We are currently living in the digital age no longer do we have to write letters to friends; no longer do we have to carry around Walkman’s or portable cd players for music. According to the American community survey in 2018 “92% of households had at least one computer in it and 85% had internet.” (Bureau Computer and internet use in the United States: 2018) The ACS considered laptops, desktops, tablets and smartphones as computers but I would be willing to add videogame systems such as PlayStation, Nintendo’s and Microsoft Xbox to that list. With so much of the population having computers in home in 2021 we have to ask ourselves are they safe and what do we consider safe?  

Everyday a new variation of a malicious software appears online and hackers/criminals are working 24 hours a day 7 days a week to commit cybercrimes. Criminals are motivated by greed they are looking to gain access to data that gives them sensitive personal data, business data or government level data. Those who attack government level institutions are typically motivated by political and social reasons. So how can we tell if the computer-based items, we are utilizing are safe.  

The best way we can tell if a computer is safe are not is simply being aware of the signs and symptoms of a virus on one’s device.  Some major signs include missing computer files, computer slowing down on performance, system crashes, the dreaded pop-up windows and the list goes on.

The best way to avoid these problems are to insure one has the latest updates of computer software and hardware and insure they have up to date antivirus programs and antispyware. Typical spyware won’t affect a computers performance but it will allow the criminal to view everything that is one’s computer as if they were accessing it themselves. The last major prevention method is education staying informed on the modern types of attacks is very important and it is up to each individual to insure they are protecting themselves.