, the Windows 10 Anniversary Update Ignores Some Big Problems

The Anniversary update doesn’t address every problem Windows 10 users have been complaining about for the past year.

For example, if Windows 10 security issues were a concern, Microsoft has done nothing to address your fears. Notably, Windows 10 will still log what you do on the computer and send this usage information back to Microsoft.

Some Windows 10 Users Can’t Log Into Their Computers Following Anniversary Update

As well, the Anniversary update itself has some bugs that need to be updated: some users people have discovered they cannot log into their systems once the Anniversary update is installed. The solution? Roll back to a previous install point—which in some cases means a previous version of Windows! While the number of people reporting this disastrous issue is still pretty small, it’s a big deal if it happens to you.

To protect yourself, if you have not been updated Windows 10 yet, enable the System Restore to generate a save point you can return to should the update not work. Instructions on setting up System Restore in Windows 10 can be found here.

What’s the Verdict on the Windows 10 Anniversary Update?

It is a bit early to provide any meaningful insights about just how good this update is. The main thing we wanted to do was to give you a heads-up about what is being offered by this download, and give you that warning about backing up your system. We felt these tips were especially important, since Windows 10 updates are not optional—you have to install them.

Hopefully the items mentioned here are useful, and if you have any question, or want to let us know about your own experience with the Anniversary update, leave us a comment below.

Charles Edward frequently reports on the latest developments in Microsoft and Windows software products.

How to Choose a New Laptop

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It can be tough to choose a new laptop. There is an endless variety of features to consider. Will the laptop you purchase end up being too basic, or too powerful for your needs and therefore too expensive? Here are some tips to help you choose the right one.

There’s never been a better time to buy a new computer. Prices are cheap and there is almost endless variety — almost too much variety. A dizzying combination of features can make it almost impossible to choose a new computer. Often we’ll buy a new desktop or laptop only to find it’s underpowered, has poor battery life, or is simply to big for our needs.

To help make things easy, we’ve created this short guide to buying a new laptop.

Why Choose a Laptop Over a Desktop?

This article is going to focus on choosing a new laptop. We think that for most casual users, laptops make a better choice than desktops when making a purchase. Laptops are lightweight and don’t take up much space. Also, since they don’t need peripherals such as a monitor, speakers or a computer desk, are generally cheaper than desktops.

Choosing Your “OS”: Mac or Microsoft?

The first choice what operating system, or “OS” will power your laptop. Currently Mac and Microsoft dominate the market for laptops. What’s the difference?

MACBOOKPRO

Macbooks: Expensive High-Performance Machines for Professionals

Macbooks, produced by just one company, Apple, have developed a reputation for quality, performance and for being easy to use. Macbooks can be used almost right out of the box, with no need to update drivers or security software.

The downside of Mac computers is that they are expensive — an  entry-level Macbook sells for at least $1000. The truth is that Mac OS is really meant for professionals. Everyday users looking for a laptop to surf the internet, make Skype calls and send emails while staying on a budget likely do not need a high-performance machine like a Mac. It’s overkill.

Windows 10 Product Family

Microsoft Windows 10: More Variety and Budget-Friendly

For years, Mac users looked down on Microsoft Windows users. Windows used to be considered complicated and prone to security vulnerabilities. But not anymore. With the release of Windows 10, Microsoft has finally created a beautiful OS that just works. What’s more, there is a wider variety of computers for every budget that run Windows 10. Only Apple makes the Mac, while dozens of companies produce a dizzying array of laptops that run on Windows.

The downside is that some Windows laptops are not always as shiny or high-powered as their Mac counterparts. But, once again, if all you need a computer for is to surf the internet, send emails and talk on Skype to relatives, is it really worth it to shell out a ton of money for a Mac?

Budget Laptops Vs. Ultrabooks: What’s the Difference?

If you have decided on Windows as your OS, the next challenge is sorting through the wide variety of laptops out there to find the one that’s right for you.

hp stream

Budget Laptops: Affordability… For a Price

You’ll encounter “budget laptops” that just do the basics. The HP Stream Notebook is one such budget offering that retails for just under $300. While this may seem like an incredible deal, it’s important to take a look at the specs, first: the HP Stream is powered by a Celeron chip, which not only does not have the power of other more expensive CPU chips, but also is not nearly as efficient. This means lower battery life. The HP Stream also has a fairly small screen, not much onboard space for installing software programs, and just 2 GB of RAM, which makes a difference when it comes to performance.

Ultrabooks: More Performance, But More Costly

On the other end of the spectrum from budget laptops are “ultrabooks” such as the HP Probook, which retails for around $1300. These laptops feature a better design, longer battery life and superior performance that working professionals demand.

hp probookIn many ways ultrabooks are mimicking their Mac cousins, except with a Windows OS. Once again, the question you have to ask is: do you really need all that power?

Most of us will choose a laptop somewhere between the low and the high end of the price and performance spectrum. The next question is, with so much variety, how do you choose a new laptop?

windows laptop

3 Rules for Choosing a New Laptop

It really comes down to just three rules with choosing a new laptop:

1) Look at RAM first

If you’re surfing the web and using Microsoft Word from time to time, RAM is generally what is going to determine the performance of your computer. Some sub-$250 laptops come with only 2GB of RAM, but ideally you want at least 4GB on even a budget system and 8GB if you can spend just a little more. For most users, 16GB or more is overkill.

2) Use the CPU to gauge battery life

While the CPU is the engine under the hood of your computer, it affects battery life as well as overall performance. A cheaper processor will use more power, which will drain battery life more quickly. What’s more, cheaper processors generate more heat, which in turn results in annoying fan noise.

The problem with CPU’s is that there is an almost endless variety to choose from. Here are the CPU’s you should be looking for in a new laptop:

AMD E Series or Intel Pentium/Celeron

These are basic processors that are typically found on budget laptops such as the HP Probook we mentioned above. These chips provide enough power for web surfing and watching YouTube, but that’s about it.

AMD A series or Intel Core i3 / i5

If you’re looking for a mainstream laptop with the best combination of price and performance, get a Core i5. Core i3 is a small step down — it’s not quite as energy-efficient, which means less battery time. AMD A series CPUs are less common, but promise similar performance.

What about the Intel Core i7?

The i7 chip is probably overkill for most of us. It’s an ultra-powerful CPU that powers video editing workstations and gaming computers. All of that performance comes at a significant price.

3) Pay attention to screen size

Once again, there is an endless variety of screen sizes to choose from. Here are a couple of tips:

  • 13 to 14 inches: Provides the best balance of portability and usability, particularly if you get a laptop that weighs under 4 pounds.
  • 15 inches: The most popular size, 15-inch laptops usually are uncomfortable to lug around for very long. Consider this size if you want a larger screen and you’re not planning to take your laptop on frequent trips.

Other Things to Look for When Buying a Laptop

Besides these 3 basic rules for choosing a laptop, there is seemingly a multitude of other decisions to make:

HDD vs. SSD

Compared to the traditional spinning HDD hard disk, a solid-state drive (SSD) is a popular choice for laptop users: SSD’s are lighter, increase performance and improve battery time. On top of that there is no annoying fan noise with an SSD. However, SSD’s are significantly more expensive than an HDD.

Touchscreen or No Touchscreen

Many laptops now come equipped with a touchscreen. This may seem like a cool, new way to use a computer, but, once again, ask yourself if you really need a touchscreen on a laptop. In reality, touchscreens work best with tablets and with convertible “2-in-1” laptops. With laptops, it’s easier just to use a mouse to click around the screen.

Dedicated Graphics Card

If you’re planning to use your laptop to play video games, you’re going to need a dedicated graphics card, or GPU. Budget laptops with a dedicated GPU are very difficult to find, so plan on spending more if this is something you need.

Build Quality

Budget laptops will typically have a no-frills “build quality” with poor design and plastic-like feel. However, some manufacturers do offer budget laptops that look and feel great. Besides looking good, laptops with a good build quality tend to be more durable and last longer.

Questions?

So, while it may seem almost impossible to figure out what kind of laptop to buy, there are really three rules you can use to help narrow down your choices. And, once again, when setting out to buy a new laptop it’s important to remember what you’re planning to use it for, and then make sure you’re not buying something either too powerful or, worse yet, not powerful enough to make you happy.

How to Protect Yourself in a Post-Password World

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If you’ve been paying attention to the news recently you will have noticed there has been a cluster of recent privacy “megabreaches” involving more than half a billion passwords. Here are some tips to keep you safer online.

If you are a Netflix subscriber, you may have received an email notice recently telling you to change your password as soon as possible.

In fact, if you’ve been paying attention to the news recently you will have noticed there has been a cluster of recently exposed megabreaches involving more than 642 million passwords belonging to users of LinkedIn, Twitter, and even long-forgotten Myspace.

There seems to be a new one every week. Here are a few examples:

how to create a strong password
Websites that have released email and password details to hackers. From the website haveibeenpwned.com. “Getting pwned” is Internet slang for “getting compromised.”

Password Hacks: Lose Control of Your Entire Life

In some cases, a password breach is an annoyance that can be fixed by changing your password. Other times, getting your password hack means losing control of your entire life. Many of us with Yahoo, Hotmail and Gmail accounts have years of our life stored online.

Online accounts also typically contain sensitive credit card and banking information. Even worse, many online services depend on email accounts for help logging in. For example, if you’ve ever forgotten a password for Pinterest or Facebook, you typically need to use an email address that is officially associated with the social media account for help getting back in. If your email account is compromised, you can totally lose control of your entire life.

How Mark Zuckerberg’s Password Got Hacked

No one is immune from having their password stolen. For example, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg’s Twitter and Pinterest accounts were recently hacked.

mark zuckerberg got hacked

How did the hackers get access to Mark Zuckerberg’s Twitter and Pinterest accounts? It turns out a password breach at another social networking site earlier was to blame. This past May, LinkedIn, a social networking site for professionals, announced that a staggering 117 million passwords were stolen. All of the passwords were uploaded to the Internet where anyone could see them.

Zuckerberg’s LinkedIn password was one of them.

Most People Use the Same Simple Password Across Multiple Sites

Zuckerberg’s password for LinkedIn was dadada. Hackers put two-and-two together and discovered Zuckerberg reused his LinkedIn password on Twitter and Pinterest, and were briefly able to hack into his accounts (and this was before millions of Twitter passwords were hacked just this past June).

Mark Zuckerberg’s experience highlights several common themes about password theft in 2016:

  1. people tend to use simple passwords
  2. people tend to reuse their passwords
  3. security breaches happen all the time

And, perhaps most importantly, anyone, including the head of one of the world’s most sophisticated internet companies, can have their online accounts hacked.

Password ‘Worst’ Practices: Things We All Do, But Really, Really Should Not

There are some pretty common mistakes when making passwords that everyone knows (even if they often ignore):

  • Using the same password everywhere
  • Never changing your password
  • Using information that’s easy to obtain, such as your birthday, as part of your password

However, there are some other mistakes people often make when creating a password, such as:

Letters Only

More secure passwords consist of combinations of numbers, special characters or punctuation marks as well as a mix of upper and lower case letters throughout the password.

Short in Length

The shorter a password, the more opportunities for observing, guessing, and cracking it. A strong password is at least 8 characters long. Some organizations now enforce a minimum length and variety of characters to help strength the company passwords.

Too Old

You’ve used the same password for years. Usually it will take a hacker a very long time to crack a long, complex password. If you change your password every 90 days or as required by your computer network, then the chances of your password being cracked are even more diminished.

Here are the 10 most popular passwords in the world… is yours one of them? These “top ten” passwords have of course been identified in part by countless data breaches:

  1. password
  2. 123456
  3. 12345678
  4. 1234
  5. qwerty
  6. 12345
  7. dragon
  8. pussy
  9. baseball
  10. football

How to Protect Yourself: Two-Factor Authentication

The problem is, even the best password in the world can be hacked. As many people have discovered at LinkedIn and Twitter in June, some of the largest internet companies in the world can be compromised, releasing your password details to anyone and everyone.

And, what happens if the email account you use for online banking gets hacked? Your banking details are laid bare, and there’s not much you can do about it. Strong passwords are just not enough.

This is where two-factor authentication comes in. What is two-factor authentication? The easiest way to understand it is to think about how you log in, for example, to your email account today. You go to the login page, type in your username and password, and log in. It’s just one step.

With two-factor authentication, it takes two steps to log in, usually with the help of a mobile phone, or another email account.

If you have used Twitter or even Facebook, you may have encountered two-factor authentication before. You attempt to login to Twitter, and Twitter than asks you to produce a code texted to your mobile phone. Google and Microsoft actually have a special code generator app that does away with the need for receiving texts.

This can be annoying because if you don’t have your mobile phone — perhaps it’s out of charge — you can’t receive the text or code, and you can’t login to your account.

Or, sometimes when attempting to login to an online account (Outlook.com, Microsoft’s email service does this), you’ll be emailed a special code to an email account associated with the web service. Once again this can be frustrating if for some reason you can’t login to the associated account.

On the other hand, potential hackers are presented with the same problem: if they do not have access to your mobile phone or your backup email but they try to hack into your account, they can’t receive the extra security code they need to login.

So this added protection of a “second factor” of authentication — proof someone needs to login to your email account — generally keeps you safe.

Generally. But even two-factor authentication can be hacked.

How Two-Factor Authentication Can Be Hacked, And What You Can Do About It

Two-factor authentication can be hacked: there’s an “easy” way, and there’s a harder way. With the easy way, a hacker may simply hack into and take over the email account that receives the security code you need to log in. It’s just an email account, and it can be hacked.

Sending a security code via text message should be more secure, since it’s less likely that a hacker someplace has access to your mobile phone. However, hackers who have figured out your account can actually “spoof” you, and can trick you into sending them the security code from your phone. The hackers may text you or call you up, pretending to be from your bank or even from Gmail. You send them the code, and they can get access to your account.

Disaster!

So, two-factor authentication can still be beaten. However, it’s still the best way to keep your passwords safe, so, to beat the hackers: never, ever share a security code with anyone online. Always keep them to yourself.

Keep Your Computer Safe, Too

You should also be aware that, unless you take precautions, hackers can steal passwords from your computer, too. The best defense this threat is to install and deploy an effective and updated antivirus and anti-spyware solution that features a strong anti-phishing mechanism.

For example, CompuClever Antivirus PLUS features an ironclad information safety mechanism called Data Protection. Data Protection prevents sensitive data leaks when you are online. Based on the rules you create, Data Protection scans the web, e-mail, and instant messaging traffic sent by your computer.  It looks for specific character strings, for example, your credit card number. If there is a match, the respective web page, e-mail, or instant message is blocked.

And that keeps you safe online.

Charles Edwards frequently writes about Windows and PCs. If you have some ideas of topics you would like us to cover, email us at:newsletter@compuclever.com.