When owning a computer, it’s important to know whether it is safe and if anything has compromised the system. One thing to look out for is signs of malware. This can be evident if there are performance issues such as noticeable slowdowns, unusual program behavior, or unexpected shutdowns. If you sense suspicious activity such as unfamiliar programs running in the background, excessive pop-ups, or unexplained data usage. If you have any antivirus software it could display warnings about potential vulnerabilities of detected threats. Another way to ensure your computer is safe is keeping up with system updates. If you have outdated software then the operating systems can be vulnerable to known exploits which becomes an easy target for hackers. If you don’t have automatic updates enabled then the computer could be missing crucial security patches. It’s also important to not install random software that are from unauthorized websites. Lastly, as a user there are ways to surf the internet safely without affecting your computer. Trying not to click on suspicious links or going to insecure websites is essential. When creating accounts that hold personal information, it’s important to create strong passwords. Being a computer owner you should also familiarize yourself with the best cybersecurity practices.

Computers are one of the best inventions, however they do have pros and cons when it comes to safety. Computers have enhanced communication and made it possible to communicate over vast distances and enabled rapid emergency response, disaster management, and crime prevention. With the great things that computers have introduced to us they also come with some not so great things like cyber crime which can include online fraud or data breaches. On the more intense side they also have weaponization technology which is used in cyberwarfare and surveillance technologies. This has raised ethical concerns and poses risks to global security.