Seemingly every day in the news we hear of new security problems and hacks. We also hear that more and more hackers are dangerously looming waiting for the right opportunity to attack. Because of this, it is essential to make sure that our computer is safe and secure. There are many telltale signs that your computer has a virus. These include browser lag, malfunctioning antivirus programs, or firewalls. Unexpected pop-ups, missing files, slow computer performance, problems shutting down, frequent system crashes, overworked hard drive, and random emails that come from accounts. If this is the case the individual should go and check their settings. There is a free tool called the Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer which checks passwords and account settings. If it finds something that could be weak or disabled, it will alert you. The second thing to do would be to update your browser. If you have the latest browser, it is always the safest version and will help protect the computer from infections and attacks. If you keep an old browser, it keeps your computer vulnerable. The third thing would be to test your firewall. One of the most basic but fundamental security features of a computer is a firewall. A firewall’s duty is to keep hackers from seeing your computer which they are searching for potential victims. Windows and Mac typically have decent firewalls that do their job reasonably well. The fourth thing would be to permanently delete files. When just deleting a file, it does not completely remove them. They end up in a hard drive for potential weeks. If a hacker gets into your computer, potentially sensitive information could be located on these files, so it is best to completely get rid of them. The fifth thing would be to check social media passwords and security. For example, if someone’s Instagram account got hacked, they could possibly get fully into one’s computer system.

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5 Ways to Test Your Computer Security by Kim Komando