Wednesday 27 April 2016

Data Security & Patching - Advice for Dictators


With all the news about the Panama Papers I thought this article was an interesting take on data security and how not to do it, all from the viewpoint of a dictator trying to stash their millions. For the rest of us there are still some useful lessons about how to keep our data secure and away from hackers.


http://www.zdnet.com/article/three-important-lessons-crooked-world-leaders-can-learn-from-the-panama-papers/


The bottom line is patch, patch and patch again. Make sure you always keep your software up to date with the latest patches and install updates when there are any security alerts. For most of us all might happen is that someone could have access to our data or hack your email/social media but potentially you could lose money from fraud on your bank account or lose important personal data like photos if your phone or PC is at risk from unpatched security flaws.
If your PC or phone prompts to install new security updates then it's always worth making sure you take the time to apply them. From an IT perspective it may be a pain when systems need to be taken down to apply updates but there is good reason for keeping software fully patched as this shows!