I am often asked "what tips can you give me for securing my computer?" Understanding that someone will be trying to phish for your personal information in order to offer identities for resale or that others will simply want to use your computer as a platform from which to attack unknown targets, is half the battle. There are a few basic steps that you can take to ensure that your computer security is of a minimal and useful level. These steps are fairly easy and cost-effective and easy to implement.

1. Backups - Always make backups of important information and store in a safe place away from your computer.

2. Keep your operating system up to date. - If you have a Windows operating system, start by going to windowsupdate.microsoft.com and running the update wizard.  This program will help you find the latest patches for your Windows computer.  Also go to officeupdate.microsoft.com to locate possible patches for your Office programs. Ensure that you implement the latest updates available.

3. Firewall. - Install one, without a good firewall, viruses, worms, Trojans, malware and adware can all easily access your computer from the Internet. Consideration should be given to the benefits and differences between hardware and software based firewall programs.

4. Browser security settings - Review your browser and email settings for optimum security. Why should you do this? Hackers like to plant malicious programs into your computer, often using active-X and JavaScript to do it. While cookies are relatively harmless in terms of security concerns, they do still track your movements on the Internet to build a profile of you. At a minimum set your security setting for the "internet zone" to High, and your "trusted sites zone" to Medium Low.

5. Anti Virus - Install good antivirus software and set for automatic updates so that you receive the most current versions. These need not be expensive, if you search the web there are many that are free for home use.

6. Never open unknown email attachments. It is simply not enough that you may recognize the address from which it originates because many viruses can spread from a familiar address. If you're not sure, then virus check the email and its attachment.

7. Programs from unknown origins. Also, do not send these types of programs to friends and coworkers because they contain funny or amusing stories or jokes. They may contain a Trojans horse waiting to infect a computer.

8. Hidden filename extensions - disable them. By default, the Windows operating system is set to "hide file extensions for known file types". Disable this option so that file extensions display in Windows. Some file extensions will, by default, continue to remain hidden, but you are more likely to see any unusual file extensions that do not belong.

Isolation is the best defence - Turn off your computer and disconnect from the network if it is not in use. A hacker cannot attack your computer when you are disconnected from the network or the computer is off.

10. Consider making a boot disk on a floppy disk (your operating system supplier will tell you how to do this). It is required in the case of your computer getting damaged or compromised by a malicious program. Whilst it will not stop it happening, it will enable you to get back to where you were before the damage occurred. Obviously, you need to take this step before you experience a hostile breach of your system.

The subject of securing your computer is extensive and there are a number of other things you can do. The tips listed in the article are to enable you to put the basics in place. The best tip of all is that security should be a priority and after thought. If you wish to know more then I can direct you to The Hackers Nightmare: The Bible Of Computer & Internet Security. This e-book makes the nightmare understandable and usable by computer users of all levels. Click Here!