Advantages of Online Backup

You may be wondering why there is a need for online backup such as keepit online backup provides, when you can keep duplicate copies of your important files in optical discs, another hard drive, or flash drives.  It should be pointed out that one important benefit of using web storage is that the user is not required to do anything during the backup process.  The significance of automatic backup is that you do not have worry about anything once you have specified the schedule and the files to be duplicated on a regular basis.  As long as your Internet file storage provider is one of the best, they will conduct the backup procedure in such a manner that you may not even notice that it is being performed.  This is done by taking advantage of the idle times for the computer system and the Internet connection.

Still another primary advantage of online backup is that the duplicate copies are stored in a remote location.  This means that you do not have to carry the CDs, flash drives or hard drives to another location just to ensure that they are safe in the event that a burglary, earthquake, fire or some other kind of disaster occurs in your home or office.  In addition, disaster recovery will simply mean connecting to the provider’s server to access the files.  Some providers may even permit backup of the operating system, which makes the recovery process even easier. 

Another important benefit of online backup is the use of advanced encryption technologies to prevent illegal access to the files.  Naturally, you may also manually apply encryption methods on the backup files kept in physical media such as hard drives, flash drives, and CDs.  However, the benefit provided by the web service is that this is also done automatically.  You would not have to worry about forgetting to encrypt your backup copies because this is automatically performed even before the files are transmitted to the provider’s data center.  Another advantage is that even when an Internet connection is not available, you can still change a file because sync software will automatically alter the corresponding file in backup storage once you are back online.

Meanwhile, a possible disadvantage is that the Internet connection may slowly down substantially if the file to be processed is too big.  Some providers attempt to prevent this from happening by establishing a cap on the size of an individual file.  Also, the backup schedule can be set during those times when you are not working on the computer. Check out http://onlinefilestoragereview.com for more details

Simple steps to protect against Internet Threats

Protecting your PC from malware is becoming increasingly difficult. While it may seem a little paranoid, I’m right in saying that you can’t take your eye off the ball for one second. Even Microsoft’s internal network has been compromised on more than one occasion.

I remember the “good old days”, before the Internet and Internet threats such as Trojans, worms and viruses. In terms of computer malware life was simple back then. The main way a computer could be infected was via an infected floppy disk, the ability to detect and clean the virus was much easier. Compared to today, it used to take some time for viruses to infect a computer and slow the system down. Antivirus software back then was capable identifying and cleaning viruses before they became too much of a problem or caused much damage. Computer users were pretty clued up on how to protect themselves by scanning all external disks before copying them to a computer.

The arrival of the ‘Net’ changed all this; it provided new avenues through which viruses could move from host to host with alarming speed. Computer no longer only worry about viruses being transferred through floppy disks, but also now through emails, email attachments, peer-to-peer file sharing, IM and software downloads. Today’s viruses can easily spread through many entry points without human intervention, and take full advantage of weak points within a system or program. With technology advancing, and the advent of computers linking with other mobile devices, the potential threats also increase.

The advances in antivirus software have thankfully kept up to date with virus threats. Antivirus software is very important to a computer’s ability to fight off viruses. These products are designed to fight against malware that enters a PC through the internet as well as file servers and desktops. These programs also offer a main control feature to controls deployment, configuration and updating.

Computer users should stay cautious and follow some simple steps to protect against today’s malware threats:

1. Evaluate your current computer security system
With the threat of new viruses able to attack in an array of ways, the idea of having just one antivirus software has become outdated. You need to be sure that you have protected your entire computer system including desktops, networks, gateways and servers. You should consider a better antivirus internet security product which includes features such as antivirus, firewall, content filtering, and real-time proactive intrusion detection such as the ThreatSense technology found in ESET Nod32 . This type of defence will make it more difficult for viruses to access your systems.

2. Buy Antivirus Internet Security from reputable sources only

Only buy antivirus and internet security software that has been created by a reputable company such as Kaspersky, ESET or BitDefender antivirus. New viruses appear daily and so it is absolutely essential that you update the software regularly. Learn about the real-time scan feature and configure it to start whenever your computer starts up. This will protect your system by checking your PC each time it is turned on.

3. Always scan files and folders for viruses

Always scan programs or files no matter from where they are from.

4. Be cautious of opening files from unknown sources

Be careful when opening binary, Word, or Excel documents from unknown sources especially if they were received during an online chat session or as an attachment to an email.

5. Backup your data

Backup your data on a regular basis in case your system breaks.