Category: Geeks r Us
I will have to be staying at a hotel for an extended period in order to take advantage of some tech training. The hotel offers open wifi and stats that it is free. How can I do normal online activities while ensuring that my computer, and most importantly, my personal information stays safe?
honestly, just keep your firewall and preferred virus checker up all of the time,
and I'd recommend if you're that paranoid about your personal information,
that you keep them in offline storage for the duration of your stay. In other
words, put them on an external harddrive or flash drive until you return to a
relatively secure network.
Use braille, its much safer than any electronic storage device. Lose a flash
drive, and anyone can find it and get your information. Lose a braille card, and
someone thinks that a card got stepped on by someone in golf shoes.
For antivirus, I'm using Microsoft security essentials. Should I swtich to something else while staying at the hotel or will this provice enough protection?
I'd just remove any sensitive information from my computer as suggest.
After that, do whatever you like, except use a credit card to buy things.
Because you run Windows 7, you probably should get a 3RD party security, like Viper.
Install the trial version. It last 30 days.
Once home, change all your passwords.
You could get a password program too, that help.
If your iPhone has unlimited dat plan and you have access to the hotspot on that plan, use your cellular network for shopping and such, the hotels for anything else.
Lol, love Lightnings comment. It's 100% true.
I don't keep anything personal on my computers not even on my home network I monitor.
SSN, banking, whatever, I don't store it.
I do banking online, but behind the banks security on the banks site and I make sure I'm on it before I start typing passwords.
My banks claim my security is there problem, so with that, I let it rip.
A credit cards have online protection, and if you are using one that doesn't provide, use something else.
PayPal is a wonderful tool to use for shoping or paying things online as well.
Set up an account.
I tend to view public WI FI as a means to look at things, Facebook, chat, read my email.
I'll shop too, but I won't sign in to say Amazon, or any of my other regular shops when I'm just looking.
That will be something too.
Before you leave, clear all passwords and such from the browsers you use and sign in each time unless you are using a password program.
If you are just looking, never sign in until you are ready to purchase, and then get on your vellphones network before you buy.
That's about all I can think of to suggest.
Others have said it.
What password programs would people suggest?
Many are free, but accessible I can't say.
go to
www.downloads.com
Search of password managers.
These keep you from typing your password and you can use a master password to control them.
Note, depending on how they work, there not 100% protection.
Good, but not perfect.