Cybersecurity isn’t just about companies preventing their networks from being breached. It’s something that everyone that uses technology needs to be mindful of. On a personal level, you can think of it as information and device security.
Stopping hackers from getting to your personal data and keeping dangerous viruses out of your computer requires a personal level of cybersecurity. Being safe online is one part of the equation. The consequences of being lax about things like passwords and using free Wi-Fi without safeguards can be high.
Over 24 million Americans have had online accounts taken over by hackers, this includes workplace retirement apps. It’s scary to think of accounts having to do with your money being emptied by a scammer, but it happens all too often. Last year, account takeovers rose nearly 72%.
Every October, two US government agencies promote Cybersecurity Awareness Month. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the National Cybersecurity Alliance (NCA) provide helpful tips and resources for both consumers and businesses to raise cybersecurity awareness.
Why not take some time this October to brush up on your security hygiene? You can visit the Cybersecurity Awareness Month website to get some free resources, and below we’ll highlight four key best practices being promoted this year.
Tips to Be “Cyber Smart” and Protect Your Data
This year’s Cybersecurity Awareness Month theme is “See Yourself in Cyber” and it’s all about breaking the misconception that cybersecurity is just for companies and IT people.
The site notes that cybersecurity is really all about people adopting best practices when using computers, mobile phones, and accessing online accounts.
Here are four simple, but effective ways to improve your cyber hygiene and keep your devices and online accounts from being hacked.
Enable Multi-Factor Authentication
Multi-factor authentication (MFA) is also called two-factor authentication (2FA) and two-step verification. What it means is that there is more than one step to gain access to your account.
MFA is very, very effective at stopping scammers from breaching your online accounts, such as a bank account, Facebook account, Amazon account, and others. Microsoft, which sees about 300 million attempts by hackers to breach its cloud services each day, says that using multi-factor authentication can stop 99.9% of attempted fake sign-ins.
With MFA/2FA, you will receive an additional prompt before you can access your account. This typically will come in the form of a one-time passcode (OTP) that is sent to your mobile phone.
Once you log in with your username and password, you will normally see a button to send the MFA code. Some systems give you a choice to send via text, email, or automated voice call. This OTP is usually about 5 or 6 digits, and you need to enter it to get access.
How do you add MFA/2FA to an account?
Go to your account settings for an online account.
Look for an area for privacy or security.
If there is a search option in the settings, search on either “multi-factor, two-factor, or two-step.
When you find this, turn this feature on.
Go through the prompts to set up a phone number (or another method) to receive the one-time passcode.
Tip: Open a new browser tabs to quickly check your email for a one-time passcode, then go back to the website to enter the passcode you just received.
The #1 cause of data breaches around the world is not some big virus or another form of malware. It’s breached passwords. Hackers are having a field day breaking into personal and business accounts by guessing, stealing, and otherwise compromising weak passwords.
Ditch those easy passwords that you find simple to remember. If they’re easy to remember, then they are easy to hack. You should use strong password best practices to create passwords.
Strong passwords look like this:
Have at least 10-12 characters
Use at least one uppercase letter
Use at least one symbol
Use at least one number
The best way to manage strong and unique passwords for every login is to use a password manager. There are both free and paid versions you can find online. Just be sure to use a reputable password management tool. I use LastPass since I can use it on multiple operating systems and devices. You can also use the password manager built into your browser or operating system as long as your devices are password protected.
Recognize Phishing
Fake emails and text messages can trick you into giving away your login information to a website. They can also cause you to download malware. Phishing can look like a shipping notification from Amazon or an urgent notification to update your email account.
Learn how to recognize phishing so you can avoid falling into its trap. It’s also helpful to use an email system – such as Gmail – with good spam and phishing detection.
Phishing recognition tips:
Hover over links without clicking them to see the real URL
Any slight misspellings or grammar that is “off”
If the email is unexpected (such as a receipt for something you never bought)
An email address that uses the company name first, instead of after the @ symbol – for example: (name of bank)@strangedomain.com instead of contact@(name of bank).com
Update Your Software
Software often has vulnerabilities that allow hackers to exploit a device. For example, poorly written code might allow a scammer to use a loophole to take control of your computer or smartphone.
Your best defense against software and operating system vulnerabilities is to keep all software and apps on your devices updated regularly. Those updates will include the latest patches for newly found vulnerabilities that keep hackers from using them.
Get Help With Your Personal Cybersecurity
Computer Techs enjoys working with Reno area residents to improve their cyber hygiene. We can help with virus scan and removal, email filtering to reduce phishing, MFA setup, and much more.
We’ve all seen them before: those little icons that show up in our taskbars next to the clock. They come in all sorts of shapes and colors.
*But, what do they mean?*
The specific icons may vary depending on your operating system of your computer, but they will usually have similar functionality.
While some of them are fairly self-explanatory, others can be a bit more confusing. Let’s take a look at what some of the most common taskbar icons mean.
Sound Icon
One of the most common taskbar icons is the sound/speaker icon. This icon indicates the status of the sound on your system.
For example, if the speaker is crossed out, that might mean that your system’s sound is muted or disabled.
You can usually click the icon to toggle your sound on/off or to change the system’s output to another device (for example, for switching over to some Bluetooth headphones or speakers).
Wi-Fi / Network Icon
Another common taskbar icon is the Wi-Fi icon (or networking icon if you’re connected via ethernet cable to your router). This looks like a small dot with waves coming out of the top, forming somewhat of an upside-down triangle.
This icon lets you know if you’re connected to a network or not.
If you’re on Wi-Fi and the icon has full bars that means you have a strong connection. If the icon is empty or grayed out, that means your connection is weak you don’t have a connection, respectively.
When you hover your mouse over the icon, you’ll also see the name of the network you’re currently connected to.
If you’re not connected to a network, you might see “Not connected” instead.
It’s also a quick way to access the network settings, which can be useful if you need to troubleshoot a connection issue or change your Wi-Fi password.
Battery / Power Indicator Icon
Probably one of the most important icons for laptop/mobile users will be the battery icon. This one lets you know, at a glance, how much battery life your laptop or mobile device has.
The more full the icon, the more battery life you have. If the icon is empty, that means your battery is running low and you should plug in your laptop soon.
If you’re connected to power it will let you know your current charging status and how much time is left before your battery is fully charged.
Bluetooth Icon
If you have Bluetooth turned on, you’ll see a Bluetooth icon in your taskbar. This one looks kind of like a jagged capital “B” letter.
This icon lets you know that your system is able to connect to wireless Bluetooth devices and the status of your Bluetooth connections – such as a wireless speaker/headphones, keyboard or mouse.
You can usually click on the icon to see a list of available Bluetooth devices that you can connect to.
Airplane Mode Icon
The airplane mode icon is another common and quite useful icon. It allows you to toggle airplane mode on/off. It will look like an airplane on most devices.
Airplane mode is a setting that disables all wireless communication on your device. This includes things like Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and cellular data.
You’ll usually only use this icon when you’re on an airplane (hence the name) but you might also find it useful in other places where wireless communication is not allowed.
Boost Productivity
Now that you know what some of the most common taskbar icons mean, you can start using them to your advantage.
For example, if you’re trying to conserve battery life, you can click on the battery icon and see how much power you have left. If you’re trying to be productive and minimize distractions, you can click on the speaker icon to mute your sound.
Knowing what the taskbar icons mean can also help you troubleshoot problems.
For example, if your sound isn’t working, you can check to see if the speaker icon is crossed out. If it is, that means your sound is muted and you can just click on the icon to unmute it.
Need Expert Computer Help?
Overall, the taskbar icons are a helpful way to see what’s going on with your computer at a glance.
Next time you’re looking at your taskbar, take a minute to familiarize yourself with the icons and what they mean. It’ll come in handy more often than you think!
We hope this article has helped you understand what some of the more common icons on your taskbar mean.
If you have any other questions about taskbar icons, or need computer help of any kind, don’t hesitate to contact us!
Web browsers are your gateway to the internet or World Wide Web. Browsers contain a lot of features that make your online experience more efficient. This includes things like tabs that allow you to open different web pages at the same time, and “bookmarks” or “favorites” that let you save website addresses so that you don’t have to type-in or search for frequently visited websites.
Some of the most popular browsers are Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Edge, Apple Safari, and Opera. These browsers have many useful features to help you get things done with ease. While some features of the browsers are known, others are either unknown or under-utilized,
Here, we’ll discuss some of the great features of your browser that you may not be using yet.
Cybercriminals are continuously targeting naïve individuals. They do not discriminate when it comes to defrauding people. They’ll obtain money from anyone – young, old, poor, and rich. The American Journal of Public health notes that about 5% of adults get scammed yearly.
In the United States, older adults lose about $40 billion per year due to cyberattacks. Cybercriminals can easily exploit the information of an older adult, which can be obtained through smartphones or computer systems. Unfortunately, senior citizens are easy targets of cybercriminals because of their inexperience with using technology. Many older citizens have social media accounts, surf the internet, and use credit cards online. Unlike the younger generation, older adults are generally less aware of cybercriminals’ activities, and as such, they lack the necessary information to help them stay protected from these malicious activities.
Cybercriminals may reach out in a non-suspicious manner. They may send a link through a legitimate email and offer to assist them with resolving issues. Or they may send an email posing as a company offering cheap vacation trips, or even coupons or prizes.
These fake emails are called phishing. The criminal is trying to fish for victims, just like fishermen fish for bass, trout, etc. The fake emails act as their lures. Phishing is one of the main causes of all types of data breaches, credit card theft, and other cybersecurity issues.
Then, these hackers will proceed to request personal information from the unsuspecting victim. They will use the information generated to access their credit cards and defraud them if successful.
Scams targeting the elderly population are becoming rampant in the United States, and their effect on them is damaging. For online criminals, scamming the elderly can bring easy monetary rewards.
One way to protect yourself from these malicious activities is to use the SLAM method of phishing detection. SLAM is an acronym that represents:
Sender
Links
Attachment
Message
How To Identify Dangerous Emails Using The SLAM Method
SLAM is an acronym that guides you to identify if an email is fraudulent. With it, you can easily recognize when cybercriminals use emails to carry out a phishing attempt.
S- Sender
As a rule, pay attention to the sender’s email address. Cybercriminals often use the email address of a trusted entity to carry out phishing attacks. So, don’t be in haste to open the email. It is best to ascertain the validity of the sender’s email address. You can do this by hovering your mouse over the sender’s name. It gives you appropriate information on the sender.
Cybercriminals often make little adjustments to the email addresses they want to use in carrying out a phishing attack. Look out for spelling errors or additional letters in the email addresses. If something doesn’t look right, then it probably isn’t.
L- Link
Many phishing emails have links in them. These links prompt the recipients to click on them so that they can reveal sensitive or personal information. Sometimes, the link in the phishing mail looks helpful and could even offer assistance in resolving bank, health, or payment issues. The link then redirects the user to a login page that may look very similar to one they are used to seeing. This is called a spoofed login page. It’s made to trick the victim into inputting their username and password for a specific site.
A-Attachment
Malicious attachments are standard in phishing emails. To stay safe, it is not advisable to open any attachments in your emails that you aren’t absolutely sure are safe and from a legitimate source. When you download a malicious attachment, it enables hackers to gain access to your device and compromise it. Therefore, don’t open an attachment in your email unless you confirm it is authentic.
M- Message
This represents the content of the email. Although many scammers have become very sophisticated in sending messages, many phishing emails have recognizable flaws such as misspellings, punctuation and capitalization errors, wrong or mis-formatted dates, and generic/non-personalized greetings.
Take the phishing quiz to see if you can spot phishing emails
Test how well you can follow the SLAM method by taking the following quiz which will open in a new tab: Phishing Quiz
Before conversing with a stranger/potential scammer, contact us if you have questions about a suspicious email, text or phone call.
Payment apps like Zelle and Venmo are a customer favorite because they are a convenient, fast, and easy way of electronically exchanging money between others. Zelle’s popularity and quick exchange of funds between one bank and another attracts more than just new customers. Unfortunately, it attracts hackers and scammers too.
With so many headlines about Zelle scams on the news lately, many users can’t help but wonder about the platform’s safety. Scammers target Zelle users and siphon off their hard-earned money through phishing scams. The truth is, Zelle is safe as long as you are careful, and you pay attention.
By the time you’re done reading this article, you’ll know more about Zelle and how you can safely use the platform without falling victim to scammers.
What exactly is Zelle?
Zelle is a popular payment application operating a peer-to-peer (P2P) model. It makes it easy for users to move money and pay for things without going to the bank or handling cash. Zelle is the joint effort of several major banks in the US. It’s easy to use through an iPhone and Android app. Zelle also integrates with the mobile app of major banks such as Bank of America, Wells Fargo and Chase.
How does the Zelle scam work?
Zelle scams are mainly social engineering scams. Social engineering is manipulating or influencing people using scare tactics or fraudulent information. Scammers trick consumers into unintentionally authorizing money transfers by making fraudulent claims and promises.
One of the most common Zelle scams involves sending a text message or an email requesting confirmation for what ends up being a fake payment. Most users often respond to try and disprove the transaction. Instead of putting the scammers off, it opens the door for further communication. The scammers then call the user pretending to be from the user’s bank and pretend to give the user instructions that’ll reverse the claim. In reality, the money ends up in the scammer’s account.
Safety precautions when using Zelle
While the news may sound scary, most Zelle scams are social engineering. As long as you heed the precautions below, you should be relatively safe.
Only use Zelle for people or businesses you trust
P2P payments should not be used to send money to anyone you don’t know and should rarely be used for online purchases. Only use Zelle to send money to your family and friends if possible. Verify that the phone number, email, and recipient’s name are all correct.
Ignore unsolicited emails and text messages
Your bank will rarely contact you unsolicited. If you received a message from any party posing as a banking representative when you haven’t contacted them, ignore it. Reach out to your bank directly and ask them to check your account for any suspicious activity.
If you gave out your personal details before you noticed anything, that is, you fell for the phishing scam, call your bank so they can help you secure the account.
Use two-factor authentication (2FA)
Two-factor, two-step, or multi-factor authentication is a security process that helps secure your accounts by asking users to verify their identity using two different authentication factors. When you authorize 2FA, you’ll need to input a one-time password (OTP) anytime you sign in to your account. You should never share your OTP with anyone, no matter how insistent they appear. Criminals posing as your bank may demand your passcode for various reasons, but no legitimate bank will ever ask for it.
Don’t get pressured by urgent or immediate payments
If you observe any suspicious behavior from someone claiming to be a representative of your bank, a utility, or another institution demanding quick payment, it’s likely a scam. End the call and reach out to the business through official channels.
Scammers also send payment requests from businesses, banks, and utilities you don’t pay with Zelle to trip you up. Confirm from the organization’s official channels that the request is legitimate before paying.
Be cautious of anyone insisting on using only Zelle
Anyone who insists on transacting only through Zelle should send warning bells to your mind. If they say the only payment option they can accept is Zelle, then make sure the transaction and the individual are genuine before sending any money.
Don’t send money to yourself
Scammers may try to get you to authorize a reversal by claiming that a payment failed to go through or that your account has been compromised. Remember that banks won’t reach out to you unless you contact them first.
We’re Here to Help Keep Your Tech Safe
Need more information on staying safe while using online apps? Then visit Computer Techs. Schedule an appointment by calling 775-624-6888
Today’s smartphones retain a lot of personal data that you likely wouldn’t want to get into the wrong hands. Below is a list of just some of the data that can be accessed if someone got into your smartphone:
Someone can receive one-time passwords via text message or authenticator app that can be used to reset account passwords
Impersonate you by being able to send and receive calls, email and text messages on your behalf
Impersonate you through any social networks apps that you use
Access any notes, passwords or private pictures you may have stored
Reset your phone and sell it
How you can protect your smartphone
The most important thing you should do is to protect your smartphone with a numeric passcode and/or biometric authentication (finger or facial recognition). 6-digits is better than 4-digits – but 4-digits is definitely better than no passcode. Also, set your smartphone to auto-lock and require the passcode after 5-minutes or less of inactivity (less time is better).
I am surprised by how many clients I’ve helped who had no passcode on their phone. Smartphones are easily lost or misplaced, and a passcode will help keep your data out of the wrong hands. Most people don’t keep their doors unlocked, so why keep their smartphone unlocked?
Other things to keep your smartphone safe include:
Only install apps from trusted developers with lots of favorable reviews
Treat every text message and email from unknown senders as suspicious – particularly if it’s asking you to do something. Most text messages from financial institutions come from a 5-or-6-digit “short code” – not a 10-digit phone number.
Connect your smartphone to Wi-Fi when at home, and make sure you keep the operating system (typically iOS or Android) up-to-date with the latest security patches.
You don’t need an antivirus or security app, nor a VPN. Protections are already built into the operating system of your mobile device, and apps are vetted before being made available in the app stores. However, be judicious about the apps that you install, because occasionally stuff gets by the reviewers.
Most importantly, password protect your device. You are more likely to lose or misplace your device than getting hacked from the outside.
Do you need help with your mobile device(s). Contact us to discuss your needs.
Email open rates typically range between 20 and 30 percent while SMS stands at a staggering 98 percent. 90 percent of texts are opened within three seconds of receipt. The average text is read within 90 seconds of receipt while that number is 90 minutes for email. This characteristically rapid response for text messages makes them a popular avenue for SMS scams and phishing – sometimes called “smishing”. Scams after all require that the target respond quickly before they have a change of heart or think their decision through.
The average text is read within 90 seconds of receipt. That metric is 90 minutes for email.
The speed and regularity of reading and responding to texts is why you should delete scam texts immediately. If they lie around your inbox too long, you could unintentionally click on the fraudulent link at some future date. Scam SMS comes in diverse forms. Knowing SMS scammers’ modus operandi is critical to avoiding falling victim. Check out these types of texts you should get rid of without hesitation.
1. A Friend’s Friend You’ve Never Heard Of
Scammers know they have a good shot at success if they can convince you that you are someone they may know and can trust. Since they cannot guess the origin and nature of your friendships, their best bet is to pose as someone referred to you by your friend or acquaintance. For the average adult, friends and acquaintances garnered through life can number in the hundreds or thousands.
So, if the scammer sent you a text message purporting to be a referral from your friend Melissa or Michael, chances are you have someone by that common name that you have at the minimum, a distant connection to. You would feel compelled to take a look and respond to the message to avoid embarrassing your friend or friend’s friend by stating you don’t remember them.
Now, this type of text could very well be genuine. But as with virtually all scam texts, if it includes a URL the sender wants you to click on, delete it immediately.
2. A Package You Were Not Aware Of
Who doesn’t love surprise gifts and just incoming packages in general? When we order something at online stores such as Amazon, there’s a palpable excitement as we anticipate its arrival. If you get a text message claiming you have a package waiting for you, it is tempting to click on the link to see the details, claim it and/or specify the destination. Yet, this is one of the most common SMS scams.
While the link could be a trigger for the download of malware to your phone, it is often a means of extracting confidential personal information from you via a fake webform. Armed with that data, the scammers can execute elaborate identity theft, empty your account, and max out your credit card.
3. Your Bank Account or Credit/Debit Card is On the Verge of Closure
Our bank accounts and credit/debit cards are a key driver of our everyday quality of life. You may be sent into a panic if you receive a text message claiming your bank account or card will be closed in case you do not urgently confirm your PIN, password, and other information. Often, there will be a narrow deadline such as the need to provide the information within hours of receipt.
Bank accounts and cards do get closed for various reasons. So, once again, this rides on a realistic scenario. Still, account closure is unlikely to happen with such urgency. There will be a lead time of at least weeks or months. To check if it’s a scam, call the bank directly on their official listed phone numbers (you can find these on their website’s Contact Us section), or on the back of the card. If it doesn’t check out, delete it promptly.
4. You’ve Won an Award You Did Not Know You Were in the Running For
This plays on the elation that accompanies an unexpected gift. But nothing comes that easy. Nearly all notable awards require that you formally and intentionally enter the contest before you are assessed against other participants. Few organizations would want to go through the painstaking process of identifying a winner only for the selected candidate to reject it.
What does this all mean? If you receive a text message about an award you’ve won, it’s likely scammers looking to cash in at your expense. Do not click on the link they ask you to even if it is apparently the only means to claim your award. Usually, these text messages download malware to your phone that would need removal.
Conclusion
These are some of the common types of scam texts but this is not an exhaustive list. Other types of scam SMS range from claims that your videos/photos have been posted somewhere, to inauthentic COVID-19 pandemic updates. Irrespective of the type of message, take a screenshot of the message for later review by an IT professional, then delete the message. Under no circumstances should you click the links, respond to the text or call the sender.
Think you have been a target of scam texts? Most people have. Contact us if you need assistance.
Updated 10/18/23 to include other accounts besides email.
You may have signed up for your email account long ago – before additional account recovery information was required. If you get locked out of your email account tomorrow, does your account have enough account recovery information to allow you to easily reset your password and get back into your account?
Account recovery information includes other methods to confirm your identity including:
A mobile phone number that can receive a text message
A secondary email address
Account security questions – i.e. “your first pet’s name”
This year we’ve had several clients get permanently locked out of their AT&T/Yahoo email and other accounts because there wasn’t enough secondary verifiable information to convince the customer support representative to reset the password. Don’t let that happen to you. Log into your email account today – before a hacker does – to update your profile information with a cell phone number that can receive one-time-password verification text messages. Alternatively or additionally you could provide a secondary email address or setup account security questions/answers. If available, setup 2-Step Verification – sometimes called Multi-Factor Authentication – for even better protection.
Don’t forget to secure your other accounts
While you’re securing your email account, we also recommend securing your other accounts that could be accessed by hackers. Those accounts include:
Bank and brokerage accounts where funds could be transferred out by a scammer
Social media accounts where someone could take over your identity to scam your friends and family
Your Microsoft, Apple and/or Google accounts which are used to login to your computer or mobile device
To secure your accounts as mentioned above, once logged into one of your online accounts, look for a section called profile or security to make the changes and additions. Instructions for some common accounts include:
We’ve been receiving lots of reports from clients that their Facebook account has been hacked. In reality, usually it’s just been cloned. Here’s what’s happening.
If you have a Facebook account, by default your Friends list is set to “Public” – meaning anybody on the internet can see who your Facebook friends are. But miscreants and scammers can use this information along with other public information to impersonate you by creating a new Facebook profile – even with your public profile picture(s). Then they send friend requests to all of your friends. Once your friends become friends with the new “you”, a scammer can persuade your friends that your original Facebook account was hacked and your friends are lead to believe the new account is really you. Scammers will then use your new Facebook profile controlled by them to have your friends confide in “you” to obtain personal/private information and/or gift cards or other financial scams.
What you need to change right away
We recommend using Facebook’s Privacy Checkup to review your settings, and make sure that scammers can’t use public information from your Facebook account. In Facebook, go to your Account > Settings and Privacy > Privacy Checkup. In “Who can see what you share”, make sure “Who can see your friends list on your profile?” is NOT set to Public. In Privacy Checkup we also recommend going through “How to keep your account secure”, and make sure that you’re using a unique password for Facebook.
An additional step is to make sure that your only “Friends” can see your Followers – it’s set to “Public” by default. Check this setting by click the 3 dots near the top of your Friends list > Edit Privacy > Followers.
Once upon a time, the cloud referred to something you’d look up and see in the sky. In the age of technology, though, the cloud is something wholly different altogether. Essentially, the cloud offers a secure way to store and back up your data – things like your documents, files, photos and contact details.
Before the cloud, you’d store this data on your computer hard drive. While you can still do this, it’s also wise to use the cloud too. This is because if your hard drive fails, then you can still access your data. Also, more of us now use computers and mobile phones. If you use the cloud, then you can access your information from multiple devices.
The average employee uses over 30 cloud-based services each day.
In the same way that different companies sell different brands of phones – like Nokia, Samsung and Apple – there are a number of companies that sell cloud storage. The main ones in the consumer space are Apple, Google and Microsoft.
Below, we’ll dive into each of their cloud offerings, so you can get a better idea of what solution is best for your needs.
iCloud
If you have an iPhone or a Mac, then Apple’s iCloud is the best option for you. iCloud only works natively on Apple devices. It enables you to access your data seamlessly across your devices, including notes, photos, calendars and documents.
Once you have set up iCloud, you can configure it to automatically back up your data, so you don’t need to keep remembering to click ‘backup’. You get 5 GB of free storage with iCloud.
Moreover, if you are in a family of Apple users, then the iCloud has excellent functionality that allows you to easily share photos, files and more with other iPhone or Mac users.
OneDrive
OneDrive is Microsoft’s answer to cloud storage. Anyone who has a Microsoft email account can access OneDrive for free. However, you only get 5GB of free storage before you need to start paying.
Like iCloud, Microsoft enables you to store and share your personal information and files in the cloud. You can access these files by logging into your email account in your web browser.
Google Drive
Google Drive is another cloud-based storage solution, which allows you to store files and photos online and access them from your phone, tablet, or computer with a login. Google Drive also has a wealth of features – such as Google Docs and Google Sheets – that allow you to create word processing documents and spreadsheets in the cloud, without paying for software.
Google Drive offers 15GB of free storage, 3x the free storage space of the others listed above.
Which Service is Best for Me?
No service is better than the other. It depends on your unique preferences. Some people prefer the interface of Microsoft OneDrive, while others prefer Google Drive.
We suggest looking at what applications you use know and taking a decision from there. For example, if you’re already set up with a Microsoft account, then it likely makes sense for you to use OneDrive.
Alternatively, if you’re an avid Apple user or have a Gmail account, then you’ll want to select iCloud and Google Drive, respectively.
Don’t Forget About Security
Your cloud is only as secure as the devices that have access to it. Make sure all your devices are protected with robust PIN and password controls.
Another thing to make sure of as you start using the cloud, is to make sure your files are configured securely and that you practice good password hygiene.
We advise that you set up account recovery options. These will help you to regain access to your cloud accounts in the event of losing your password. You’ll be asked to set up a security question, link your mobile phone to your account, or provide an alternative email address.
We also recommend that you use multi-factor authentication for your cloud accounts. This requires you to verify your identity when you log into your account. You’ll need to provide your password, and another form of authentication – such as a code sent to your phone or a link in your email.
Of course, we understand that navigating cloud accounts can be complex – especially at the beginning. That’s why we are on hand to help you find and configure the best cloud storage for you.
Get Help With Cloud Storage and Backup
We enjoy working with our clients to help them get more from their technology while keeping their personal data secure. We can help you put automated solutions in place that keep you better protected online.
