By
Ted Miller
Most business people routinely travel with their laptop
computers, and the majority give little thought to protecting the
information stored on their computers. Yet, statistics show that about
12,000 (Yes, that was twelve THOUSAND) laptop computers are lost or
stolen at airports in the United States each week. That adds up to
624,000 lost or stolen laptops each year from airports. Add in the
laptops stolen from automobiles, offices, coffee shops, etc., and we are
simply floored by the numbers! Studies such as one published in 2008 by
the Ponemon Institute show that the most common location for laptop
loss and theft is at airport security checkpoints. So much for security!
Sixty-five percent of business travelers admit to not taking steps to protect confidential laptop information. And over forty percent do not back up data prior to a trip. Only about thirty percent of these lost laptops are ever recovered.
Consider these numbers for a moment. Now think about the data that is stored on your laptop: checking account information, a file containing a list of your website passwords, confidential client data, business plans, and sales figures, perhaps documentation of your company's unannounced product releases or business strategies. Add to that all of your emails that may contain loads of information that you would not like to fall into the wrong hands. How safe is your data if your laptop is lost or stolen? What are you doing about it? Are you scared yet?
There are a number of very effective steps that you can take to ensure the confidentiality of your laptop data. First and foremost, make sure that ALL user accounts on your laptop have strong passwords. Don't forget the administrator account that was used to set up the laptop when it was new. These accounts often have NO password by default, yet have full rights to the hard drive in the computer! A strong password contains at least six characters, including some combination of numbers, letters, and special characters (!@#$%*&, etc.) NEVER use any part of your name, names of children or pets, birthdays or anniversary dates, social security numbers, phone numbers, or addresses. These are simply too easy to guess or obtain by a determined thief.
Once your notebook has been protected with a strong password, the next step to prevent the loss of your important data is simply to follow the "Need to Save" rule. Only keep data on a mobile device for as long as it is actually needed there, and delete it when it is no longer useful. If you are taking a customer list or business plan on your trip, copy it to your company's server and delete it when you return to the office.
Finally, you should use encryption on your computer to keep your data safe even if your laptop is lost or stolen. Some versions of Microsoft Windows and the MacOS include this feature. One highly recommended solution for Windows, Mac, and Linux users is a piece of open source software called "TrueCrypt." It is easy to install, easy to use, and best of all it is free! You may download it at www.truecrypt.org. This software allows you to encrypt data folders on your hard drive, as well as on removable media such as USB memory sticks. You can even encrypt entire hard drives, although this option may introduce performance issues and is overkill for most users.
TrueCrypt takes just a couple of minutes to install. Once installed you create a blank file, and tell TrueCrypt to use it as your encrypted folder. You determine how large you want to make it, and choose a very strong password. Once your TrueCrypt folder is created, you simply run the software to "mount" the folder as a drive letter (such as drive Z:), and provide your password to unlock the files within it. Now you can simply save or copy your files to this drive letter just like any other disk drive. Users of your computer can only access the files if they know the password. Of course, this means you NEVER store the password with the computer, or even in your purse or wallet. If you can memorize your telephone number, you can memorize your computer and TrueCrypt password!
For the ultimate in protection, TrueCrypt allows you to encrypt the entire hard disk, so that you must enter your password before Windows will even begin to boot. This protects temporary and deleted files, as well as your "live" data. With TrueCrypt, even if someone steals your hard drive and attempts to install it in another computer they will be unable to access the data.
Users should be proactive in protecting their personal, employer, and client data. Through the use of simple industry-standard security practices and encryption software, this has never been easier than it is today. You may not be able to completely eliminate the threat of a laptop being lost or stolen, but there is no excuse for allowing the data on that laptop to fall into the wrong hands!
Sixty-five percent of business travelers admit to not taking steps to protect confidential laptop information. And over forty percent do not back up data prior to a trip. Only about thirty percent of these lost laptops are ever recovered.
Consider these numbers for a moment. Now think about the data that is stored on your laptop: checking account information, a file containing a list of your website passwords, confidential client data, business plans, and sales figures, perhaps documentation of your company's unannounced product releases or business strategies. Add to that all of your emails that may contain loads of information that you would not like to fall into the wrong hands. How safe is your data if your laptop is lost or stolen? What are you doing about it? Are you scared yet?
There are a number of very effective steps that you can take to ensure the confidentiality of your laptop data. First and foremost, make sure that ALL user accounts on your laptop have strong passwords. Don't forget the administrator account that was used to set up the laptop when it was new. These accounts often have NO password by default, yet have full rights to the hard drive in the computer! A strong password contains at least six characters, including some combination of numbers, letters, and special characters (!@#$%*&, etc.) NEVER use any part of your name, names of children or pets, birthdays or anniversary dates, social security numbers, phone numbers, or addresses. These are simply too easy to guess or obtain by a determined thief.
Once your notebook has been protected with a strong password, the next step to prevent the loss of your important data is simply to follow the "Need to Save" rule. Only keep data on a mobile device for as long as it is actually needed there, and delete it when it is no longer useful. If you are taking a customer list or business plan on your trip, copy it to your company's server and delete it when you return to the office.
Finally, you should use encryption on your computer to keep your data safe even if your laptop is lost or stolen. Some versions of Microsoft Windows and the MacOS include this feature. One highly recommended solution for Windows, Mac, and Linux users is a piece of open source software called "TrueCrypt." It is easy to install, easy to use, and best of all it is free! You may download it at www.truecrypt.org. This software allows you to encrypt data folders on your hard drive, as well as on removable media such as USB memory sticks. You can even encrypt entire hard drives, although this option may introduce performance issues and is overkill for most users.
TrueCrypt takes just a couple of minutes to install. Once installed you create a blank file, and tell TrueCrypt to use it as your encrypted folder. You determine how large you want to make it, and choose a very strong password. Once your TrueCrypt folder is created, you simply run the software to "mount" the folder as a drive letter (such as drive Z:), and provide your password to unlock the files within it. Now you can simply save or copy your files to this drive letter just like any other disk drive. Users of your computer can only access the files if they know the password. Of course, this means you NEVER store the password with the computer, or even in your purse or wallet. If you can memorize your telephone number, you can memorize your computer and TrueCrypt password!
For the ultimate in protection, TrueCrypt allows you to encrypt the entire hard disk, so that you must enter your password before Windows will even begin to boot. This protects temporary and deleted files, as well as your "live" data. With TrueCrypt, even if someone steals your hard drive and attempts to install it in another computer they will be unable to access the data.
Users should be proactive in protecting their personal, employer, and client data. Through the use of simple industry-standard security practices and encryption software, this has never been easier than it is today. You may not be able to completely eliminate the threat of a laptop being lost or stolen, but there is no excuse for allowing the data on that laptop to fall into the wrong hands!
Ted Miller, President AVIK Technologies, Inc.
We manage technology, so you can manage your business!
Ted believes that most organizations, regardless of size, have the same basic information technology requirements. Regardless of whether an organization has five employees or five thousand, they have the critical needs of security, Internet connectivity, file (data) storage and protection, printing, email, backup, system reliability, etc. The difference in IT needs between small and large organizations is primarily one of scale. The need is the same, the size and cost of the solution may not be.
Ted leverages his experience on behalf of his clients by reviewing how large organizations tackle specific technical and business problems, then scales solutions in such a way as to meet the need of his smaller clients while keeping costs under control and aligned with the client's business objectives.
Visit http://www.aviktech.com today to learn more about the services provided by AVIK Technologies, Inc.
Article Source:
http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ted_Miller
We manage technology, so you can manage your business!
Ted believes that most organizations, regardless of size, have the same basic information technology requirements. Regardless of whether an organization has five employees or five thousand, they have the critical needs of security, Internet connectivity, file (data) storage and protection, printing, email, backup, system reliability, etc. The difference in IT needs between small and large organizations is primarily one of scale. The need is the same, the size and cost of the solution may not be.
Ted leverages his experience on behalf of his clients by reviewing how large organizations tackle specific technical and business problems, then scales solutions in such a way as to meet the need of his smaller clients while keeping costs under control and aligned with the client's business objectives.
Visit http://www.aviktech.com today to learn more about the services provided by AVIK Technologies, Inc.
ليست هناك تعليقات:
إرسال تعليق