Stupid Simple Security Tip #14 – BeWare the Dreaded ‘Wares
Our last few tips have helped you secure your online accounts from catastrophic credential breaches, but what happens when the security battle suddenly makes its way to the home front?
Malware, ransomware, adware, and a vast array of viruses are constantly seeking to infiltrate your system – a virtual pack of ‘Ware-wolves’ forever huffing-and-puffing at your front door.
The good news is that you can keep them at bay without the software getting in your way, working quietly in the background to safely update your systems and scan for signs of trouble.
Malicious infections most commonly gain access via exploitable holes in software — these holes are the reason for frequent prompting of patches, but the fixes themselves are often fraught with problems:
- Urgent updates rushed out without debugging may neutralize the immediate threat but create a host of secondary issues (think side effects for medicine)
- Patches designed for one program occasionally make them incompatible with another in your suite (conflicting prescriptions)
- Relying on employees to independently update devices can lead to lag-time long enough that viruses get in (forgetting to take your pills)
Luckily, we have what the doctor ordered.
Macs have excellent protection against such external threats, but they are certainly not immune. We know — we were removing malware and correcting updates for clients so often that we ended up researching and providing a tool to streamline the process to all our clients.
One of the services included within our Security+ solution provides proactive scanning for malware for Macs AND PCs alike. It also installs security and software updates across all your computers and runs regular maintenance and proactive monitoring — saving time AND saving your butt.
Before releasing any patches or software updates out through our tools, we check them for flaws and compatibility issues, then remotely install them on every device once they’re tested and verified. Meanwhile, our remedial/removal scanning for uninvited guests constantly protects against dangers that updating can’t prevent.
Protecting online accounts is imperative, but don’t relent when defending your home turf from adware, ransomware, and malware.
And don’t construct your walls from simple straw or sticks — fight the Big Bad ‘Ware-wolves with the solid brick assurance of tools like Security+.
