PCs are now central to our lives. Your PC might be crucial for work, admin and entertainment. As an expensive and valuable machine, it’s important that you look after your PC and ensure that it runs optimally for as long as possible. Below, we explore how best to protect your PC.
Antivirus software
Adding antivirus software to your PC should be one of your first steps as soon as you purchase the machine. Hackers can use viruses to access your personal information, damage files and even crash your computer. Antivirus software is your best form of protection. Ensure that you update your machine with the appropriate software that performs well with your model. There’s a dizzying array of software out there but try getting something that’s recommended for your computer. This can keep your PC safe from any dangerous external software.
Protection against theft
If you’re concerned about theft, then you can install a physical lock on a laptop or a PC to deter criminals. This can sometimes work as a key that’s required to open the device. As well as this, it’s worth preparing in case your PC does get stolen. In this situation, you should have passwords set up on your laptop to protect your personal information. Plus, you can encrypt the data on your computer to prevent hackers from stealing your information externally.
Keep it cool
Without the right precautions, computers are at risk from overheating. This can damage the machine and limit performance. One option to keep it cool is to use thermal grease as a way of efficiently transferring heat away from the machine. On top of this, you should ensure that your computer is kept in a cool spot with plenty of breathing room for the fan. If you’re using a high-performance CPU, then it could be worth upgrading to a water-cooling kit or installing a more efficient fan to cope with the extra heat.
Enable a firewall
Finally, it’s important that your firewall is enabled. The firewall is a useful system that monitors and controls incoming and outgoing network traffic. This is particularly important as a means of preventing external sources from accessing your network. As such, when you get your computer, you should always quickly ensure that this is switched on. Usually, this is a simple case of searching for your firewall on the searchbar before enabling it.
Protecting your PC is hugely important for your day-to-day life. And by enabling a firewall, keeping it cool, loading the correct antivirus software and by deterring thieves, you can have peace of mind that your computer is as safe as possible.