Maintain Security

Whether you are using your computer at home or on the job, you must remember that anyone with any knowledge of computers can easily access any sensitive or confidential data. Protect your important business strategies as well as personal information from access by the casual passerby.

It is sometimes recommended that highly sensitive files be kept on removable media and under lock and key. Many businesses have policies for how to treat sensitive data.

You can set up your computer with a password that does not allow anyone to use it without first entering the password. In addition, use the password commands available in applications to further protect individual documents should someone gain access to your system after you turn it on.

Be very careful when using passwords. If you haphazardly add passwords, you may not remember the password yourself after a few weeks or months. If you do not know the password, you will not be able to access your files.

You can use a screen saver that displays a variety of moving objects on the screen when you have not used your computer for a set period of time. Using the screen saver prevents casual passersby from seeing your data as they approach your computer.

In the past, screen savers were used to prevent an image of a document from burning into the screen. New screen technology has made that problem obsolete.