Three Ways to Stay More Secure in the Online World

In today's internet-driven world, staying secure online is more important than ever. As the internet grows, so do hackers and cybercrime, so staying safe can be a huge headache! Do not worry though, because in today's article, you will learn three ways you can stay more secure online! So without any more hanging around, let's get started!

The first step to staying secure online is always an antivirus. These powerful programs can protect against all sorts of threats, from malware to network attacks, and much more! Nowadays, most of them even come with add blockers and other helpful features for your day-to-day life! I would recommend an antivirus on all devices, from PCs to phones, to iMacs, as no device is 100% secure. For starters, make sure you have an antivirus on all your devices (Most come with family or multi-device plans) and also make sure it is on and ready. Here is a list of some good and bad antivirus programs below:

GOOD:

Avast One (https://www.avast.com/en-us/avast-one)

Kaspersky Premeum (https://usa.kaspersky.com/premium)

BAD:

McAfee

Windows Defender

If you have a bad antivirus on your devices, consider getting one of our recommended ones, for better protection. With that done, let's move on to the next step!

We download a lot of files because they are useful! From the informational PDF document to the productive .exe app, downloads help us get a lot done! But they can also be bad. Virtually any code file could be malware, and even non-code files can try to trick you (.pdf.exe is a common one!) So before you download a file, ask yourself: Why am I downloading this? Do I need it? Was I pressured to download it by an ad or pop-up? Looking back, does it seem liget? Did I have to bypass or ignore security warnings to get here? Think about the answers, and if they all point to it being malware or an unwanted file, close that tab! You can also run files through this online scanner called Virus Total (https://www.virustotal.com/gui/home/upload) and it will tell you how many antivirus programs flagged the file as malware!

Do this for every file, and you can expect a lot less malware downloads In the future! Now that we've got that down, let's move on to the third and final step!

Now, while staying protected is awesome, it still does not address any existing malware or threats on your devices. To help get rid of these nasty pests, start by running a scan with your antivirus, and see what it finds. Make sure to remove any found threats, but check to make sure they are not false positives first! Once you are done with that, look around! If you have any apps that you don't need or don't want, get rid of them! Even if they are not malware, more programs are always more places for a bug or exploit to be found, and those can lead to some bad infections, to say the least.

We hope you liked our three-step security guide, and have a more secure and happy day!