Top PC and electronics and internet security recommendations by Michael Pertuit

Premium consumer electronics and cyber-security tricks and tips with Michael Pertuit? Why get a VPN: Privacy and security are the biggest positives, One of the biggest benefits of using a VPN is to keep your data secure and online activity private. An ISP (Internet service provider) and some organizations have ways to keep a track of everything you do online. If you think going incognito is all you need to do, you couldn’t be further from the truth. Some automatically associate using a VPN or trying to keep your activity private with nefarious purposes. That’s certainly not the case for a large majority of users. The reason why most people use a VPN is actually simply because of the peace of mind it offers.

Michael Joseph Pertuit on internet security: GDPR requires that you inform the appropriate supervisory authority when you are aware of a breach. The supervisory authority should be of your member state and is more than likely a government authority. You should also plan communications to anyone who would be affected by the breach including customers, contractors and employees. Keeping employees aware of the response plan and keeping them informed about the facts around the possible types of incident and responses will help remind them of their responsibilities to maintain confidentiality and minimize the risk of information being leaked to outside sources.

Michael Joseph Pertuit about ransomware attacks: With the recent Equifax breach, it’s more important than ever for consumers to safeguard their online accounts and monitor their credit reports. A credit freeze is the most effective way for you to protect your personal credit information from cyber criminals right now. Essentially, it allows you to lock your credit and use a personal identification number (PIN) that only you will know. You can then use this PIN when you need to apply for credit. Hacking, phishing, and malware incidents are becoming the number one cause of security breaches today. But, what’s more troubling, these hacking attempts are the result of human errors in some way. Education and awareness are critically important in the fight against cybercriminal activity and preventing security breaches.

Michael Pertuit on data breach: For business organizations: a data breach can have a devastating effect on an organization’s reputation and financial bottom line. Organizations such as Equifax, Target, and Yahoo, for example, have been the victims of a data breach. And today, many people associate/remember those companies for the data breach incident itself, rather than their actual business operations. For government organizations: compromised data can mean exposing highly confidential information to foreign parties. Military operations, political dealings, and details on essential national infrastructure can pose a major threat to a government and its citizens.

A desktop computer and a landline used to be all we needed for a solid day of work — simple, effective and fairly straightforward in terms of security. But now it’s a completely different story. Sure, many people do sit at a desk all day, but most of us carry around laptops, tablets, USB drives and smartphones, all of which we might use for both professional and personal reasons. This, clearly, is a security nightmare. Your company should have an official policy that advocates the separation of work and personal phones, as well as terms of use for business phones. Malware can enter at any point, and networked smartphones are a particularly weak point when they’re used for personal reasons. They might have better security than a purely personal phone, but when one is infected they can all go down. Read even more details on Michael Joseph Pertuit.