Cyber-Safety Basics - Security for Everyone

This checklist provides clear, easy to understand info about antivirus software, firewalls, and more.

Secure Your Account and Password

The basics: never share your account info (esp. your password), never write it down, and do change it periodically. This section has more info.

Get an Anti-Virus Program for Your Computer

It is strongly recommended that you download Sophos Anti-Virus, which is available through the MyUCDavis Web portal. Sophos Anti-Virus is free for students, faculty and staff. It is also included on the UC Davis Internet Tools CD, which is available free along with several other useful programs at IT Express in 182 Shields Library.  Make sure that Sophos Anti-Virus is continually running and checking your system for viruses, especially if you are downloading files from the Web, checking your email, or installing unfamiliar programs. Also make sure that Sophos Anti-Virus is set to check for viruses when you first turn on your computer. You should also give your system a thorough scan at least twice a month.

Other Virus Prevention Tips

Ensuring that Sophos Anti-Virus is running and up-to-date: Since new viruses appear frequently, it is important to make sure that your anti-virus program remains updated. Sophos Anti-Virus will periodically update itself, provided you are connected to the Internet; otherwise, the Sophos Anti-Virus shield icon will indicate a failure with a red 'x'.  When this occurs, you should manually force an update by right-clicking the Sophos icon and choosing "Update Now" as soon as you have an Internet connection.

Don't open unfamiliar email attachments: Because many viruses spread through email, you should employ some common sense to protect yourself from them. Don't open any file attachments you are not expecting, even from people you trust. (When in doubt, email your family/friends back to make certain they intended to send you the attachment). And certainly don't open attachments from people you don't even know.

Navigate the Web cautiously: When you are browsing the Internet, be wary of any Web sites that ask you to download anything. Make sure that your anti-virus program is also set to scan any files you do choose to download.

Update your software: Operating system, web browser, and email program vendors often provide security updates or patches, so be sure to check with them regularly to keep your software updated.

Identity Theft

Learn about identity theft, how you can prevent it, and what the campus is doing to protect you.

Maintain Your Computer

Random software crashes and performance degradation can make your computing experience a nightmare. Here are a few tips to help keep your computer healthy:

Get a Surge Protector: Computers need reliable power, so the first thing you need is a surge protector. The UC Davis Bookstore Computer Shop offers several choices. If you rely heavily on your computer, get a battery-powered UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply), which gives you time to save your work in case of a sudden power outage.

Keep your Software Updated: Software designers often update or patch to improve speed, resolve hardware or software conflicts, combat new viruses, or close security holes.

• For Windows, go to windowsupdate.microsoft.com/.
• For Mac OS, go to www.apple.com/support/.

For all other software, see your documentation or the company Web site.

Defrag your hard drive: Like a real-world closet or filing cabinet, a hard drive can get pretty disorganized. Therefore, you should "clean up" or defragment your disk every so often, to improve the performance of your computer. In Windows operating systems, use Disk Defragmenter program under Start->Programs->Accessories->System Tools to begin defragmenting your disk. For the Mac you can use third party software such as Symantec Utilities.

Scan your hard drive: Whenever your computer crashes or you improperly shut it down, problems may arise with your hard disks. Windows 2000 and XP, and MacOS automatically check for problems at startup when your machine wasn't shut down correctly. You should let the disk scanning utility run uninterrupted. You should periodically check for errors as part of routine maintenance for your computer. The Windows utility, called "ScanDisk," is available under Programs->Accessories->System Tools in your Start Menu. For the Mac, the equivalent tool, "Disk First Aid," is in the Utilities folder or is available as a download at Apple's Web site.

Back up Your System

Backing up your computer involves placing a duplicate copy of your data onto a secondary medium, such as floppy disks, a recordable CD, or even an online server or Web site. If your hard drive fails or you accidentally delete a file, you can rely on the backup to recover files. You should backup your class documents and file, like essays and email. You should also consider backing up your operating system, software and settings since reinstalling them can be a lengthy process.

How often should I back up my computer?
Depending on the number of files you work with and the frequency in which they are modified or created, you can do a backup as often as every day or as infrequently as every quarter. The key is to determine a schedule such that it will not be too difficult to recreate or update your data from your last backup. For example, if you work with a database that is updated daily, then you should back up daily. On the other hand, if you type only a few documents a month, it is acceptable to backup once a month. A lot of backup software will also allow you to schedule your backups so you don't have to do it yourself. You should also do an extra back up whenever you perform any delicate tasks on your computer, such as formatting a hard disk or upgrading a piece of hardware

How should I back it up?
There are a myriad of ways to backup, from using dedicated backup software, to using Windows' backup utility, or simply using Windows Explorer or MacOS Finder. There are also many secondary medium that you can store your backups including CD-Rs, DVDs, or even online. How much and how often you want to backup usually determines the methods you will use. If you need to backup very often, you should invest in a large capacity medium (i.e., an external hard drive) in conjunction with robust backup software.

Do I need software?
If you do not need to backup on a very frequent basis, you probably don't need any special backup software, and can instead use your file manager (Windows Explorer, Mac Finder) to copy files to a removable medium (e.g., drag and drop your files to a flash drive). You can also use Windows' Backup utility if you use a PC; however, if you need to backup more often, you should purchase specialized backup software, which can automate much of the procedure.

Make Sure Your Backup Works
A backup can give you a false sense of security, since the media that you use is also prone to damage. To counter this, you should periodically test your backup media by recopying the backup to your computer or using your backup software's restore process. You should also keep your backup away from your computer and someplace safe, so a natural disaster or theft will not strike both your computer and your backup. Finally, don't use the same disc for each backup. Instead, use two or more and rotate them for each backup you do so if the most recent backup fails, you can rely on the second most recent.

Get More Info on Computer Security

The campus Computer & Network Security Web site provides a wealth of information on computing security issues, including the latest virus alerts.