What kind of security threats are there?

• Some people might take your data away...
• ... and some people might put additional (illegal) data on your computer!
• Or your computer might be part of a botnet (it is "simply" used for bad things...).
• Also think about other people's data on your computer! A journalist, lawyer or a political organisation might get precarious documents and mails from 3rd party. Protect these data as well!
• Be carefull with your personal data (login data, subscription, social networks, bank data...).

What shall be protected?

• Hardware: Computer, server, router.
• Documents, mails, contacts, tasks...
• Data records (ERP system, financial system...).
• Subscription data (usernames, passwords...).

Protection of your computer and network

• You computer should be protected against malware (virus, worms, trojans...) e.g. by anti virus software.
• Your network can be protected e.g. by firewall.
• Your passwords should be kept in a password manager.

Local security

Secure the data on your computer!

• Document based security: This function is provided e.g. by office software and it is only applied on office documents. The protection is weak and not flexible. Be careful: Can you access your old documents after upgrading the office suite? Sharing documents with such a protection is even more troublesome.
• File based security: Some security tools encrypt all kind of files with a very high encryption level. These tools are better than document based security, but still have a bad usability.
• Folder based security: E.g. NTFS file system (Windows XP...) offer this feature, but you are bound to Microsoft. How about CDs, DVDs and backup? Usually the protection is lost.
• Container based security, e.g. Truecrypt: We think this is one of the best solutions. A closed container is protected everywhere (DVD, CD, harddisk, backup, USB...)! An open container appears as a additional drive (e.g. E:\) and it works exactly like this.

Transport security

Transfer files safely from your computer to another!

• Secure connection e.g. by VPN (virtual private network)
• Secure mail, e.g. by PGP (Pretty Good Privacy): mails and attachments are encrypted on sender's computer, during transport and on addressee's computer.
• Secure connection e.g. by SSL (secure socket layer): The access to certain websites (e.g. an online banking website, a web-based document repository or groupware system...) is protected.

Please consider...

     Don't underestimate security risks! Better ask for advice before something bad happens!