National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM) is observed in October of each year since 2004.

Following are some security tips from Ranch Wireless to help keep you safe online;

Keep your Machine UTD –

This means, always keeping your operating system, internet browsers, security software and generally all your software up to date with the latest updates and versions. This is especially important with your security and anti-virus software as well as your operating system. Keeping your automatic updates turned on can help keep your machine up to date if the option is available. The same is true for your smartphones, tablets and any other device you use to connect to the internet, including USBs and other external devices that can be plugged into your machine.

Open with Care –

Whether or not it is an email from a good friend, a tweet, a post on your Facebook timeline or an advertisement that popped up will shopping for that new pair of shoes you’ve been dreaming about, if it doesn’t look right, it’s probably not, so DON’T click on it to find out!!! Delete the email, message or post or close the pop up and move on.

When using free Wifi from your favorite coffee shop or your local McDonalds do not conduct any business online that you would not want to share with the world. In other words, things that are private, like passwords, credit card numbers and other sensitive data should not be entered while using a public Wifi connection, even if the site is secure (Contains the http[s]://) if your connection to the internet is public then so might the information you are keying in! Banking and shopping are online activities better left for home!

Help Keep the Web Safe –

Help Ranch Wireless in the fight cybercrime by reporting stolen finances and identities!